Definition of Pay Periods
What is a Pay Period?
A pay period defines how often employees are paid (pay frequency) and how many regular paychecks they’ll receive in a year. An employee’s pay frequency will also determine the portion of monthly deductions that are taken from each paycheck.
Types of Pay Periods
| Type | Pay Frequency | # of paychecks in year |
| Semi-monthly | Twice a month on two specific days of the month, e.g., 15th and 30th. | 24 paychecks |
| Bi-weekly | Every two weeks on a specific day of the week, e.g., every other Friday. | 26 paychecks |
| Weekly | Once a week on a specific day of the week, e.g., each Friday. | 52 paychecks |
| Monthly | Once a month on specific date, e.g., 30th. | 12 paychecks |
Pay periods define the number of days of work for which each employee is paid on each paycheck.
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