Lessons

What the job actually pays

What it is

Gross pay is what the job pays before anything is taken off. Take that figure. Multiply it by the number of months you are actually paid for.

Why it matters

A salary looks like the easiest number in this app. It is the one people state wrong most often. A bonus that arrived once gets remembered as monthly. Some countries pay thirteen or fourteen months of salary in a year, and that extra pay gets forgotten completely.

The method

Take the monthly figure on the payslip. Count how many months a year it arrives. Twelve for most people. Thirteen or fourteen in some countries. Multiply the two. Then divide by twelve. That is your honest monthly figure.

Example

Salma is paid PKR 84,000 for twelve months. Her honest monthly figure is PKR 84,000. Add one month's bonus and it becomes PKR 91,000.