ClaimSettleIQ
Calculators & Tools

Lost Wages Calculator

Turn your pay rate and the time you missed into an itemized gross wage-loss figure. Paid leave, extra losses and any future scenario are kept on separate lines.

Lost Wages Calculator

Runs entirely in your browser. Nothing you enter is sent to ClaimSettleIQ or anyone else. Privacy policy.

Pay
Before taxes. Use overtime only if you can show you would have worked it — enter it under additional losses instead.
Used to convert days to hours. Must be more than 0 and at most 24.
Time missed because of the injury
Scheduled workdays only — not weekends or days you would not have worked.
Partial days, such as leaving early for appointments.
Sick leave, PTO or vacation hours you were paid for. Must not exceed the total missed hours.
Other documented lost earnings (optional)

Only amounts not already covered above — for example a missed scheduled overtime shift, a lost bonus or commission. Do not repeat regular pay.

Future scenario (optional)
For example, scheduled surgery recovery. Shown as a separate projection and not added to the historical total.

Enter your pay details and the time you missed, then select “Calculate lost wages”.

Exact formula and edge cases.

How the calculation works

  1. Hourly rate used. For hourly pay, your rate as entered. For salary, Annual salary ÷ (Workdays per year × Hours per day).
  2. Missed hours. Full days missed × Hours per day + Additional hours.
  3. Gross wages for missed time. Missed hours × Hourly rate used.
  4. Paid leave. The value of paid leave hours is shown as a portion of that total, not added on top. Unpaid portion = Gross − Paid-leave value.
  5. Additional documented losses are listed separately and added to give a historical total.
  6. Future scenario = Future days × Hours per day × Hourly rate used, shown on its own.
Hypothetical example

Salary $62,400 a year, 260 workdays, 8-hour days. Hourly rate used = $62,400 ÷ (260 × 8) = $30.00. The person missed 12 full days and 6 extra hours for appointments: 12 × 8 + 6 = 102 hours. Gross wages for missed time = 102 × $30 = $3,060.00. They used 40 hours of paid sick leave worth $1,200.00, so $1,860.00 was unpaid. They also missed a $250 scheduled overtime shift, giving a historical total of $3,310.00.

If you used sick leave or vacation, your paycheck may look normal, but you used up a benefit you would otherwise still have. Many jurisdictions allow that used leave to be claimed, but the rules on benefits paid from other sources (often called the collateral source rule) vary by state. The calculator therefore shows the full value of missed time and the portion covered by paid leave, so you can discuss both with a professional without counting the same hours twice.

Records that support a wage claim

  • Pay stubs from before and after the injury, and W-2s or tax returns.
  • A letter from your employer confirming your rate, schedule, dates missed and any leave used.
  • Doctor’s notes or work restrictions covering the time off.
  • Records of missed overtime, bonuses or commissions, if claimed.

Limits of this calculator

The figures are gross amounts. The tool does not calculate taxes, lost benefits (such as employer retirement contributions), self-employment income, or loss of future earning capacity — that last item usually requires medical and vocational evidence and is often analyzed by experts. Read Economic Damages in Personal Injury Claims for more context.