A raise is usually announced as a percentage, but you live on dollars: what changes in each paycheck, and whether the increase keeps up with prices. This calculator turns a raise into new annual, monthly, per-paycheck and hourly pay, works out the percentage between two pay rates, and checks the result against inflation.
How to use the pay raise calculator
- Choose Apply a raise to see your new pay, or Find my raise % if you already know both the old and the new pay.
- Enter your current pay per year, per month or per hour, and your usual hours per week.
- Enter the raise as a percent or a dollar amount in the same period as your pay — or enter the new pay.
- Optionally add inflation for the past year and a marginal tax rate to see the after-tax change per paycheck.
Raise formulas
Hourly pay converts to yearly pay as hourly rate × hours per week × 52. A 40-hour week is 2,080 hours a year.
Worked example
You earn $65,000 and receive a 4% raise. Inflation over the past year was 3%, and your combined marginal tax rate — federal, state and FICA — is about 30%.
New pay = 65,000 × 1.04 = $67,600, an increase of $2,600 a year
Per biweekly paycheck: +$100 before tax, about +$70 after tax
Hourly equivalent: $31.25 → $32.50
Real raise = 1.04 ÷ 1.03 − 1 = +0.97%
Only about $650 of the $2,600 is a gain in buying power; the remaining $1,950 simply keeps pace with higher prices.
What a raise is worth over time
| Raise | Extra per year on $65,000 | Extra per biweekly check | Pay after 10 years of the same raise |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2% | $1,300 | $50 | $79,235 |
| 3% | $1,950 | $75 | $87,355 |
| 4% | $2,600 | $100 | $96,216 |
| 5% | $3,250 | $125 | $105,878 |
Because each raise builds on the last, the gap between a 3% and a 5% raise grows from $1,300 in year one to more than $18,000 a year after a decade. That compounding is why negotiating the starting salary and early raises matters so much.
Tips for evaluating a raise
- Compare with inflation. The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes the Consumer Price Index each month; the 12-month change is the usual benchmark for a cost-of-living adjustment.
- Look at total compensation. A smaller raise with a bigger retirement match or lower health premiums can be worth more.
- Check the market. If similar jobs pay much more, a raise that only tracks inflation may still leave you behind.
- Model a promotion. Use the dollar-amount option to see a jump to a new salary band.
To see how past raises compare with inflation over several years, use the salary inflation calculator. For the paycheck itself, try the gross pay calculator.
Figures are before taxes and deductions unless a tax rate is entered. This is an estimate, not financial or tax advice.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate a percentage raise?
Multiply your current pay by 1 plus the raise as a decimal. A 4% raise on $65,000 is $65,000 × 1.04 = $67,600. To find the percentage from two salaries, subtract the old pay from the new pay and divide by the old pay: (68,500 − 65,000) ÷ 65,000 = 5.38%.
How much more will I get per paycheck?
Divide the annual increase by the number of paychecks: 26 if paid every two weeks, 24 if paid twice a month. A $2,600 raise adds $100 to each biweekly paycheck before taxes. After income and payroll taxes, the take-home increase is noticeably smaller.
What is a real raise?
A real raise adjusts for inflation: (1 + raise) ÷ (1 + inflation) − 1. A 4% raise in a year with 3% inflation increases buying power by only about 0.97%. If inflation is higher than your raise, your pay buys less than before.
Can a raise put me in a higher tax bracket and lower my pay?
No. US brackets are marginal, so only the dollars above a bracket threshold are taxed at the higher rate. A raise always increases take-home pay, although means-tested benefits or credits can shrink in some cases.