What this calculator works out
This calculator converts an annual salary into an hourly rate, along with the monthly and weekly equivalents. It divides the salary by the number of hours you actually work in a year.
The arithmetic is exact. What makes the answer useful or misleading is the hours figure you give it — and for many salaried roles, contracted hours and worked hours are not the same number.
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Before you convert
- Use contracted hours for a like-for-like comparison with an advertised rate, and actual hours if you want to know what your time is really worth.
- Leave paid weeks at 52 for a salaried role. Paid annual leave is already included in the salary, so reducing the weeks would overstate the hourly rate.
- Exclude unpaid breaks. A 37.5-hour week is usually 40 hours on site with 2.5 hours of unpaid lunch.
- Remember this is gross. Deductions come out afterwards.
A salaried employee is paid for holiday, so the salary already covers all 52 weeks. Dividing by 46 or 47 to 'remove' holiday would inflate the hourly rate. Only reduce the weeks figure if there are genuinely unpaid weeks in the year, such as term-time-only contracts.
How this calculator works
One division, done carefully:
Hourly rate = annual salary ÷ (hours per week × paid weeks per year)
Monthly = annual salary ÷ 12
Weekly = annual salary ÷ 52The monthly figure is the salary divided by twelve rather than derived from weeks, because that is how monthly salaries are actually paid. This means the monthly figure is not exactly 4.333 times the weekly one, which is correct rather than an error.
Worked example: £35,000 on a 37.5-hour week
Using the default figures — £35,000 a year, 37.5 hours a week, 52 paid weeks:
- Hours per year: 37.5 × 52 = 1,950
- Hourly rate: £35,000 ÷ 1,950 = £17.95 an hour
- Monthly: £35,000 ÷ 12 = £2,916.67
- Weekly: £35,000 ÷ 52 = £673.08
Now try it with the hours you actually work. If that 37.5-hour role routinely runs to 45 hours, the same salary is worth £14.96 an hour — a reduction of nearly 17%. Salaried roles do not pay overtime, so extra hours dilute the rate rather than adding to the pay. This is the comparison worth making before accepting a role or judging one you are already in.
Common mistakes
- Deducting holiday weeks from a salaried role. The salary already covers them.
- Including unpaid lunch breaks in the hours. This understates the true rate.
- Comparing a gross salary rate with a net hourly figure. Compare gross with gross.
- Ignoring benefits when comparing roles. Employer pension contributions, holiday allowance above the statutory minimum and sick pay have real value.
- Using contracted hours when the culture expects far more.
Frequently asked questions
How does this compare with the National Minimum Wage?
The minimum wage is set as an hourly rate, so converting a salary is the only way to check compliance. Take care to use the hours actually worked, and remember that time spent on required training, travelling between assignments and some on-call arrangements may count as working time. The current rates are on GOV.UK.
Should I use 52 weeks or fewer?
52 for almost every salaried role. Use fewer only where there are genuinely unpaid weeks, such as some term-time-only contracts, in which case the salary is usually already calculated on that basis and your contract will say so.
Does this account for overtime?
No. Salaried roles typically do not pay overtime, which is precisely why comparing contracted with actual hours is worth doing. If you are paid separately for extra hours, use the Overtime Pay Calculator.
Is the hourly rate before or after tax?
Before. To find the take-home equivalent, run the salary through the UK Payslip Estimator first and convert the net figure instead.
Why is the monthly figure not four times the weekly one?
Because a year has 52.18 weeks, not 48. A month averages about 4.35 weeks, so multiplying a weekly figure by four understates monthly pay by roughly 8%.
Related tools
References
- GOV.UK — National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage rates, and what counts as working time
- MoneyHelper — guidance on comparing job offers and understanding pay
Sources are checked at publication and can change — how I choose and check references.