Have you ever been offered a $12 per hour job? Considering it, maybe you wondered: $12 an hour Is how much a year? Find out whether you can live comfortably with that amount and how you could increase that income.
Having a grasp of your basic money situation, starting with your income, will give you a better understanding of making your financial life better.
In this article, we’ll walk you through calculating your paycheck if you earn $12 on an hourly basis. We’ll calculate your annual, monthly, weekly, biweekly, and daily income. We will also look at your salary after the government deductions and taxes. Let’s begin!
$12 an Hour Is How Much a Year?
Before computing the total amount of money you will be making in a year, it is important to calculate the total number of hours worked based on the hourly rate of pay.
Suppose you have a full-time job that requires you to work for 8 hours a day. Considering the weekend as a holiday, you will be working for 40 weekly hours from Monday to Friday for 52 calendar weeks. The calculation is shown below:
- $12 * (40 hours * 52 weeks/year = 2,080 hours) = $24,960
You will be compensated around $24,960 a year if you get a full-time job that pays you $12 an hour.
Remember that this amount can increase if you work more hours and are entitled to overtime pay or hours worked in excess. It can also be less if you take days off or unpaid sick leave.
If you work part-time at 4 hours a day, 5 days a week, and 52 weeks a year, or 1,040 hours total annually, you will be getting $12,480 in wages per year at a $12 hourly rate.
How Much Is $12 an Hour Annually After Taxes?
Your income is subject to both federal and state taxes. Depending on your income bracket and where you live, a certain tax percentage is deducted from your gross income figure. You are also entitled to certain exemptions depending on your status.
The US states have different tax rates, and if you live or work in a state with a low tax rate or do not impose state taxes, your deductions will be less. As per federal law, national taxes and items such as Medicare, social security, and disability insurance are standard deductions for all workers, regardless of their location.
Here are the states that do not deduct income taxes:
- Alaska
- Florida
- Nevada
- south dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Wyoming
From the previous section, your annual gross salary will be $24,960 if you earn $12 an hour. Let’s compute a range of income when you live or work in a place with no state taxes (eg, Texas) to a state with the highest tax percentage in the US (California).
In California, if you work full-time with an 8-hour workday at $12 an hour, you will take home $21,111 after deducting $3,849 government due. On the other hand, living in a no-state-tax place like Texas will have you netting $21,760 annually after $3,200 in taxes have been deducted.
It is important to consider taxes as you calculate your salary as they increase simultaneously. Income tax contributes directly to the good economic condition of your country, the roads you drive on, and the public services you use.
How Much Is $12 an Hour per Month?
If you work an 8-hour day, 5 days a week at a $12 hourly rate, how much can you make in a month?
To simplify the calculation, let’s divide the earlier gross annual income by 12 months ($24,960/12 months). This will give us the amount of $2,080 a month as your gross pay.
Then, you have to pay $321 taxes in California and $267 in Texas, which will give you a monthly net pay of $1,759 and $1,813, respectively, if you are a full-time employee.
If you work part-time at 20 hours per day, you will get $1,040 as your monthly income. Taxes range from $94 in California to $81 in Texas, which nets you a monthly income of $946 and $959, respectively.
How Much Is $12 Hourly Rate per Week?
With an hourly rate of $12, you will earn $480 weekly while working 40 hours full-time. Your post-tax income per week will be $406 after $74 taxes in California and $418 after $62 taxes in Texas.
As a part-timer, working half the 8-hour-a-day grind, you will also get half of the above-stated amount ($12 * 4 hours/day * 5 days/week), which is $240 weekly. After taxes ($22 in Cali and $19 in Texas), your net pay in a workweek will be $218 and $221, respectively.
If you are eligible for overtime, make sure to add the hourly bonus to your weekly salary during the calculation. If you take some days off or work fewer hours, you will receive lower take-home pay.
How Much Is $12 per Hour Biweekly?
$12 per hour for 2 weeks will give you $960, based on a full-time worker’s weekly income of $480. Simply multiply the $480 by 2 weeks to get your biweekly income, or you can also multiply your total number of hours (8 hours/day * 5 days * $12/hour * 2 weeks) to get the same amount.
As a full-time worker, your deductions will be $148 in California and $123 in Texas, leaving you with a net weekly pay of $812 and $873, respectively.
If you are a part-timer earning $12 per hour, with 20 hours of your working time weekly, you can make 480 dollars every 2 weeks. Your taxes will be $43 in California and $38 in Texas, leaving you with biweekly take-home pay of $437 and $442, respectively.
How Much Is $12 an Hour per Day?
You will be able to make $96 daily if you earn $12 an hour as a full-time hourly employee. After subtracting the $15 tax in California, your income becomes $81. If you live or work in Texas, your daily income will be $84 after deducting $12 in taxes.
If you work part-time, 4 hours at a $12 pay rate, your daily pay is $48. Taxes in California will set you back $4.33, leaving you with a $43.67 net daily income. You will get $44.24 daily after a $3.76 tax deduction in Texas.
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the prevailing US minimum wage stated in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) is $7.25 an hour, below the $12 hourly rate discussed. However, each state has its own wage laws that give different state minimum wages; minimum hourly pay could go as high as $15.20 in the District of Columbia.
Summary – $12 an Hour Is How Much a Year?
This is your income per pay period if you work full-time:
$12 per Hour (Full-Time) | Total Income (Before Deductions) |
Yearly salary (52 weeks) | $24,960 |
Monthly salary (12 months/year) | $2,080 |
Weekly income (40 Hours) | $480 |
Bi-Weekly income (80 Hours) | $960 |
Daily income (8 Hours) | $96 |
Net Estimated Monthly Income (after tax) | $1,759–$1,813 |
What Jobs Pay $12 an Hour?
There are a lot of companies with great benefits offering different job roles with way more than 12 dollars an hour salary to pay employees. Every job has its own specific requirements to be fulfilled to get hired.
We have listed some of the best jobs or occupations where you can earn 12 dollars an hour:
- Cashier
- Dishwasher
- Busser
- Ship
- cooking
- Part-time Weekend Companion/Caregiver
- Mailroom Specialist
- Dock Hand
- Housekeeping Help
Is $12 an Hour Good?
An annual gross income of $24,960 means that your pay is less than half the median income of US full-time wage workers, which is $51,480. If you work part-time, your earnings maybe even less than that.
If you can live a simple life solo, 12 dollars an hour can fulfill your basic needs. For an average family of 4, it will not be an adequate amount.
Living in comfort will also depend on multiple factors, such as your state’s cost of living, your debts if there are any, and your lifestyle and spending habits.
Can You Live on $12 an Hour?
Yes, you can live on 12 dollars an hour salary, but make sure that you keep your expenses according to your budget.
Every person has a different lifestyle and outlook on life, directly affecting their expenses and desires. Not everything can be bought in this world because no one has unlimited cash in their pockets.
Managing your life according to your income is the best way to go higher up the ladder of success. Invest some, save some, and spend some on things you want to buy. Separating an adequate amount for everything will never leave you with an empty wallet.
Tips For Living on $12 an Hour
Now that you know how much you are making at each pay period, you can allocate your money smarter to make your life easier. Start having financial goalsbe it saving for a vacation, starting your own businessgold retiring early.
Financial plans and tools, such as a regular-budget, an income and expense log, etc., can help you manage and increase your assets. You can increase your savings by reducing your spending: save at least 20 percent of your income for savings and investment.
The more time you invest in your job (ie, overtime work or self-development program that can lead to promotion and pay raise), the more money you will be able to make. You can earn extra money every week if you invest extra two hours on alternative days, adding up to 6 hours a week.
That $72 weekly can boost your monthly salary by a whopping $288, making it $2,208 per month.
Outside of your regular work, here are some other money-making ideas:
- Take part in online surveys. You will get paid by answering questionnaires or joining focus groups sponsored by product research companies. Read about some of the best online survey sites for earning cash and gift cards:
- Get a data entry job. You can earn cash while working from your home in a flexible work arrangement. Basic requirements include typing skills, attention to detail, and computer and Internet connection.
- Sell your skills as a part-time freelancer in online job platforms like Fiverr, FlexJobs, and Upwork. If you have marketable skills like software development, marketing, proofreading, graphic design, etc., you should try creating a smashing resume and listing your profile at sites that offer flexible working arrangements.
- Be an online transcriptionist. If you are good at grammar, pay keen attention to details, and have a good headset and reliable internet, you can work as a transcriptionist. Here’s a transcription guide to get you started.
- Offer tutorial services. There are many online teaching opportunities in English language tutorials and subjects like Math and Science. You can share your knowledge while you earn cash.
- Work as a Virtual Assistant. Working from home with flexible hours, you can do your tasks as virtual support for the company’s full-time staff. The work could range from routine office stuff like answering emails to managing the boss’s schedule.
If you still need to make extra cash, give some time to pursue a few side hustles.
Conclusion – $12 an Hour Is How Much a Year?
Working full-time at $12 an hour brings you an annual gross income of $24,960. We have shared some ideas on how to spend your income, providing a guide to how you can live on 12 dollars an hour.
Each of us has our own financial empowerment journeys, and we hope that this post has been helpful to yours.
If you want to learn more about how much you will make in a year at different pay rates, check out our related posts:
Marjolein is a financial consultant who has built over €4,000 monthly passive income and saves over 70% of her income. Read Radicals’ inspiring story, from stuck in the 9-to-5 to loving life. Feel free to send Radical a message at the bottom of this page