If you pay employees on a weekly or bi-weekly basis, 2026 brings 27 (bi-weekly) or 53 (weekly) pay periods, one extra than is typical. Employers who issue monthly paychecks are not impacted by this anomaly. Note that the first and last 2026 pay dates are similar for employers who use weekly or bi-weekly pay periods. The first pay date is Friday, January 02, 2026, and the final paycheck will be processed with a date of Thursday December 31, 2026, due to New Year’s Day falling on Friday, January 01, 2027.
The 2026 pay period anomaly requires you to consider important questions.
How will this cycle impact my employees?
- Salaried employees (exempt): if an organization chooses to pay on their regular payroll cycle, the employees’ wages will be overstated based on their annual salary, which can cause issues pertaining to annual limit amounts for 401(k), HSA, and FSA contributions, as employees may hit their allowable contribution limits early and miss out on year-end employer matching.
- Hourly employees (non-exempt): hourly employees are paid based on hours worked, so their 2026 earnings may be slightly higher than 2025 due to an extra paycheck.
How will this affect compliance?
- Review state and local payroll regulations. Check state and local websites for access to free payroll guidelines. You may also contact the US. Department of Labor. A useful research tool for members is the multi-state payroll chart builder in Member Central.
How will this affect my 2026 budget planning?
- The extra paycheck could increase expenses, employer contributions, taxes, benefits, etc.
What options do you have?
- Regular Payroll Cycle: Simply follow the existing pay schedule. However, keep in mind (as stated above) this can affect annual salaries (exempt employees’ wages could be overstated), as well as benefits, 401(k) annual limits, and taxes.
- Re-Calculate by 27 pays: Recalculate the annual salary by 27 pays as opposed to 26. This will keep compensation consistent; however, the results are that a salaried employee will receive lower check amounts in 2026.
Once you decide how to process payroll for 2026, evaluate:
- Annual Contribution Limits: employees who maximize their 401(k), HAS, and FSA contributions will need to consider adjusting their paycheck amounts. Should they decide not to make any changes, they could reach their limits early and miss year-end employer matching.
- Benefits: consider if you are going to continue deductions as normal and take from the 27th check (if so, you may need to recalculate the deduction amount) or allow the 27th pay to be free of deductions.
- Taxes: software is designed to account for anomalies such as extra pay. Check with your software provider to verify that all tax withholdings will remain the same.
Importantly, review these action steps to help you maintain compliance.
- Review the 2026 Payroll Calendar to verify if your organization hits 27 dates (see payroll schedule below).
- Notify your employees how they can make changes to their paycheck deductions, and if you decide to utilize the recalculation method.
- Review employees offer letters and contracts (if applicable) to verify they state specifically a bi-weekly or annual salary amount.
- Conduct monthly or quarterly audits to confirm pay and deductions are processed based on the cycle chosen. This also helps you verify compliance with minimum wage requirements.
Knowing the fundamentals of payroll and staying up to date with anomalous payroll years like 2026, your efforts will help employees and the organization make informed decisions.
Employers Council is here to help. For assistance with payroll processing services and other questions, please email us or call 800-884-1328.
Mark Sikorski is the Payroll Services Manager with Employers Council.
2026 Weekly and Bi-weekly Pay Calendar
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Weekly Pay
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Bi-Weekly Pay
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Thursday
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Friday
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Thursday
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Friday
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1/1/2026
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1/2/2026
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1/1/2026
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1/2/2026
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1/8/2026
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1/9/2026
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1/15/2026
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1/16/2026
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1/15/2026
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1/16/2026
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1/29/2026
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1/30/2026
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1/22/2026
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1/23/2026
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2/12/2026
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2/13/2026
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1/29/2026
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1/30/2026
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2/26/2026
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2/27/2026
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2/5/2026
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2/6/2026
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3/12/2026
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3/13/2026
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2/12/2026
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2/13/2026
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3/26/2026
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3/27/2026
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2/19/2026
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2/20/2026
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4/9/2026
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4/10/2026
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2/26/2026
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2/27/2026
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4/23/2026
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4/24/2026
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3/5/2026
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3/6/2026
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5/7/2026
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5/8/2026
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3/12/2026
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3/13/2026
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5/21/2026
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5/22/2026
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3/19/2026
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3/20/2026
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6/4/2026
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6/5/2026
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3/26/2026
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3/27/2026
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6/18/2026
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6/19/2026
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4/2/2026
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4/3/2026
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7/2/2026
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7/3/2026
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4/9/2026
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4/10/2026
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7/16/2026
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7/17/2026
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4/16/2026
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4/17/2026
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7/30/2026
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7/31/2026
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4/23/2026
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4/24/2026
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8/13/2026
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8/14/2026
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4/30/2026
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5/1/2026
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8/27/2026
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8/28/2026
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5/7/2026
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5/8/2026
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9/10/2026
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9/11/2026
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5/14/2026
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5/15/2026
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9/24/2026
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9/25/2026
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5/21/2026
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5/22/2026
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10/8/2026
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10/9/2026
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5/28/2026
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5/29/2026
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10/22/2026
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10/23/2026
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6/4/2026
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6/5/2026
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11/5/2026
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11/6/2026
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6/11/2026
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6/12/2026
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11/19/2026
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11/20/2026
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6/18/2026
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6/19/2026
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12/3/2026
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12/4/2026
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6/25/2026
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6/26/2026
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12/17/2026
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12/18/2026
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7/2/2026
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7/3/2026
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12/31/2026
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1/1/2027
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7/9/2026
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7/10/2026
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7/16/2026
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7/17/2026
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7/23/2026
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7/24/2026
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7/30/2026
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7/31/2026
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8/6/2026
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8/7/2026
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8/13/2026
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8/14/2026
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8/20/2026
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8/21/2026
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8/27/2026
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8/28/2026
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9/3/2026
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9/4/2026
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9/10/2026
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9/11/2026
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9/17/2026
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9/18/2026
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9/24/2026
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9/25/2026
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10/1/2026
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10/2/2026
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10/8/2026
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10/9/2026
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10/15/2026
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10/16/2026
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10/22/2026
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10/23/2026
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10/29/2026
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10/30/2026
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11/5/2026
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11/6/2026
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11/12/2026
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11/13/2026
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11/19/2026
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11/20/2026
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11/26/2026
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11/27/2026
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12/3/2026
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12/4/2026
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12/10/2026
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12/11/2026
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12/17/2026
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12/18/2026
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12/24/2026
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12/25/2026
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12/31/2026
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1/1/2027
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