Compa-Ratio Calculator

How to use the compa-ratio calculator

1. Choose annual or hourly, and use the same basis for every number.
2. Enter your pay: base salary or base hourly rate, without overtime, bonuses or shift premiums.
3. Enter the range minimum and maximum for your job’s grade or band, from your employer’s pay structure or a job posting.
4. Enter a published midpoint if your employer lists one, or leave it at 0 to use the halfway point of the range.

The results show the compa-ratio, position in range, the midpoint, how far you are above or below it, the range spread, and the pay at common compa-ratios.

The compa-ratio formula

West Virginia University’s Talent and Culture office defines compa-ratio as actual salary divided by the range midpoint, times 100, and the University of Wisconsin–Madison’s salary administration guidelines give the same formula along with the midpoint and position-in-range definitions above. A compa-ratio of 100% means pay is exactly at the midpoint.

The calculator opens on a salary of $47,000 in a $40,000 to $60,000 range. The midpoint is $50,000, so the compa-ratio is 47,000 ÷ 50,000 = 94%, or 0.94 written as a decimal. Position in range is (47,000 − 40,000) ÷ 20,000 = 35% of the way from minimum to maximum, in the second quarter of the range. Pay is $3,000, or 6%, below the midpoint, and a raise of 3,000 ÷ 47,000 = 6.38% would reach it.

WVU’s own example is a $48,000 salary against a $53,957 midpoint: 48,000 ÷ 53,957 = 0.88960, a compa-ratio of 88.96%. WVU’s page shows it as 88.95% in the formula and 89% in the example.

Reading a compa-ratio

Employers usually set the midpoint at or near the market rate for the job; WVU’s definition uses the two interchangeably. Below 100% suggests pay below that point; above 100%, pay above it. A compa-ratio is a position, not a verdict: someone new to the role is expected to start lower, and a long-serving top performer may sit well above the midpoint.

Each employer draws its own lines. UW–Madison’s guidelines describe a market-competitive range of plus or minus 15% of midpoint, a compa-ratio of 85% to 115%. WVU identifies a compa-ratio below 90% as below market competitive pay, while noting there can be valid reasons, such as experience or performance. Some employers also use compa-ratio in a merit matrix, giving larger raises to strong performers with low ratios, so that pay moves toward the midpoint over time.

Compa-ratio vs. position in range

The two measures answer different questions. Compa-ratio compares pay with one point, the midpoint. Position in range (PIR, also called range penetration) shows how far pay has moved through the whole range: 0% at the minimum, 50% at the midpoint and 100% at the maximum.

They don’t convert into each other without knowing the range width. In the $40,000 to $60,000 range, a compa-ratio of 85% is $42,500, only 12.5% into the range, and 115% is $57,500, or 87.5% into it. UW–Madison pairs an 85%–115% compa-ratio with a 25%–75% PIR; those two line up exactly only when the minimum is 70% and the maximum 130% of the midpoint, a range spread of about 86%. For a narrower range, the same compa-ratio band covers more of the range.

Range spread, (maximum − minimum) ÷ minimum, is 50% for the opening example. Wider ranges usually belong to senior jobs, where experience makes a bigger difference to pay.

Hourly pay and part-time jobs

For hourly jobs, enter the hourly rate and an hourly range. A rate of $24.50 in a $21.00 to $31.50 range has a midpoint of $26.25, a compa-ratio of 24.50 ÷ 26.25 = 93.33% and a position in range of 3.50 ÷ 10.50 = 33.3%.

For a part-time salaried job, compare the full-time-equivalent pay with the range, since ranges are set for full-time work. A half-time employee paid $25,000 has a full-time equivalent of $50,000, and that is the figure to enter. Comparing $25,000 with a full-time range would show a compa-ratio of half the true value.

Use base pay only. Overtime, bonuses and shift premiums vary from week to week and aren’t part of the salary range.

Compa-ratio for a team

Managers sometimes calculate a group compa-ratio to see whether a team or department is paid above or below its ranges overall. There are two ways to do it, and they give different numbers. Total pay divided by total midpoints weights each person by salary. The average of individual compa-ratios weights everyone equally.

For two employees, one paid $45,000 against a $50,000 midpoint (90%) and one paid $90,000 against $80,000 (112.5%), the total method gives 135,000 ÷ 130,000 = 103.85% and the average gives (90 + 112.5) ÷ 2 = 101.25%. Run each person through the calculator, then combine the results with whichever method your organization reports, and say which one you used.

Where salary ranges come from

Employers build ranges from salary surveys and from what they pay for similar jobs internally, then group jobs into grades or bands. Each grade has a minimum, a midpoint and a maximum, and every job in it shares that range. Your HR department or employee handbook may publish the structure, and some job postings list a pay range for the role.

A posted range in a job ad may not be the full grade range. Some employers advertise a narrower hiring range within the grade, leaving room for raises after hiring. If you enter a hiring range, the midpoint you get is the middle of that hiring range, which can sit below the grade midpoint, and the compa-ratio will look higher than it would against the full grade.

Ranges also move. When an employer adjusts its structure for the market, the midpoint rises and everyone’s compa-ratio falls a little even though no one’s pay changed. A 3% structure increase turns a 100% compa-ratio into 100 ÷ 1.03 = 97.1%.

Using the result in a pay conversation

If your employer publishes ranges, the compa-ratio gives you a shared, neutral number to discuss: where your pay sits now and what a move toward the midpoint would cost. The “pay at common compa-ratios” line shows the salary at each step, so you can see what reaching 95% or 100% would mean in dollars. A low ratio isn’t proof of unfair pay, and a high one isn’t a reason for no raise; ranges, experience and performance all matter, and ranges themselves move when employers update them for the market.

Sources & assumptions

How this calculator gets its numbers. Full method: our methodology.

• Compa-ratio = pay ÷ range midpoint × 100; midpoint = (minimum + maximum) ÷ 2 unless you enter a published midpoint.
• Position in range = (pay − minimum) ÷ (maximum − minimum) × 100; 0% is the minimum and 100% the maximum.
• Range spread = (maximum − minimum) ÷ minimum.
• Pay and range must use the same basis (annual or hourly) and, for part-time roles, the full-time-equivalent pay.

Sources

1. West Virginia University, Talent and Culture, Compa-Ratio. Compa-ratio = actual salary ÷ midpoint of the pay range × 100, with the example $48,000 against a $53,957 midpoint (shown as 89% and as 88.95% in the formula; 88.96% when rounded to two decimals).
2. University of Wisconsin–Madison, Office of Human Resources, UW–Madison Salary Administration Guidelines. Midpoint = (range minimum + maximum) ÷ 2; compa-ratio = pay rate ÷ range midpoint; position in range = (pay − minimum) ÷ (maximum − minimum); its market-competitive target of 85%–115% compa-ratio or 25%–75% PIR.

Last reviewed November 2, 2026. Employers set their own ranges and targets; a compa-ratio says where pay sits in the range, not whether it’s fair.