Your First BigLaw Paycheck: A Complete Checklist

Your first BigLaw paycheck is about to hit your account. After years of living on student loans, clerkship salary, or whatever got you through, this is different. The number on your pay stub has more digits than you're used to seeing.

This checklist tells you exactly what to do with it.

Before your first paycheck arrives

☐ Set up direct deposit. HR should have sent you forms during onboarding. If you haven't done this yet, do it today. You don't want your first paycheck sitting as a physical check that you have to remember to deposit.

☐ Open a high-yield savings account. Your big bank probably pays 0.01% on savings. Online banks like Marcus, Ally, or Wealthfront pay 4-5%. Open one now so you have somewhere to put your emergency fund that actually earns something.

☐ Enroll in your 401(k). If you haven't done this during orientation, log into your benefits portal and do it now. Don't wait for "when you understand it better." The default is usually not contributing, and every pay period you delay is money you won't get back.

☐ Review your benefits elections. Health insurance, dental, vision, HSA/FSA, life insurance, disability. Make sure what you elected is what you actually wanted. Mistakes are easier to fix now than six months from now.

When your first paycheck arrives

☐ Check that the numbers are right. Verify your salary matches your offer letter. Check that your 401(k) contribution is being deducted correctly. Confirm your tax withholding makes sense (ask HR if you're unsure).

☐ Note the difference between gross and net. Your offer said $225,000. Your paycheck, after taxes and deductions, is probably more like $6,000 to $7,000 per pay period if you're paid semi-monthly. That's normal. That's what taxes look like at this income level.

☐ Transfer money to your emergency fund. Decide on an amount—$1,000, $2,000, whatever works—and transfer it to your high-yield savings account. Set up an automatic transfer for every future paycheck.

☐ Pay your bills. Rent, utilities, insurance, minimum loan payments. The boring stuff that keeps life running.

☐ Don't do anything dramatic with the rest. Let it sit for a few weeks while you figure out your actual spending patterns. The urge to immediately upgrade everything is strong. Resist it, at least initially.

Within your first month

☐ Create a simple budget. Track what you actually spend for a month. Fixed costs (rent, loans, insurance), variable necessities (food, transportation, utilities), and discretionary spending (everything else). You can't optimize what you don't measure.

☐ Increase your 401(k) contribution if possible. The default contribution is often 3-6%. At BigLaw salaries, you should aim to max out the $23,500 limit (2025). That's about $980 per paycheck if you're paid semi-monthly. If that feels like too much right now, at least contribute enough to get your full employer match.

☐ Set up automatic savings transfers. Whatever amount you want to save beyond retirement—emergency fund, future house down payment, taxable investments—make it automatic. Money that leaves your checking account before you see it is money you won't accidentally spend.

☐ Review your student loans. Log into your loan servicer and make sure you understand your repayment plan, interest rates, and total balance. Set up autopay for at least the minimums (many servicers offer a 0.25% rate reduction for autopay).

Within your first three months

☐ Build your emergency fund to one month of expenses. This is the first milestone. One month of rent, food, loan payments, and essentials sitting in your high-yield savings account, untouched.

☐ Get a credit card if you don't have one. With a BigLaw income, you'll be approved for good cards. Get a simple cashback card with no annual fee. Use it for regular purchases and pay the full balance monthly. This builds credit without paying interest.

☐ Check your credit report. Go to annualcreditreport.com and pull your free reports. Look for errors or accounts you don't recognize. Fix problems now rather than when you're trying to rent an apartment or buy a house.

☐ Get renters insurance. If you're renting and don't have it, get it. It's $15-30/month and covers your belongings plus liability. You don't want to lose everything you own and have no recourse.

☐ Review your withholding. After a full month or two of paychecks, check if your tax withholding seems right. If you're getting huge refunds or owe a lot at tax time, adjust your W-4.

Within your first six months

☐ Grow your emergency fund to three months of expenses. This is your baseline safety net. Job loss, unexpected expenses, medical emergencies—you can handle them without going into debt.

☐ Make a student loan decision. You've had time to see your actual budget and cash flow. Now decide: aggressive payoff, minimum payments while investing, or refinancing for a lower rate. There's no universal right answer, but there's a right answer for your situation.

☐ Consider the backdoor Roth IRA. You're over the income limit for direct Roth contributions, but you can still contribute $7,000 through the backdoor method. This takes 30 minutes to set up and provides tax-free growth for decades.

☐ Review your insurance coverage. Life insurance and disability insurance become more important as your income grows. Your firm provides some coverage, but understand what it is and whether you need more.

☐ Start thinking about major financial goals. House down payment? Early retirement? Paying off loans by a certain date? Having a target makes it easier to prioritize.

What to avoid in your first year

☐ Don't buy a car you can't afford. The Mercedes is tempting. You can "afford" the payments. But a $60,000 car loan is money not going toward your emergency fund, retirement, or loan payoff. If you need a car, buy something reliable and modest. Upgrade later when you're on solid financial footing.

☐ Don't move into the most expensive apartment possible. Rent is often the biggest expense. Every extra $500/month in rent is $6,000/year not going toward your goals. Live comfortably, but don't let housing eat your entire raise.

☐ Don't lend money to friends or family who "just need help until..." You're the one with money now. Requests will come. Be generous where you can, but know that loans to loved ones rarely get repaid and often damage relationships. Give what you can afford to lose, not what you expect to get back.

☐ Don't ignore your benefits enrollment deadline. Open enrollment happens once a year. Miss it, and you're stuck with whatever you have until next year. Put it on your calendar.

☐ Don't assume you'll "catch up later." Time is your biggest advantage for building wealth. The contributions you skip now can't be made up. Starting early matters more than starting perfect.

The simple version

If this all feels overwhelming, here's the minimum viable first-year plan:

1. Enroll in 401(k), contribute at least enough for full employer match
2. Set up automatic transfer to high-yield savings for emergency fund
3. Pay all bills on time, every time
4. Don't let lifestyle inflate to match your entire salary

That's it. Do those four things and you're ahead of most of your classmates. Everything else is optimization.

Your first BigLaw paycheck is a milestone. What you do with it sets patterns that compound for decades. Take the time to set it up right.