Pay Raise Calculator
Enter your current pay and the raise — as a percent, an amount, or your new rate — to see what it’s worth per paycheck, month and year.
Gross amounts. For hourly rates, annual figures assume 40 h/week, 52 weeks.
How to read a raise
Raises get quoted three ways — “4%”, “an extra $2,000”, or “your new salary is $57,200”. They’re all the same math from different angles:
Worked example
A 4% raise on $55,000 means a new salary of $57,200 — an extra $2,200/year, which lands as about +$84.62 per biweekly paycheck (+$183.33/month) before taxes.
What counts as a good raise?
- Annual merit increases at U.S. employers have recently budgeted around 3.5–4% on average, with high performers earning more.
- Promotions typically carry 8–15%.
- Changing employers historically brings the largest jumps — often 10–20%.
- The real test is inflation: your real raise ≈ nominal raise − inflation. A 4% raise during 3% inflation grows buying power by roughly 1%; the same raise under 5% inflation is a real pay cut.
Quick reference: raise on common salaries
| Current salary | 3% raise | 5% raise | 10% raise |
|---|---|---|---|
| $40,000 | +$1,200 | +$2,000 | +$4,000 |
| $50,000 | +$1,500 | +$2,500 | +$5,000 |
| $60,000 | +$1,800 | +$3,000 | +$6,000 |
| $75,000 | +$2,250 | +$3,750 | +$7,500 |
| $100,000 | +$3,000 | +$5,000 | +$10,000 |
Frequently asked questions
How much is a 5% raise on $50,000?
+$2,500/year, for a new salary of $52,500. That is roughly +$96 per biweekly paycheck or +$208/month before taxes.
Will a raise push me into a higher tax bracket and leave me with less?
You can never take home less because of a raise. U.S. brackets are marginal: only the dollars above each threshold are taxed at the higher rate — every raise increases net pay.
How do I calculate my raise percentage from two paychecks?
Use gross (pre-tax) amounts: (new gross − old gross) ÷ old gross × 100. Comparing net pay muddies it with withholding and benefit changes. Choose “New pay figure” mode above and enter per-period grosses — the percentage is the same at any period length.
When do raises usually take effect?
Most commonly at the start of the first full pay period after the effective date. If it takes effect mid-period, that check is split between the old and new rates — prorate each portion by workdays.
Last reviewed: 2026-08-20 · Report an issue