AstraCalculator

Pay Raise Calculator

Enter your pay now and the raise you have been offered. You get the new rate, the increase in each paycheck, and what the raise is really worth after tax and inflation.

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A negative number works too, if the change is a pay cut.

hours

Used to convert between an hourly rate and a yearly one.

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Federal, state and payroll tax on the extra dollars. Around 26 percent is typical on a middle income.

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How the math works

new pay = current pay x (1 + raise / 100). The per paycheck figure divides the yearly increase by the number of paychecks: 26 for every two weeks, 24 for twice a month. Those two are not the same thing, and a raise looks smaller on a 26 week schedule because it is spread over more checks. The real value divides the new pay by (1 + inflation), which restates it in the dollars you had before. If your raise percentage is smaller than inflation, the result is less than what you started with, no matter how much bigger the number on the offer looks.

Common questions

How do I calculate a percentage raise?
Multiply your current pay by 1 plus the percentage as a decimal. A 4 percent raise on $62,000 is 62000 x 1.04, which is $64,480. To go the other way, divide the increase by the old pay: $2,480 / $62,000 is 0.04, or 4 percent.
What is a good annual raise?
US merit increases have typically run between 3 and 4.5 percent a year. Anything at or below inflation leaves you no better off, so the honest test is not the percentage but whether it beats the rise in prices over the same period.
How much is a 3% raise per hour?
On $25 an hour it is 75 cents, taking you to $25.75. Over a 40 hour week that is $30 more, and about $1,560 more a year before tax.
Why is my raise smaller in my paycheck than I expected?
Two reasons. Tax is taken on the extra dollars at your marginal rate, which is higher than your average rate, and the yearly increase is split across 24 or 26 paychecks. A $2,480 raise is about $70 a check before tax and closer to $50 after it.
Does a raise push me into a higher tax bracket and cost me money?
No. US tax brackets are marginal, so only the dollars above the threshold are taxed at the higher rate. Earning one dollar more never leaves you with less after tax. The idea that it does is a persistent myth.
How do I ask for a raise as a dollar figure?
Work out the percentage first, then name the salary rather than the percentage. Asking for $72,000 is a clearer conversation than asking for 9 percent, and it puts the discussion on market rate for the role instead of on last year.

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