13th Month Pay Calculator: What Filipino Employees Should Know

If you’re working in the Philippines, chances are you’ve heard about your “13th month pay” that extra year-end benefit that helps with holiday expenses. But do you know how it’s calculated, whether you’re eligible, and what counts toward it?

In this guide we’ll walk you through the calculation step by step, tailored to the Filipino employees. By the end you’ll be able to do your own 13th month pay calculator in seconds and know your rights.

What is 13th Month Pay and Who Qualifies?

The “13th month pay” in the Philippines is a mandatory benefit under Presidential Decree No. 851 (P.D. 851) signed on December 16, 1975.

Here are the key points about eligibility and coverage:

It covers rank-and-file employees in the private sector who have worked for at least one (1) month during the calendar year.
It applies regardless of employment status (probationary, project based, or contractual) as long as that one-month minimum is satisfied.
The benefit is not optional for private employers: they must pay it.
Some employees are excluded (e.g., purely on a task basis with a fixed amount regardless of time).
The deadline for payment in the private sector is typically on or before December 24 each year.

So when you go to use a 13th month pay calculator, you first check: Did you work at least a month this calendar year? If yes and you’re eligible, proceed to compute.

What counts as “Basic Salary Earned”?

Includes your regular salaries/wages for the months you worked.
Does not include overtime pay, night-shift differential, holiday premium, allowances not part of basic salary, profit-sharing, etc., unless these are integrated into your basic salary by company policy or collective agreement.
If you only worked part of the year (e.g., you resigned or were hired mid-year), you still get a pro-rated amount based on the basic salary you actually earned.

How to Compute Your 13th Month Pay

Here’s a simple breakdown of the formula and a step-by-step method you can use as your own 13th month pay calculator.

The basic formula

13th Month Pay = (Total Basic Salary Earned During the Year) ÷ 12