In this post, I will compare semi-monthly vs. bi-weekly. I will use each of these words in a few example sentences to demonstrate how they should appear in context. Keep reading this article to know what semi-monthly pay means and how to calculate it.
Whether a business’s employees are salaried or hourly, it will likely make sense for them to choose one pay frequency over the other. For example, it can be more difficult to process the paychecks of hourly employees on a semi-monthly basis than on a bi-weekly basis. Because hourly wages are easier to calculate on a bi-weekly basis, as each paycheck accounts for the same number of days.
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Conversely, semi-monthly paychecks will vary in the number of days they include, making it more challenging for whoever handles the company’s payroll. In the most practical terms, that means employees who are paid bi-weekly receive more paychecks than employees who are paid semi-monthly. This is an important consideration for workers who would rather get paid more often.
Bimonthly is derived from the prefix bi-, which means two, twice, double, doubly, occurring twice in every one or once in every two. It comes from the Latin bi-, meaning twice, double, and weekly from the Old English word monað. Semi-monthly and bi-weekly pay schedules each have their benefits and drawbacks.
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If you’re looking for more, we created this handy table showing the pay dates for bi-weekly and bi-monthly pay. Semi-monthly pay is a salary or wage paid twice a month, usually on the 15th and last day but also on the first and 15th day. If one payment date falls on a weekend or holiday, the payment occurs the previous or following business day.
- I will use each of these words in a few example sentences to demonstrate how they should appear in context.
- It comes from the Latin bi-, meaning twice, double, and weekly from the Old English word monað.
- Because hourly wages are easier to calculate on a bi-weekly basis, as each paycheck accounts for the same number of days.
- For example, in Alabama and South Carolina, there are no specified regulations, so companies can choose whichever schedule they prefer.
For example, in Alabama and South Carolina, there are no specified regulations, so companies can choose whichever schedule they prefer. In other states, however, companies are required to pay their employees at least on a bi-weekly basis. Let’s say that you have a salary of $42,000 per year.
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Usually, the businesses choose the previous day (Friday or, failing that, Thursday). Semimonthly is an adjective that is derived from the prefix semi-, which means half, part, partly, twice, as it comes from the Latin semi-, meaning half, and monthly. In the United States semimonthly may be used as a noun, the plural noun form is semimonthlies. Semimonthly is often found hyphenated as in semi-monthly, but the Oxford English dictionary only lists it as one word, unhyphenated. Remember, bimonthly may mean occurring twice a month or occurring every two months, semimonthly only means occurring twice a month. With this semi-monthly pay calculator, you can know what is the semi-monthly pay equivalent to any other period.
What is the semi-monthly pay schedule for 2023?
Input the wage you know (hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly), and the tool will provide the wage corresponding to the semi-monthly pay period. The calculator assumes a working schedule of 40 hours and five days a week, but you can change it. Bimonthly may mean occurring twice a month or occurring every two months. In the United States bimonthly may be used as a noun to describe periodicals, the plural noun form is bimonthlies.
For businesses, it can be less expensive to pay employees semi-monthly instead of bi-weekly. In addition to the cost savings, semi-monthly pay makes it easier for businesses to calculate tax and benefits deductions. There are 24 semi-monthly pay periods in a year, as each of the twelve months contains two semi-monthly payments. This is slightly different from biweekly payments, which occur 26 times yearly. While a business may prefer one pay schedule over another, it’s important to note that some state laws dictate the types of payment schedules companies are allowed to implement.
The difference between these two terms is mostly academic. Something that happens every two weeks also happens twice in a month, so bi-weekly and semi-monthly are de facto synonyms. When you add these parts together, you get an adverb that means occurring every two weeks or every other week. Sign up for a demo of Tapcheck to learn how it can revolutionize your paycheck system.