How to Calculate an Average Hourly Wage | Sapling

How to Calculate an Average Hourly Wage

Will My Kids Get Back Pay for My SSD?
Written By
Carolyn Barton
Carolyn Barton
Feb 6, 2010
1 minute read

At many places of business, an employee is paid a set weekly or monthly salary, rather than an hourly rate. The salary is not based on hours worked, which means that overtime is not counted or paid at the usual rate. Hours missed are also not docked from the normal rate of pay. In most instances, the employee is required to work a minimum number of hours each pay period. Calculating your average hourly rate is not difficult and will only take a few minutes.

Step 1

Calculate the amount that you make each year. This needs to be the gross amount before taxes or other deductions. For example, if you are paid $2,000 a month, you would multiply that amount by 12 to factor your yearly income. If you are paid every two weeks, multiply your salary by 24. If weekly, then your salary would be multiplied by 52.

Step 2

Calculate the number hours you generally work each week. You will then multiple those hours by 52.

Step 3

Divide the amount that you make per year by the number of hours you work each year. The result will be your average hourly pay. For example, if you make $2,000 a month, that results in $24,000 per year. Assuming you work a 40 hour week, you would divide $24,000 by 2,080 (40 hours x 52 weeks), which calculates to $11.53 an hour.

Carolyn Barton

Carolyn Barton has an associate degree in business management from Seminole Community College and has been writing professionally since 2007. Her articles have appeared on websites such as Firehouse.com. She specializes in website content…

Sponsored
Sapling Logo

We demystify personal finance and make financial adulting easier. From student loans to credit and investing, all the money questions you were ever afraid to ask are right here.

Property of TechnologyAdvice. © 2026 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.