$22 an hour is how much a year? Let’s consider how much an hourly salary of $22 will accumulate on a weekly, monthly, and yearly basis and see if it is worth dying for.
Is the stress you go through at work commensurate with your salary? Or perhaps you are just killing yourself for nothing and have nothing to write home about when you finally retire. Maybe you are that person who is paid so well that you don’t feel the effects of the current global inflation because your financial shock absorbers are so rugged.
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$22 an hour is how much a year?
If you work 8 hours a day without any overtime duties and are paid $22 an hour, you will earn a gross salary of $45,760 in a year. We arrived at this figure by multiplying 8 hours a day by 5 working days in a week to get 40 hours per week.
For example, a year has 52 weeks; this gives us a total of 2080 working hours in a year (that is, 40 hours per week x 52 weeks). Finally, we multiply $22 by 2080 hours to arrive at $45,760 per annum.
Most employers pay additional allowance for extra duties, which may even be higher than the hourly rate.
If you work beyond the traditional 40 hours a week or have other allowances, remember to incorporate them into your calculations to track your income.
$22 an hour is how much a month?
Knowing how much your monthly hourly rate accumulates is very important, especially if you want to prepare a personal budget every month.
Most workers are paid monthly, and knowing how to calculate your monthly expected income/salary based on the hourly rate is a great skill.
For example, premised on daily total working hours of 8, a $22 hourly earner will make $45,760 a year. This figure, divided by 12 months, will culminate in $3,813.33.
$22 is how much a week?
It is exciting and lovely to know that some occupations pay weekly depending on the nature of the contract. So imagine if you work for a company that pays you an hourly rate of $22, and you work for eight hours a day, then you will earn $880.
We got this figure by multiplying your weekly working hours by the hourly rate. That is;
Total working hours in a day: 8 hours
Total working hours in a week: 8 hours × five working days = 40 hours
Hourly rate: $22
Weekly earnings: 40 hours × $22 = $880.
Is $22 an hour a good salary?
Earning $22 an hour translates into a gross annual salary of $45,760 if you worked throughout the year.
Though the figure looks quite good, honestly, to tell whether this figure is a good salary will ultimately depend on your country’s average annual or hourly wage.
What looks good to you may not be suitable for someone. Hence, to help us do an unbiased analysis, we will compare $22 to the average hourly rate in about 16 randomly chosen countries worldwide.
Table 1: Average Hourly Rate
Country |
Average Hourly Rate as of October 2022 in USD |
Comparison with $22 Per Hour |
United States |
32.36 |
>22 |
Canada |
31.87 |
>22 |
Brazil |
3.09 |
<22 |
China |
26.20 |
>22 |
Australia |
34.95 |
>22 |
United Kingdom |
16.49 |
<22 |
France |
10.71 |
<22 |
South Africa |
7.70 |
<22 |
Nigeria |
0.94 |
<22 |
Egypt |
3.92 |
<22 |
Peru |
15.55 |
<22 |
Russia |
8.09 |
<22 |
Switzerland |
60.32 |
>22 |
Ghana |
2.09 |
<22 |
Qatar |
24.72 |
>22 |
Germany |
12 |
<22 |
From Table 1, it is clear that a salary rate of $22 an hour is perfect by all standards. Moreover, the survey indicated that only a few countries have an average hourly rate above $22.
The key word here is “average.” Many people in the abovementioned countries earn more than $22 an hour. In contrast, many others will fall below this figure depending on their occupation, experience level, and educational qualification.
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Can you live comfortably on $22 an hour?
For most parts of the globe, you can comfortably live on $22 an hour, which translates into a monthly gross figure of $3,813.33.
Some countries have a very high cost of living; for such countries, $3,813.33 a month may be woefully inadequate to survive.
Moreover, even in the same region, some cities or states have a higher cost of living, viz; higher rents, higher cost of services, higher food prices, etc, than other cities.
These days, we are saddled with global skyrocketing inflation rates, which almost everyone is trying to contend with.
As a result, people are constantly readjusting their budgets and choices to match their incomes.
Therefore, it will be prudent to watch your style of living if you want to live comfortably with $22 an hour amid the high inflation.
How much is $22 an hour after tax yearly, weekly and monthly?
Unless you want to be lawless, paying income tax is something you would have to comply with as a responsible citizen.
Therefore, it is right to say that deliberately not paying taxes on your income is tantamount to tax invasion and is punishable by law.
In this regard, though you might earn $22 an hour, this is just the gross salary. The net wage is what comes into your hands or is paid into your bank account after all statutory and non-statutory deductions have been made.
For this article, let us adopt a flat tax rate of 23.50% per annum on a salary of $22 per hour. We assume this worker works 8 hours a day and 5 days a week. The weekly, monthly, and annual net salaries are as follows.
Yearly Gross Salary: $22 per hour × 2080 hours per year = $45,760.00
Tax Rate: 23.50% per annum
Annual Tax Amount: $45,760.00 × 23.50% = $10,753.60
Net Annual Salary: $45,760.00 – $10,753.60 = $35,006.40
Another Method…
Yearly Gross Salary: $22 per hour × 2080 hours per year = $45,760.00
Tax Rate: 23.50% per annum
Net Annual Salary: $45,760.00 × (100% – 23.50%) = $35,006.40
Or
Net Annual Salary: $45,760.00 × (1 – 0.235) = $35,006.40
Net Monthly Salary: $35,006.40 ÷ 12 = $2,917.20
Net Weekly Salary: $35,006.40 ÷ 52 weeks = $684.62
How to budget a $ 22-an-hour salary.
Unquestionably, budgeting is an essential aspect of life for individuals, families, organizations, and countries.
A budget is an estimate of expected income and expenditure. In a budget, you outline all your anticipated income against your payment.
Having a budget is great, but the ability to stick to it is equally important.
One aspect of a budget that beats people most of the time is the ability to stick to expenditure. Therefore, discipline is essential in budget implementation.
Workers generally spend much of their income on these three major things – housing, food, and transportation.
Additionally, others spend on items such as education, entertainment, insurance, healthcare, vehicle maintenance, and charity.
It is essential to allocate funds for savings and investments in a budget. Personal financial advisers advocate that you save something no matter how much you earn.
Let us look at a typical budget for a father of 2 who earns $22 per hour.
First, remember that the net monthly salary is $2,917.20, assuming a flat income tax rate of 23.5% on the gross monthly wage of $3,813.33. You can use a book or Microsoft Excel to help you draw your monthly budget.
For example, we have used an Excel sheet to prepare a budget for September 2022 salary for implementation in October 2022.
It is natural for people to exceed their budgeted amounts or spend less. It is also possible for people to postpone items in their budget.
The percentage allocation indicates the percentage of your salary allocated to finance that budget item. This is meant to help you prioritize your expenditure.
Item description | Amount in USD | Percentage |
Housing | 200.00 | 6.86 |
Food | 200.00 | 6.86 |
Transportation | 150.00 | 5.14 |
Investment/Education | ||
Children school fees | 150.00 | 5.14 |
Mutual fund contribution | 300.00 | 10.28 |
Healthcare | 160.00 | 5.48 |
Pensions | 150.00 | 5.14 |
Emergency/Savings Account | 200.00 | 6.86 |
Domestic/Personal Upkeep | ||
Pocket money | 300.00 | 10.28 |
Utilities | 100.00 | 3.43 |
Clothes and shoes | 120.00 | 4.11 |
Housekeeping money | 400.00 | 13.71 |
Religious/Social Activities/Entertainment | ||
Tithe (10% of salary) | 291.72 | 10.00 |
Charity | 95.48 | 3.27 |
Entertainment | 100.00 | 3.43 |
Tips to increase your income
The following suggestions can help you increase your income aside from the $22 per hour.
- Set up a business that can fetch you some additional income. It can be a sole proprietorship, limited liability company, or partnership. This will depend on the legal structure you want your business to take and the capital requirement. You can start small and grow it.
- Upgrade yourself through education and professional courses. If you have the means, take courses in line with your profession to sharpen your skill, and enable you to get promotions with an associated higher salary.
- Invest in financial assets. Financial assets can broadly be divided into two; Capital Market Instruments and Money Market Instruments. Examples of capital market instruments are shares, bonds, and debentures. Examples of money market instruments are treasury bills, certificates of deposit, money market mutual funds, and commercial papers.
All these instruments earn interest and have varying risks associated with them.
More ways to increase your earnings
Get in touch with a personal financial adviser, a broker, or an investment banker to help you make the right choice and earn some additional income.
- Invest in real estate if you have the means. People like Donald Trump and Robert Kiyosaki have a fortune from real estate investments. You can choose from commercial properties to residential facilities, warehouses, etc. The good news is real estate keeps appreciating, so you can always sell it later for more profit.
- Be an app developer. You can develop apps and earn extra income if you have good IT skills.
- Invest in agriculture. This can be either crop farming or animal husbandry. The truth is humans and animals will always eat, so having wheat, maize, plantain, rice, apple, etc, farms will always fetch some money.
The options for agriculture are very broad and include rubber plantations, cocoa, etc. Start something by looking at your climate, soil conditions, and interest.
Start a side hustle
- Online businesses: Get involved in online hustles such as blogging, online data entry, teaching, coaching, transcription, etc. Anything that is legal and generates money is worth investing your time into, no matter how small it is.
- Transportation and Logistics: From commercial buses to taxis and uber; from articulated trucks to pick-ups, SUVs, and 4x4s; from airplanes to ships, etc. Human beings and goods will always move, so depending on your risk level and capital, get involved in the transportation business and earn extra cash.
- Fashion: Have you considered that everyone needs a tailor or dressmaker? We all wear clothes – both babies and adults. The fashion industry is one of the most lucrative industries. If you have the passion, you can start as a dressmaker and expand into a big company.
- Petty trading: Everything sells these days, from perfumes, shoes, baby diapers and wipes, body splash, wristwatches, mobile phones, computers, etc. Anything that you can sell to earn some extra income is worth selling.
Although there are many extra income opportunities and ideas, most of the time, the limiting factor is the accessibility to seed capital. Some countries help their citizens by giving grants and soft loans to help them get started.
30 side hustles for single moms to make money from home.
Tips to live on a $22-an-hour salary
Personal financial management is a great skill we all have to learn. In most cases, the problem people face is not the inadequacy of the salary. It is the inability to manage their salaries
Whether you are paid well or not, financial management is a crucial aspect of living.
Because of this, it is recommended to have a budget. There is no hard and fast rule on budget preparation.
And never run a budget deficit, whereby your expenditure is more than your income. Always plan with the money you have.
It is equally important to look at your lifestyle. Live modestly. Avoid ostentatious living.
1. Enjoy special days at home
You are not in competition with anyone, and there is no need to have big wedding ceremonies and big birthday parties.
Therefore you can always arrange these parties with family or a few friends at your home. Try to decorate yourself and make your food and snacks.
2. Clothing
You don’t need to follow the latest fashion in town and buy expensive designer dresses or shoes when you don’t need them.
3. Housing
You can save a lot of money considering your housing choice. Indeed, humans all need a good shelter to rest after a hard day’s work and be protected from the weather.
Own a home if you can to avoid paying periodic rent to property owners.
However, if you rent a house or flat, ensure it is affordable and has all the qualities you need. You can share the house or flat and the rent with a relative, work colleague, or friend.
Moreover, if it isn’t a bother, consider renting on the outskirts of town since properties there command a relatively lower rent.
4. Food
You also need to consider your expenditure on food if you intend to effectively manage your $22 per hour salary. You can eat a healthy meal without overspending. One way to do this is to cook at home and package some to work if possible. Your children can also take packaged food to school.
Occasionally, you can eat from a restaurant, but it should not be a habit since restaurant food is expensive. Develop the habit of preserving leftover food to be eaten at another time.
5. Transportation
Transportation is another area that takes much money from the pockets of workers. Devise intelligent means of getting to work at a lower cost.
You can board public buses or trains or even bike to work if your office is not far from home. Alternatively, you can relocate, stay closer, and walk to the office.
It is cheaper to work from home than to commute to the office daily to do the same work that can be done from home.
If your work is such that your physical presence is not always needed, please work from home and save money.
6. Maintain a healthy lifestyle
Another key point to help you live on $22 per hour is to take good care of your health and avoid falling sick frequently so that you don’t spend so much on medical bills.
Also, eat a well-balanced diet, eat a lot of fruits, have enough rest, and drink plenty of water.
If you fall sick, do not spend so much at expensive private healthcare facilities when you can get the same quality service at public hospitals.
7. Keep energy costs low
At home, you need to manage your utilities judiciously. Do not waste electricity, water, or gas because you will eventually pay for them.
You can also iron your clothes in bulk to save electricity, put off lights when they are not needed, and put off electrical appliances such as television when no one is watching.
Additionally, you can adopt solar into your energy mix to save money. Especially if you live in the tropics, where the sun scorches so much, you can run your entire home on solar panels without electricity from the mains.
Though the initial investment may be high, it will eventually pay off, and you can save so much money.
Summary
While $22 an hour may not be an excellent salary in some countries, it is excellent because the average hourly rate in many countries is less than this figure.
It is the responsibility of the worker to manage the money and make the most out of it. It is, therefore, imperative to develop skills in personal financial planning and budgeting. Drawing a monthly budget is one way to help you align your income to your expenditure, and discipline is needed to avoid deviation from the budget.
Since there is always room for improvement, it is beneficial to find legitimate ways of increasing your income beyond the $22 per hour. Everything is possible.