Monthly payday calculator
Count how many monthly paydays you have before a target date, and how much to save from each one.
Your paydays
Payday breakdown
How monthly salary payment dates work
Most salaried employees are paid once a calendar month, but exactly which date varies by employer. Common arrangements include a fixed date such as the 25th, the last calendar day of the month, the last working day (skipping weekends), or the last Friday of the month. Which one applies to you determines exactly when your monthly paydays fall — and therefore how many you have before any given target date.
Fixed dates
If you're paid on the same date every month — say the 25th — that date is used each month, clamped to the final day of the month if it doesn't exist. The 31st becomes the 30th in April, June, September and November, and the 28th or 29th in February depending on leap years.
Last working day
Some employers pay on the last working day of the month rather than a fixed date. This avoids paying on a weekend automatically: if the final calendar day is a Saturday or Sunday, payment moves back to the preceding Friday.
Last Friday of the month
Other employers pay on the last Friday of each month regardless of where the month ends. This shifts the pay date around more than a last-working-day rule, since a month can end anywhere from a Monday to a Sunday.
Short months and weekends
February is the obvious short month to watch, with 28 or 29 days depending on the leap year cycle. April, June, September and November have 30 days rather than 31. Combined with weekend handling, this means a "same date" payday can shift by a day or two depending on the month — the calculator above accounts for all of this automatically.
Counting monthly paydays before a target date
Once your monthly pay pattern is set, the calculator lists every payday from your next one up to your target date and counts them. A monthly saver typically has far fewer paydays to plan around than someone paid weekly or fortnightly, which usually means a larger amount needs to be set aside at each one to reach the same goal.
See also the weekly, fortnightly and four-weekly payday calculators, or read how the calculations work in full.