Job Worth Calculator
Score your job's real value from salary, hours, commute, leave and work environment — with the viral worth formula.
What is the job worth calculator?
This calculator turns your salary, working hours, commute, leave and work environment into a single number — your job's "worth" score. It started as a viral formula on the Chinese internet ("is this job even worth it?"), and this page is a faithful, internationalized port of it.
The idea is simple: a salary only means something relative to the time and energy it costs you. Two jobs with the same pay can score very differently once commute, hours and environment enter the math.
How the formula works
The core of the formula compares your standardized daily salary against the time it costs you, scaled by expectations:
Working days per year = 52 × weekly workdays − (annual leave + public holidays + 0.6 × paid sick leave). Daily salary is converted through a purchasing power parity (PPP) factor so different countries compare fairly. Effective commute is reduced by work-from-home days and company shuttle.
Why higher education or a bigger city can lower your score
The divisor of the formula represents expectations: the more education you have (and the more expensive the city you work in), the higher the bar your salary has to clear. That's why the same pay scores lower for a PhD than for a fresh graduate.
Environment factors work the opposite way: a supportive manager, a friendly team, a shuttle or a good canteen multiply your score up, because they make the same hours more livable.
Job stability matters too: predictable public-sector jobs are scored as more valuable per unit of pay, while freelance and agency work carry a risk premium.
Honest disclaimer
This formula is an internet meme, not a scientific instrument. It's a fun, self-reflective way to look at your job — it is not career advice, salary benchmarking, or a measure of your worth as a person.
If your score is low, treat it as a prompt to think about one negotiable factor, not as a verdict. For real career or pay decisions, talk to mentors, recruiters or a professional advisor.
Frequently Asked Questions
Have another question? Let us know.
What does the score actually mean?
It's a ratio: how much standardized daily salary you get per unit of time and expectation. Below 1 is tilted against you, 1–2.5 is the middle band, and above 2.5 means your pay is generous relative to your hours and commute. The bands are labeled from Awful to Dream job.
What is the PPP factor and why does my country matter?
PPP (purchasing power parity) converts salaries into comparable purchasing power. Without it, a salary in one currency can't be fairly compared with one in another. The factor only affects the internal standardization — your displayed daily salary stays in your own currency.
Why does more education give me a lower score at the same pay?
By design. The formula treats education as an expectation: someone with a PhD is assumed to command (and need) a higher salary than a fresh graduate, so the same pay clears a higher bar. It reflects the meme's original logic, not a judgment of your skills.
Why are paid sick days counted at 60%?
The original formula weights paid sick leave at 0.6: sick days are leave you hope not to use, so they don't count as fully as annual leave or public holidays. It's a modeling choice from the original, kept here for parity.
Is this a scientific career assessment?
No. It's an entertainment and self-reflection tool based on a viral formula. It is not career advice, salary benchmarking or psychological assessment. For real decisions, consult mentors, recruiters or professional advisors.
Is my salary data sent anywhere?
No. Everything is computed locally in your browser. Nothing you type is uploaded, stored on a server, or shared.
Based on the open-source worth-calculator project by Zylan (MIT License). Formula and factor tables ported with attribution.
