$29 an hour is $60,320 a year before tax, working 40 hours a week for 52 weeks (2,080 hours). That's $5,026.67 a month, $2,320 every two weeks and $1,160 a week.
Change the hours or weeks in the Salary Converter
$29 an hour, by pay period
| Pay period | 40 hours a week | 30 hours a week |
|---|---|---|
| Year | $60,320 | $45,240 |
| Month | $5,026.67 | $3,770.00 |
| Two weeks | $2,320 | $1,740 |
| Week | $1,160 | $870 |
| Day (8 hours) | $232 | $174 |
With two weeks of unpaid time off, a full-time year at $29 an hour comes to $58,000 (2,000 hours). Paid holidays keep you at $60,320.
How $29 an hour compares
- It's 4.0 times the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour, or $45,240 more a year at full time. Many states and cities set a higher minimum.
- Production and nonsupervisory workers averaged $32.54 an hour in September 2026 (BLS), so $29 is 11% below that average.
- At the common 30% guideline, $29 an hour supports rent of about $1,508 a month.
Where $29 an hour ranks
$29 an hour is above the median of U.S. hourly pay ($24.51) and below the 75th percentile ($38.71), so roughly 60% of workers earn less.
All occupations, May 2025 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics). BLS publishes set percentiles; the share in between is our estimate.
Jobs that pay about $29 an hour
The most common occupations whose national median pay rounds to $29 an hour (May 2025, the latest BLS survey):
- Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors: $28.53 an hour, 492,000 jobs
- Child, Family, and School Social Workers: $28.63 an hour, 393,000 jobs
- Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators: $28.78 an hour, 478,000 jobs
- Carpenters: $29.12 an hour, 670,000 jobs
- Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers: $29.33 an hour, 410,000 jobs
A median is the middle: half the people in that job earn more, half earn less. Pay also varies with state, experience and employer.
What $29 an hour matched in earlier years
To buy what $29 an hour buys in September 2026, you'd have needed:
Adjusted with the U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Minutes of work for everyday prices
At $29 an hour, before tax, using U.S. average prices for September 2026:
- 4.7 minutes for a dozen eggs ($2.27)
- 9.3 minutes for a gallon of regular gas ($4.48)
- 8.5 minutes for a gallon of whole milk ($4.11)
What $60,320 a year buys abroad
Local prices change what a salary is worth. Spent in each country, $60,320 buys what this much would buy in the U.S. (World Bank purchasing power parity):
- United States: $60,320
- Mexico: $102,544
- Spain: $88,067
- Japan: $87,464
- Canada: $66,955
- United Kingdom: $65,146
The dashed line marks $60,320 spent in the U.S.
Compare every country in The Dollar Around the World
Sources
- BLS average prices and average hourly earnings (2026-11-02)
- U.S. Department of Labor: federal minimum wage history
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025 national estimates)
- BLS Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) and World Bank International Comparison Program, as used on our methodology page
General information, not financial advice. Pay before tax; your take-home pay depends on taxes and deductions (try the Paycheck Calculator).