CompareMage

Work and career

Salary vs Hourly Comparison

Put a salary and an hourly wage on the same annual, monthly, weekly, and hourly scale using the hours you actually work.

Decision: If I work these hours, which pay structure produces more cash?

This comparison runs in your browser. CompareMage does not send the numbers you enter to our servers.

Salaried role

Option A

Hourly role

Option B

Comparison result

Hourly role produces more annual cash.

The annual gap is $11,700.00 (18.75%). That is gross pay, not take-home pay, and it is not a recommendation to accept a job.

Higher annual cash
Hourly role
Annual difference
$11,700.00
Percent difference
18.75%
Pay comparison
RoleAnnualMonthlyEquivalent hourlyHours counted
Salaried role$62,400.00$5,200.00$30.002080
Hourly role$74,100.00$6,175.00$31.672340

How to read the result

The higher annual figure is more cash under the hours you entered. It is not a recommendation to take that job. Benefits, commute, and schedule still sit in the decision-factor column.

Calculated facts

Totals, differences, and break-even figures come only from the values on this page. They describe the math, not what you should do.

Decision factors

Fit, risk, time, quality, and personal constraints stay outside the calculator. A cheaper path can still be the wrong path for those reasons.

Methodology

Hourly annual pay is rate × regular hours × weeks, plus overtime hours × rate × multiplier when overtime is marked paid. Salary annual pay is the salary, plus the same overtime formula if you enable it. Equivalent hourly is annual pay divided by all hours worked. Monthly is annual / 12.

Assumptions

  • Pay is gross, not take-home.
  • Overtime is weekly and paid only when the switch is on.

Examples

Classic 2,080 conversion

$62,400 a year at 40 hours and 52 weeks is $30.00 an hour. $30 an hour at the same schedule is $62,400 a year.

Hourly with overtime

$28 an hour, 40 regular hours, 5 overtime hours at 1.5×, 52 weeks, is $65,520 a year — more than a $60,000 salary with no overtime.

How to use it

  1. Set each side to salary or hourly and enter the stated pay.
  2. Enter hours per week, weeks per year, and overtime if it is paid.
  3. Compare annual cash and the equivalent hourly rate.

Limits

  • Shift differentials, tips, and commissions are not modeled unless you fold them into the amount.
  • This is not legal advice about FLSA overtime status.

Questions

Why not always use 2,080 hours?

2,080 is 40 hours times 52 weeks. If you work 45 hours, take unpaid weeks off, or have a school-year schedule, that shortcut misstates the hourly equivalent. Enter your hours and weeks.

Does a salary automatically include overtime?

Many US salaried roles are overtime-exempt. The overtime-paid switch is off for salary by default in the examples. Turn it on only if that job actually pays overtime.

Is this after-tax pay?

No. The tool compares gross pay. Withholding, benefits, and location taxes are outside the calculation.

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