Income annualisation calculator

Pay is quoted at whatever frequency suits the payer. This converts any of them to an annual figure so they can be compared.

The conversion people get wrong is monthly to annual: multiplying a fortnightly amount by two and then by twelve is not the same as multiplying it by twenty-six, and the difference is about 8%.

What to enter

Frequency
How the amount is quoted. Hourly requires the hours per week; the others do not.
Hours per week
Only used for an hourly rate. Australian full-time is commonly 38 hours, though 37.5 and 40 are both widespread — the award or contract governs.

Reading the result

The annual figure is what to compare between offers, and what to enter into the income tax calculator.

A year contains 52 weeks and 26 fortnights but only 12 months. Anyone paid fortnightly receives 26 payments a year, which is not 24 — the two extra fortnights are why fortnightly pay does not divide evenly into monthly budgeting.

This is a gross figure. Superannuation, tax and any salary sacrifice come out of it.

Worked examples

Every figure below is computed by the same calculator on this page, from the inputs described. Nothing here is typed in by hand, so an example cannot disagree with the tool.

$45 an hour at 38 hours a week

Gross income, yearly: $88,920
Weekly: $1,710
Fortnightly: $3,420

The annual figure is what an equivalent salaried role would need to offer, before super.

$3,400 a fortnight

Gross income, yearly: $88,400
Weekly: $1,700
Fortnightly: $3,400

Twenty-six payments, not twenty-four. Multiplying by 24 to reach an annual figure understates the salary by roughly 8%.

How it is worked out

Hourly is multiplied by hours per week and then by 52. Weekly by 52, fortnightly by 26, monthly by 12, quarterly by 4.

Fifty-two weeks is the convention rather than 52.18, which is the true average. Employment agreements and payroll systems use 52, so matching them is what makes the figure comparable to a payslip.

How every calculator on this site is built

What it assumes

Consistent pay across the year
No overtime, no bonus, no unpaid leave. Variable income needs an average rather than a single period.
A gross amount
Before tax and before superannuation.

Where it stops being right

Superannuation is not included
An Australian salary may be quoted as a base plus super or as a package including it. The difference is material and worth confirming before comparing two offers.
Casual loading is not separated
A casual hourly rate includes a loading in place of paid leave. Comparing a casual rate against a permanent one on annual gross alone overstates the casual position.

Income tax calculator
Works out income tax and the Medicare levy on a resident individual’s taxable income, using the statutory rate scale for the income year you choose.
Savings goal calculator
Works out how much to set aside each period to reach a savings target by a deadline.
Negative gearing calculator
Works out what an investment property costs after tax, by comparing tax on your income with and without the property’s rental loss.

All tax and income calculators

Putting this calculator on your own site

This calculator can be embedded on a business website, branded to match it, with a call to action that sends the enquiry to that business rather than collecting anything here.