Is $35,000 a year a sound amount as your living wage? Does having this amount as an annual pay enough? Is this aligned with fair labor standards nowadays? Let’s figure this out.
A salaried employee usually earns wages based on a pay rate as part of their remuneration package. Depending on the hours worked, salaried employees working on an hourly pay structure can have different weekly pay based on the number of hours worked during the workweek or pay period.
You can get paid depending on all hours worked. Do you think this kind of salary calculation works for you? Your hourly rate of pay is constant, and your paycheck will depend on your work hours. How would you know if your take-home pay based on this wage and hour setup will meet your cost of living expenses?
Let’s learn how to calculate your hourly wages to understand if you are getting compensated accordingly. Let’s see if your per week net pay justifies your regular rate of pay and, if not, what you can do to improve your occupation and situation.
$35,000 Per Year Is How Much An Hour?
Are you trying to figure out how much money you’ll make at your new job? In 2019, the median household income was a little more than $60,000 a year. So, how much will you earn each hour if you earn $35,000 per year?
We used very basic math to determine how much money you’d make every hour if you made $35,000 in a year. Assume that you work an average of 40 hours every week.
After making this assumption, it becomes easier to calculate what you earn. You know that we have 52 weeks in a year. By multiplying 40 working hours a week with 52 weeks, you’re working 2,080 hours a year.
Divide $35,000 salary by the total number of working hours, 2,080, to get your hourly wage. Based on this, you’ll be paid $16.82 every hour if you have an annual salary of $35,000.
Using this information, you can decide whether the job is worth your effort or not.
Remember that this payment is before paying insurance, taxes, or other bills. Your final income will be the amount deposited in your bank, which you can consume for your own purposes.
$35,000 Per Year is How Much Monthly?
If you work an average of 40 hours each week, your monthly compensation can be calculated as $35,000 divided by 12 months or roughly $2,916 per month.
Using this information, you can check whether your monthly expenses are higher or lower than this amount and if this wage is suitable for your needs where you live.
$17 an Hour is How Much a Year?
When you want to know $17 per hour is how much a year, let’s do the math. For starters, we again assume that you work for around 40 hours a week.
In case you are a part-time worker, we can consider that you work only for 20 hours each week for $17 an hour.
Assuming that you work for all 52 weeks a year, you get a total of 2,080 working hours in one year by multiplying 40 hours a week by 52.
Multiply the total working hours of 2,080 with your hourly salary of $17, which gives you $35,360.
Thus, the gross annual salary you earn before taxes at $17 an hour is $35,360.
If you work part-time, multiply 20 hours a week into 52 weeks, giving you 1,040 working hours. Your yearly salary then becomes $17 multiplied by 1,040 hours which gives you $17,680 per year.
$35,000 a Year is How Much After Taxes?
A chunk of your payroll goes to income taxes, FICA, and Social Security. That decreases your after-tax income to less than $35,000 a year.
How much taxes will you pay exactly?
You have to pay more than one type of tax, which also depends on your salary. The less money you earn, the lower the percentage of your salary goes to taxes.
For example, the federal government charges a tax between 10-37 % percent, while you won’t pay any taxes on the first $12.550. You will also have to pay for FICA or Medicare and Social Security, which adds up to 7.65%. State taxes vary by state.
A simple tax calculation, assuming you are single and living in Texas (which has no state tax)
Your annual salary (pre-tax) is $35,000
Social Security and FICA: 7.65% of $35,000 = $2,678
Federal income tax is $2,495
$29,828 take-home pay
You will end up earning around $29,828 per year post all taxes and insurance.
As mentioned, different states charge different taxes, and the amounts differ too. If you reside in states where they charge steep taxes, you will be paying a larger portion of your income. Thus, your net annual salary can be a little less.
If you get paid monthly and work full-time, you will earn $2,486 monthly in after-tax income.
If you get paid weekly and work full-time, your weekly salary is $622 in after-tax income.
How Much Is $35,000 A Year Per Hour After Taxes?
If you want to know how much you will earn per hour post-tax payments, simply divide your post-tax salary by 2,080 work hours. Assuming you work for 40 hours a week.
$29,828 divided by 2080 will give you $14.34 an hour. Your take-home income range can be anywhere between $28,000 to $30,000, depending on which state you live in and how much tax the state government charges.
Is $16.82 a Good Hourly Rate?
If you earn $16.82 per hour, we can promise you that it is a good hourly wage.
The median household income is a little over $60,000 a year. If both you and your partner earn $35,000 a year, you’ll earn $70,000 a year jointly.
If you’re in a household with one earner and making $35,000 a year, you fall below the median household income in the US.
We frequently compare our earnings and lifestyles to those of others, leading us to believe that what we make is insufficient. Your salary is $35,000, which can be enough for you if you know how to save and live smartly.
If you feel it is not enough for you, try to earn money using alternative options or switch jobs!
Is $35,000 a Year A Good Salary?
While you won’t be able to go on luxury trips to spend $10,000 in a couple of weeks, $35,000 per year is a fair annual wage. You can enjoy an everyday life with good amenities.
Depending on where you live, $35,000 is a good salary. $35,000 in LA is very different from $35,000 in Oklahoma City.
It may be more difficult if you have a family to support and you are the sole earner. If you’re single, though, this pay should suffice to support you and your goals.
Also, it will be harder to live on $35,000 per year versus $60,000 a year, but that doesn’t mean you need that amount of money to sustain yourself.
What Jobs Pay $35,000 Per Year?
A job that pays $35,000 per year can be obtained in a variety of ways. All you have to do now is find one that matches your requirements and skill set. Prepare for the interview by brushing up on your interview skills, updating your resume, and showing there on time.
Before you apply for any work, make sure it fits your profile and that the income is sufficient to keep you afloat in your current state. You can always raise your wage by negotiating with your employer.
Here are a few positions you might want to apply for:
- Freelance graphic designer
- Freelance writing
- Under the table jobs like movers and packers that you can find on websites like Craigslist
- Restaurant or kitchen staff
- Recession-proof jobs like a sales representative
- Flight attendants
- Warehouse workers
How To Make More Than $35,000 a Year?
If you don’t think $35,000 a year is enough to support you, you can easily make more. Alternatively, if you believe you have the opportunity to earn more money or advance in your career, go for it!
You can make additional money in a variety of ways. Here are a few ideas to get you started.
Try A Side Hustle
Consider taking up a side job, freelancing, or part-time shifts at a different location or company to make more per day. If you have a lot of free time, you may try doing these side hustle ideas:
- Start your money-making website in less than 15 minutes
- Sell photos online
- Online tutoring for kids and adults
- Make extra money for testing websites
- Earn some extra by babysitting or pet sitting
- Sign-up with Swagbucks and make money with survey sites. Check our full Swagbucks review here
Switch Jobs
If you believe your earning potential is more than what you are now making, look for higher-paying employment or change careers to get what you deserve. It will help to build up high-income skills and leverage those to get a higher-paying job.
Passive Income
Investing in stock markets, bonds, and debentures is a simple way to generate passive income. You can also look into investment options that will allow you to make extra money with your present salary. Some of these are:
- M1 Finance– a stock and ETF brokerage that lets you invest for as low as $100. Read our full M1 Finance review and learn the services that it provides.
- Peer-to-peer lending – try Mintos and Fundrise for your P2P lending investments. Check out our full Mintos review and Fundrise review for more details about the platform.
- Crowdfunding real estate – open an account for EstateGuru if you want to invest in real estate. Here is our full EstateGuru review for more information.
Ask for a Raise
Finally, if you enjoy your job but believe you deserve a raise, you can approach your boss for one and show him why you deserve it. Demonstrate that you are a valuable employee whose efforts are rewarded with higher pay.
In Summary – $35,000 Per Year Is How Much An Hour?
Calculating your minimum hourly wage is a normal, healthy, and important way to know if your paid salary is enough for a full-time salaried employee such as yourself. Once you understand this, you can either live off this minimum wage rate or make some adjustments to improve your situation.
If you earn $35,000 per year, you make $2,916 per month pre-tax and around $2,495 per month as take-home pay. The take-home pay varies slightly per state.
When you’re earning $35,000 a year, you make $16.82 per hour, assuming you work full-time. If you work part-time, you’ll earn $33.65 per hour when you earn $35,000 per year.
Try to live within your means, and if you feel you are not getting enough, there are other opportunities elsewhere. Your pay salary is a means to an end. And if you want your monthly salary and your overall finances to improve, you can find ways to do so.
Always remember that this is a marathon and not a sprint. So take stock of where you are right now, and you can definitely be better down the line.
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Founder of Spark Nomad, Radical FIRE, Journalist
Expertise: Personal finance and travel content
Education: Bachelor of Economics at Radboud University, Master in Finance at Radboud University, Minor in Economics at Chapman University.
Over 200 articles, essays, and short stories published across the web.
Experience: Marjolein Dilven is a journalist and founder of Radical FIRE, a personal finance platform, and Spark Nomad, a travel platform. Marjolein has a finance and economics background with a master’s in Finance. She has quit her job to travel the world, documenting her travels on Spark Nomad to help people plan their travels. Marjolein Dilven has written for publications like MSN, Associated Press, CNBC, Town News syndicate, and more.