Most people asking how much they should tithe are not confused about the percentage. They are trying to turn a percentage into a number they can actually set up in a banking app on a Tuesday night.
This guide converts the tithe into exact dollars for every common salary, settles the gross-versus-net question from the text itself, and gives a working method for commission, self-employment, bonus and variable income.
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The short answer: 10% of your income
The tithe is defined mathematically, not sentimentally. The Hebrew ma'aser means "a tenth," and the Greek dekatē in Hebrews 7 carries the same precise sense. Whatever else Christians debate about tithing, nobody debates the arithmetic: a tithe is 10% of increase.
"Honor the LORD with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce." — Proverbs 3:9 (ESV)
Two words in that verse decide the practical question. Firstfruits means the tithe comes off the top, before other obligations. All your produce means every stream of increase counts, not only the one that arrives as a paycheck. For the full biblical case, see our biblical tithing guide.
Tithe amounts by annual salary
Every figure below is a straight 10% of gross annual salary. Monthly is the annual figure divided by 12; weekly is divided by 52.
Annual salary Annual tithe Monthly Weekly $20,000 $2,000 $166.67 $38.46 $30,000 $3,000 $250.00 $57.69 $40,000 $4,000 $333.33 $76.92 $50,000 $5,000 $416.67 $96.15 $60,000 $6,000 $500.00 $115.38 $70,000 $7,000 $583.33 $134.62 $80,000 $8,000 $666.67 $153.85 $90,000 $9,000 $750.00 $173.08 $100,000 $10,000 $833.33 $192.31 $125,000 $12,500 $1,041.67 $240.38 $150,000 $15,000 $1,250.00 $288.46 $200,000 $20,000 $1,666.67 $384.62 $250,000 $25,000 $2,083.33 $480.77 $500,000 $50,000 $4,166.67 $961.54For a live figure on your exact number, the monthly income calculator handles any amount between these rows.
Tithe amounts by hourly wage
Hourly workers rarely think in annual terms. These figures assume 40 hours per week, 52 weeks per year.
Hourly wage Annual gross Monthly tithe Weekly tithe $15 $31,200 $260.00 $60.00 $20 $41,600 $346.67 $80.00 $25 $52,000 $433.33 $100.00 $30 $62,400 $520.00 $120.00 $45 $93,600 $780.00 $180.00A useful shortcut for hourly work: your weekly tithe is four hours of pay. Ten percent of a forty-hour week is four hours. That framing has moved more people to consistent giving than any spreadsheet.
Gross or net? What the text actually supports
This is the most-asked follow-up question, and the honest answer has two layers.
The case for gross
Proverbs 3:9 says firstfruits. In an agrarian economy the tithe came off the harvest before the household consumed anything, and nothing in the text carves out a deduction for the costs of production. Withheld tax is income you earned and directed — it funds roads and courts on your behalf. Tithing on gross treats the whole increase as increase.
The case for net
Net advocates argue that money you never received cannot be firstfruits, and that the Levitical tithe was closer to a tax on realised produce than on theoretical yield. For a self-employed believer whose gross revenue includes materials, inventory and contractor payments, tithing on gross revenue rather than net profit can be mathematically ruinous — and Scripture never asks for ruin.
The workable rule
- Salaried employees — tithe on gross. Your gross is your increase; withholding is spending, not absence.
- Self-employed and business owners — tithe on net profit, not revenue. Business expenses are not increase.
- Uncertain and stretched — start on net and move toward gross as debt clears. Consistency at 10% of net beats a heroic gross figure abandoned in month three.
Our side-by-side breakdown of both positions lives at gross vs net tithing.
Tithing on irregular income
Commission, freelance, seasonal and gig income breaks the monthly-transfer model. Three methods work.
- Per-deposit tithing — every time money lands, move 10% immediately to a separate giving account. Highest fidelity to firstfruits, and the method that survives a bad quarter.
- Baseline plus true-up — tithe monthly on your lowest reliable income, then reconcile at quarter end on everything above it. Best for people who need a predictable monthly number.
- Annual reconciliation — give a conservative monthly amount, then compute the shortfall against actual annual income each December. Weakest on firstfruits, but far better than not giving at all.
Bonuses, tax refunds, inheritances and asset sales are all increase. A tax refund is the exception worth naming: you already tithed that money if you tithe on gross, so tithing the refund again is generosity rather than obligation.
What if 10% is not currently possible?
Some households arrive at this question while servicing debt that consumes more than a tenth of income. Scripture is not indifferent to that pressure — Proverbs 22:7 calls the borrower slave to the lender, which is a diagnosis, not a condemnation.
The practical path is percentage escalation. Begin at whatever you can sustain — 2%, 4%, 5% — and raise the rate one point every quarter while attacking debt on a debt snowball plan. Most households reach a full tithe within eighteen to twenty-four months, and they arrive with the habit already built. Read the full framework in what the Bible says about debt.
Where the tithe goes
Malachi 3:10 locates the tithe in the storehouse — the place where ministry is provisioned. The dominant historical reading is that the tithe belongs to the local congregation you are covenanted to, and that gifts to parachurch ministries, missionaries and the poor are offerings above it.
A useful ordering: tithe to your local church first, then direct offerings toward missions and mercy. On the giving-to-the-poor question, see our study on giving to the poor and the deeper hub at Christian tithing.
The setup that makes it stick
- Automate on payday — schedule the transfer for the day income arrives, not the end of the month. Firstfruits is a timing claim as much as an amount claim.
- Use a separate giving account — money that sits in the checking account gets spent by accident.
- Give by bank transfer where possible — ACH costs your church roughly 1% versus about 2.9% on a card. See our breakdown of church giving app fees.
- Review the number every January — a raise that does not raise the tithe quietly lowers your giving rate.
A short prayer
"Father, every dollar that reached my account this year came from your hand. Teach me to give the first portion rather than the leftover, to set the number honestly, and to hold the rest loosely. Make my giving quiet, steady and glad. Amen."
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