"Biweekly" and "semi-monthly" sound like the same thing, and both roughly mean "twice a month", but they are different pay schedules, and the difference affects your budget. Here is how each works.
The four common pay schedules
| Schedule | How often | Paychecks per year | Typical payday |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weekly | Every week | 52 (sometimes 53) | Every Friday |
| Biweekly | Every two weeks | 26 (sometimes 27) | Every other Friday |
| Semi-monthly | Twice a month | 24 | 15th and last day of the month |
| Monthly | Once a month | 12 | Last business day |
Biweekly pay
With biweekly pay you are paid every 14 days, always on the same weekday, usually a Friday. Because a year is 52 weeks and one or two days, that produces 26 paychecks in most years. Each paycheck covers exactly 80 hours for a full-time employee working 40 hours a week, which is why biweekly pay is popular for hourly workers.
The catch is that months don't divide neatly into two-week blocks. Most months contain two paydays, but two months a year contain three. Those "three-paycheck months" are a favorite of budgeters: if your regular bills are covered by two paychecks a month, the third one can go to savings or debt.
Semi-monthly pay
With semi-monthly pay you are paid on two fixed dates each month, commonly the 15th and the last day (or the 1st and 15th). That gives exactly 24 paychecks a year. Paydays fall on different weekdays each month; when a payday lands on a weekend or holiday, most employers pay on the preceding business day. Salaried employees are often paid this way because each paycheck is exactly half a month's salary, which lines up neatly with monthly bills like rent.
Comparing the paycheck amounts
For a $60,000 annual salary, before taxes:
- Biweekly: $60,000 ÷ 26 = $2,307.69 per paycheck
- Semi-monthly: $60,000 ÷ 24 = $2,500.00 per paycheck
The annual total is the same; biweekly checks are just smaller and more frequent. If you budget monthly on a biweekly schedule, plan around two paychecks per month (about $4,615 in this example) and treat the extra two paychecks a year as a bonus.
Years with 27 biweekly paydays
Because 26 × 14 = 364 days, biweekly paydays drift one day earlier on the calendar each year (two days after a leap year). Roughly every 11 years, a calendar year ends up containing 27 paydays. Salaried employers handle this differently: some divide the annual salary by 27 for that year, so each check is a little smaller, while others pay 26ths and the employee effectively receives a bit more that year. If you are paid biweekly, it's worth checking which approach your employer uses.
Weekly schedules occasionally have 53 paydays in a year for the same reason.
Which is better?
- Biweekly suits hourly workers and people who like predictable Fridays and the occasional three-paycheck month.
- Semi-monthly suits people who budget by the month, because paychecks line up with monthly bills and every check is the same.
Employers choose the schedule, and some US states set minimum pay frequencies, so you usually can't pick. But knowing how your schedule works makes budgeting much easier.
Find your next paydays
Our payday calculator lists every weekly, biweekly, semi-monthly and monthly payday for the year, shows how many are left, and highlights the three-paycheck months for both possible biweekly cycles. You can also look ahead to 2027 paydays to plan the year.
Budget tip: on a biweekly schedule, set up bills to be paid from the first two paychecks of each month. Then each three-paycheck month leaves a full paycheck free.