Biweekly Pay Calculator

Biweekly pay means you are paid every two weeks, on the same weekday, for example every other Friday. That is 26 paychecks in most years. The amounts here are gross pay, before taxes and deductions.

Divide the annual salary by 26. For hourly pay, multiply the rate by the hours worked in the two-week period. $60,000 ÷ 26 = $2,307.69, and $25 × 80 hours = $2,000.

Biweekly is every two weeks, 26 paychecks a year. Semi-monthly is twice a month on set dates, such as the 15th and the last day, 24 paychecks a year, so each check is larger. On a $60,000 salary that is $2,307.69 biweekly against $2,500 semi-monthly. The yearly total is the same. Which schedules an employer may use depends on state payday law.

Usually 26. When the first payday falls on January 1 (January 1 or 2 in a leap year), there are 27, because 27 paydays span 364 days and only fit when the first one is that early.

Only for a schedule with a payday on Friday, January 1, 2027. That schedule has 27 paydays, the last on Friday, December 31, 2027. January 1 is New Year's Day, so if that check is paid on Thursday, December 31, 2026 instead, it counts in 2026. The other Friday schedule (January 8, 2027) has 26 paydays. Enter your own payday to check any year.

It depends on your payday. In 2027, Friday paydays starting January 8 give three checks in April and October. Paydays starting January 1 give three in January, July and December. Enter any payday and the calculator lists the 3-paycheck months for that year.

No. Biweekly gives two extra paychecks a year compared with twice-a-month pay, but each check is smaller.

Under federal law, overtime is counted per workweek, and averaging hours over two weeks is not allowed. If someone works 45 hours one week and 35 the next, that is 80 hours, but the 45-hour week still has 5 overtime hours. At $25 an hour, the half-time premium adds $62.50, for $2,062.50 instead of $2,000. This calculator shows straight-time pay only.