Kentucky is one of several US states with no state minimum wage law on the books. That means the large majority of Kentucky workers depend on the federal floor of $7.25 per hour — a rate set by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and unchanged since July 24, 2009. This calculator converts that hourly rate (or any wage above it) into the figures that matter most for budgeting: weekly gross pay, monthly gross pay and annual gross salary, with overtime calculated automatically the moment you work more than 40 hours in a week.
How it works
Enter your hourly wage and your average hours per week. The calculator splits your time into two buckets:
- Regular time — the first 40 hours at your straight-time rate.
- Overtime — any hours beyond 40, rated at 1.5 times your regular rate, as required by FLSA Section 7(a)(1).
Weekly gross = (regular hours x wage) + (overtime hours x wage x 1.5).
Monthly gross is derived as weekly x 52 / 12, capturing the exact calendar average across months of different lengths. Annual gross is weekly x 52.
All arithmetic runs entirely in your browser. Nothing is uploaded or stored.
Worked example
Suppose you work 45 hours per week at the federal minimum of $7.25 per hour in Kentucky:
| Metric | Calculation | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Regular pay | 40h x $7.25 | $290.00 |
| Overtime pay | 5h x $10.875 (1.5x) | $54.38 |
| Weekly gross | $290.00 + $54.38 | $344.38 |
| Monthly gross | $344.38 x 52 / 12 | $1,492.31 |
| Annual gross | $344.38 x 52 | $17,907.76 |
At a straight 40 hours per week with no overtime, the federal minimum of $7.25/hr yields a weekly gross of $290.00, a monthly gross of $1,256.67, and an annual gross of $15,080.00 — before federal income tax, Kentucky state income tax, Social Security, Medicare or any other withholdings. Kentucky’s flat state income tax rate (4.5% in 2024, reduced from 5% in prior years) would reduce take-home pay further; this calculator shows gross figures only.
The federal minimum comparison panel lets you see at a glance how much more (or less) per year your actual wage produces relative to the $7.25 floor.
Kentucky minimum wage in context
Kentucky has never enacted a standalone state minimum wage law. The General Assembly has considered bills over the years, but none have passed into law. The most significant recent development was at the local level: Louisville Metro Council passed an ordinance in 2014 that would have raised the city’s minimum wage to $9.00 per hour. The Kentucky Supreme Court ultimately struck it down in 2018 in a unanimous decision (Kentucky Restaurant Association v. Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Government), ruling that Kentucky’s counties and cities have no authority to set minimum wages that differ from the applicable state or federal standard. Lexington had passed a similar measure; it too was invalidated by the same ruling.
That decision means no Kentucky municipality can currently mandate wages above $7.25/hr. Workers in Louisville, Lexington, Bowling Green, Owensboro or anywhere else in the Commonwealth are in the same position: covered by the FLSA if their employer meets the coverage threshold, and entitled to $7.25/hr as the legal floor.
Tipped workers face a separate federal rule: employers may pay a direct cash wage as low as $2.13 per hour for tipped employees, provided that tips bring the effective total to at least $7.25/hr. If tips fall short in any workweek, the employer must pay the difference — this is called a tip credit. Kentucky does not modify or expand the federal tipped-minimum rules.
Use this calculator to model any wage scenario — what $10/hr, $12/hr or $15/hr would mean annually — so you can compare job offers, plan a household budget or assess the impact of a potential pay rise with real numbers. The quick-reference table below the calculator shows pre-computed weekly, monthly and annual figures for the most common wage and hours combinations, making it straightforward to see the difference between full-time and part-time hours, or between the federal floor and a higher negotiated rate. Every number is computed live in your browser with no data ever leaving your device.