$26 an Hour Is How Much a Year?
Working a standard 40-hour week for 52 paid weeks, $26 an hour comes out to $54,080 a year before tax — about $1,040 a week, $2,080 biweekly, or $4,507 a month. Because hourly pay scales directly with hours, the annual figure moves fast when your schedule does: $47,320 at 35 hours, $27,040 at 20. Overtime beyond 40 hours typically pays time-and-a-half, $39.00 an hour at this rate. Enter your own hours below, then check the after-tax estimate to see what actually lands in your account.
$26 an hour breakdown
Prefer the other direction? See $55,000 a year is how much an hour, or use the full Salary Calculator.
$26 an hour part-time and overtime
Hourly pay scales with your schedule, so the "how much a year" answer depends on the hours you actually work. Here's $26 an hour across common weekly schedules (52 paid weeks), plus the overtime rate — most non-exempt workers earn at least time-and-a-half ($39.00/hr) past 40 hours a week under the FLSA.
| Hours per week | Weekly pay | Annual pay |
|---|---|---|
| 20 hrs | $520 | $27,040 |
| 25 hrs | $650 | $33,800 |
| 30 hrs | $780 | $40,560 |
| 35 hrs | $910 | $47,320 |
| 40 hrs (full-time) | $1,040 | $54,080 |
$26 an hour after taxes
Full-time at $26 an hour ($54,080 a year), estimated federal income tax is about $4,310 for a single filer taking the 2026 standard deduction — an effective rate of 8.0%, with the top dollar taxed in the 12% bracket. That leaves roughly $49,770 in federal take-home pay: about $4,148 a month, or an effective $23.93 an hour. Social Security and Medicare (FICA, about 7.65%) come out of every paycheck on top of that, and most states add income tax of their own — while nine (including Texas and Florida) charge none. Try other filing statuses in the Income Tax Calculator.
Federal income tax only (2026 brackets, standard deduction, full-time hours). Excludes FICA and state/local tax.
Jobs that pay around $26 an hour
These occupations have a national median wage closest to $26 an hour (full-time equivalent), per the Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS, May 2024). Actual pay varies widely by state, metro area and experience.
| Occupation | ≈ Median hourly | Median annual |
|---|---|---|
| Heavy-truck drivers | $26.12 | $54,320 |
| Carpenters | $27.09 | $56,350 |
| Real estate agents | $27.22 | $56,620 |
| Firefighters | $27.46 | $57,120 |
| HVAC technicians | $27.55 | $57,300 |
How $26/hr compares to nearby wages
| Hourly wage | Annual | Monthly | Federal take-home |
|---|---|---|---|
| $24 an hour | $49,920 | $4,160 | $46,110 |
| $25 an hour | $52,000 | $4,333 | $47,940 |
| $28 an hour | $58,240 | $4,853 | $53,431 |
| $30 an hour | $62,400 | $5,200 | $57,092 |
| $26 an hour (this page) | $54,080 | $4,507 | $49,770 |
Take-home is federal income tax only (2026, single filer, standard deduction, full-time hours), before FICA and state tax.
Is $26 an hour good pay?
A useful yardstick: the median U.S. full-time worker earns about $28.85 an hour ($60,000/year), so $26 runs roughly 10% below that. Context does the rest: in low-cost regions $26 an hour at steady full-time hours covers a single person's budget tightly, while in expensive metros rent claims a much bigger share. Guaranteed hours, overtime access ($39.00/hr at time-and-a-half) and benefits often matter more than small differences in the base rate. And plan around net pay — federal tax alone brings the effective rate near $23.93 an hour before FICA and state taxes.