Annualized income is an estimate of total income received in a year, categorized by month. The formula is rather simple, because it just involves dividing annual income by a certain number to get the estimate. While annualized income is normally used to get the return for an entire year, it also can be used for just a few months; if this is done, then a similar formula is required. One reason for doing this is so a business has a broad estimate of how much it made each month, though this does not display what each individual month brought in. This also is used to help estimate certain tax payments, which can help if the business is behind on taxes.
Determining annualized income can be done with a regular calculator or a piece of paper. The first figure that is required is the total amount of money the business made in a year. That number is then divided by the number of months in the year, which is 12. For example, if the income is $100,000 US Dollars, then annualized income is about $8,333 USD a month.
This normally is figured for an entire year, but income also can be annualized for periods of less or more than a year. The formula is similar to the annual formula, except the number of months is changed for the correct estimate. For example, if someone wants annualized income for a 10-month period, then the income over that period is divided by 10.
This is done to give a business or investor a broad look at what is being made each month. The problem with this method is that it is not entirely accurate. For example, a business may make much less in June than it did in the other months, but annualized income makes it look as if the business brought in the same revenue each month. Still, while annualized income is not entirely accurate, it is much faster than other methods.
Some taxes may use annualized income to figure out how much money a business should pay each month, based on what it is making. This is typically only if the business cannot pay annual income tax, and it is rarely done for businesses that could pay their taxes on time. It also may be used if a tax agency believes the company underpaid, and it will use this figure as an estimate to get the real tax amount.