Pay Raise Calculator 2026
Compare salary or hourly pay changes, with paycheck and purchasing-power estimates.
Work, tax and inflation assumptions
Default inflation reference: 3.4% CPI-U, 12 months ending July 2026. This is a dated benchmark, not a live feed. Payment estimates use the selected annual count, including for part-year work.
Pay raise formulas
- Percentage change
- (New annual pay - current annual pay) / current annual pay x 100.
- Hourly pay annualized
- Hourly rate x hours per week x paid weeks per year.
- Change per payment
- Annual pay difference / selected payments per year. Use the actual paid-period count for irregular or part-year schedules.
- Real purchasing-power change
- ((New pay / current pay) / (1 + inflation rate / 100) - 1) x 100. For 10% nominal growth and 8% inflation, this is about 1.85%.
Hypothetical compounding over time
Starting pay is $60,000 before the first raise. Each modeled year begins with one identical percentage increase. The table sums those 20 annual salaries and compares them with the 2% scenario. These are nominal calculations, not forecasts of promotions or future pay.
| Annual assumption | After 5 raises | After 10 raises | After 20 raises | 20-year pay vs. 2% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2% | $66,244.85 | $73,139.67 | $89,156.84 | $0 |
| 3% | $69,556.44 | $80,634.98 | $108,366.67 | $173,590.11 |
| 5% | $76,576.89 | $97,733.68 | $159,197.86 | $596,156.08 |
| 7% | $84,153.1 | $118,029.08 | $232,181.07 | $1,144,911.58 |
| 10% | $96,630.6 | $155,624.55 | $403,650 | $2,293,150.93 |
Sources and calculation limits
- BLS CPI-U, July 2026: the 3.4% default is the unadjusted all-items change over 12 months. It is not a personal cost-of-living measure.
- BLS purchasing power and constant dollars: real values use a price-index ratio rather than simple percentage subtraction.
- IRS tax brackets: marginal rates apply to income within each bracket. This tool does not calculate a complete tax return.
Calculator and source references reviewed September 7, 2026. Calculations use your stated assumptions and do not guarantee an employer decision, a future salary path, or take-home pay.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much is a 5% raise on $60,000?
The annual gross increase is $3,000 and the new annual salary is $63,000. Dividing by 26 payments gives about $115.38 extra per payment before taxes and deductions.
How is an inflation-adjusted raise calculated?
Divide the new-to-old pay ratio by the price-change ratio, subtract 1, and multiply by 100. For a 10% raise and 8% inflation, the real increase is about 1.85%, not exactly 2%. Compare pay and price changes over the same period.
Is a 3% raise enough to cover inflation?
It depends on the inflation rate for your comparison period. Against the default 3.4% CPI-U reference for the year ending July 2026, a 3% nominal raise is a small real decrease. Change the inflation assumption when another period or cost comparison is appropriate.
Will a higher tax bracket apply to my whole salary?
Federal income tax brackets apply progressively: a higher rate applies to income in that bracket, not all income. The after-tax result here is only a flat-rate estimate for the pay change. It does not model tax credits, benefit phaseouts, payroll withholding, deductions, or changes to other compensation.
What if I receive 27 biweekly or 53 weekly payments?
Choose Custom under Payments per year and enter the actual number of payments. The calculator divides the annual change by that number. Adjust paid weeks separately when annualizing hourly work.
Does the five-year figure include future raises?
No. It is five times the current annual pay difference, assuming it persists for five full years. The separate compounding table is an explicitly hypothetical scenario with an identical raise at the start of each modeled year.