Methodology: how we calculate

Where the numbers come from

We use primary sources whenever they exist: the law as published by the Brazilian presidency (Planalto), the Diário Oficial da União, gov.br pages, the Receita Federal (Brazil's tax authority), each state's tax and vehicle agencies, the Banco Central do Brasil and, for the IGP-M and IGP-DI indices, FGV, which computes them, with the index numbers read from Ipeadata, the database of Brazil's Ipea institute.

When a value is only available from a secondary source, or has not yet been re-read in the official text, we say so plainly. Today that applies to some state vehicle tax (IPVA) rules, to state holidays not yet checked against state law, and to the federal civil servants' pension contribution bands (RPPS) used on the salary pages: the rates are set by Constitutional Amendment 103/2019, but the 2026 band limits come from Annex III of Portaria Interministerial MPS/MF 13/2026, which we have not yet re-read in the Diário Oficial.

How we check

Each table is read in the official text, and the address and date of that reading are recorded in an internal research log. The IPVA, Simples Nacional and MEI, price index, unemployment insurance, FGTS birthday withdrawal, holiday, working week and annual income tax tables also went through a second, independent review that re-read every number at the source and redid the arithmetic. The monthly social security, income tax and minimum wage tables were re-read once in the official text, with no difference from the code. Where that review has not been possible yet, we say so above.

Automated tests reproduce official examples: the Receita Federal's worked examples for monthly income tax, the social security (INSS) table band by band, and Banco Central calculator results for inflation correction. If a code change alters any of these results, the tests fail.

Each Brazilian tool shows the source and date of the table it uses so you can check it. The universal calculators on the English pages use no official table (see below). The WhatsApp link tool follows WhatsApp's public click-to-chat link format.

When we update

Yearly tables (social security, income tax, minimum wage, Simples Nacional and MEI, IPVA and public holidays) are updated in January. When a law changes mid-year, we update the affected tools as soon as we can after it is published and record the change in the changelog. Constitutional Amendment 141/2026, which shortens the working week, is already applied in the hours tools.

Banco Central price indices are read at most once a day, and we keep a stored copy so the page still works when the Banco Central is offline.

A tool's “Last updated” date changes only when its content or a table changes.

Table changelog (in Portuguese)

Rounding

On the Brazilian tools, amounts in reais are rounded to the cent, half up (0.005 becomes 0.01). Each line of a result (salary balance, vacation pay, the vacation third, 13th salary, overtime, social security, income tax) is rounded to the cent, as on a payslip, and the total is the sum of the rounded lines, so the figures add up.

For social security, the total is the exact sum of the bands, rounded once. Each band is shown rounded and the last one absorbs the difference, so the breakdown adds up to the total.

For income tax, the taxable base (salary minus social security and deductions, already rounded) is rounded to the cent before the table is applied.

For 12-month IGP-M and IGP-DI figures, we use FGV's index numbers, read from Ipeadata, as FGV itself computes them, rather than multiplying already rounded monthly rates. For IPCA and INPC, and for the IGPs when index numbers are unavailable, we compound the monthly rates published by the Banco Central. In every case the result is rounded to two decimals, as the indices are published.

For unemployment insurance, the salary average is rounded to the cent before the table is applied, and the payment is rounded up to the cent. We could not confirm how the Labour Ministry system rounds.

Because of this, a result may differ by a few cents from the official system.

Universal calculators (English pages)

The compound interest, loan, percentage, hours and date calculators on the English pages are plain maths that works in any country. They use no official table, so they show no table source or date, and the Brazilian rules above do not apply to them.

Loan: the monthly rate is the annual interest rate divided by 12. The schedule runs on unrounded amounts and only the totals are rounded to the cent at the end, so a lender that rounds every payment can differ by a few cents over the whole loan.

Compound interest: the rate is a nominal annual rate with the compounding frequency you choose, from annually to daily, and monthly contributions are added at the end of each month.

Percentages: results are rounded to 4 decimal places, and numbers below 1 keep 6 significant digits.

Hours: times are counted in whole minutes. The time card applies only the U.S. federal Fair Labor Standards Act rule, hours over 40 in a workweek at 1.5 times the rate, and it can be switched off. State daily overtime rules, such as California's, and other countries' rules are not applied.

Dates: days are counted on calendar dates in UTC, so time zones and daylight saving time do not change the count. Public holidays are not taken out of the weekday count, because they differ by country and state.

Limits of the estimates

The Brazilian calculators follow the general rules of Brazilian labour and tax law. Collective agreements, company benefits, absences, alimony and other specific deductions can change the final amount, and each tool says what it leaves out.

Results are estimates for guidance and do not replace an official calculation or a professional.

Ads and partner links never change a result.

Found a mistake?

Write to [email protected] naming the tool and, if you can, the official source with the correct value. Every tool has a report link that opens an email with the tool's name already filled in.

Please do not send personal data or the values you typed. Every correction is added to the table changelog, with its date and source.