Paycheck Calculator

How take-home pay is worked out

Your take-home pay is your gross pay minus four kinds of deductions, in this order:

1. Pre-tax deductions — traditional 401(k) contributions, health premiums and similar. They come out first and lower the pay that's taxed.
2. Federal income tax withholding — set by IRS Publication 15-T and your Form W-4.
3. Social Security and Medicare (FICA) — 7.65% of most wages for employees in 2026.
4. State and local taxes — state income tax in 41 states and DC, local income tax in some cities and counties, and employee-paid state programs such as California SDI or paid family leave in about a dozen states.

Gross − pre-tax deductions − federal income tax − FICA − state & local taxes − state payroll programs = net pay

Example: single, $60,000 a year, paid biweekly, no state tax → about $1,938.08 per paycheck (84% of gross).

Paycheck calculators for every state

Each state page has the calculator set to that state, its 2026 brackets and deductions, worked examples and the official sources we used. At $60,000 a year (single, biweekly), take-home pay ranges from $50,390 in Florida to $46,056 in Oregon — compare all 50 states and DC.

• Alabama 2% to 5%
• Alaska No income tax on wages
• Arizona Flat 2.5%
• Arkansas 2% to 3.7%
• California 1% to 13.3%
• Colorado Flat 4.4%
• Connecticut 2% to 6.99%
• Delaware 2.2% to 6.6%
• District of Columbia 4% to 10.75%
• Florida No income tax on wages
• Georgia Flat 4.99%
• Hawaii 1.4% to 11%
• Idaho Flat 5.3%
• Illinois Flat 4.95%
• Indiana Flat 2.95%
• Iowa Flat 3.8%
• Kansas 5.2% to 5.58%
• Kentucky Flat 3.5%
• Louisiana Flat 3%
• Maine 5.8% to 9.15%
• Maryland 2% to 6.5%
• Massachusetts 5% to 9%
• Michigan Flat 4.25%
• Minnesota 5.35% to 9.85%
• Mississippi Flat 4%
• Missouri 2% to 4.7%
• Montana 4.7% to 5.65%
• Nebraska 2.46% to 4.55%
• Nevada No income tax on wages
• New Hampshire No income tax on wages
• New Jersey 1.4% to 10.75%
• New Mexico 1.5% to 5.9%
• New York 3.9% to 10.9%
• North Carolina Flat 3.99%
• North Dakota 1.95% to 2.5%
• Ohio Flat 2.75%
• Oklahoma 2.5% to 4.5%
• Oregon 4.75% to 9.9%
• Pennsylvania Flat 3.07%
• Rhode Island 3.75% to 5.99%
• South Carolina 1.99% to 5.21%
• South Dakota No income tax on wages
• Tennessee No income tax on wages
• Texas No income tax on wages
• Utah Flat 4.45%
• Vermont 3.35% to 8.75%
• Virginia 2% to 5.75%
• Washington No income tax on wages
• West Virginia 2.11% to 4.58%
• Wisconsin 3.5% to 7.65%
• Wyoming No income tax on wages

Two different numbers: tax you owe and tax withheld

Your tax liability is what you owe for the year, worked out on your tax return. Withholding is what your employer sends to the tax agencies from each paycheck, based on your W-4 and the withholding tables. They're designed to land close together for a simple situation, but they're not the same thing — which is why people get refunds or owe money in April.

2026 federal income tax brackets

Rates apply to taxable income — wages minus pre-tax deductions and the standard deduction. Only the income inside each band is taxed at that band's rate.

Effective rate = income tax ÷ wages = the share of your pay that goes to federal income tax

Example: single, $60,000 wages → $5,020.00 tax, an effective rate of 8.4% even though the top rate reached is 12%.

2026 standard deduction

People who are 65 or older or blind get an additional standard deduction (and, from 2025 to 2028, a separate $6,000 senior deduction), and some people itemize instead. This calculator uses the basic standard deduction only.

Social Security and Medicare (FICA)

• Social Security: 6.2% of wages up to the 2026 wage base of $184,500. Above that, it stops for the rest of the year.
• Medicare: 1.45% of all wages, with no cap.
• Additional Medicare: 0.9% on wages above $200,000 ($250,000 for joint filers, $125,000 married filing separately). Employers start withholding it once your wages with them pass $200,000, whatever your filing status.

How state income tax works

Nine states don't tax wages at all: Alaska, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming. Of the rest, about a third use a single flat rate and the others use brackets like the federal system. Each state decides its own:

• Starting point — most begin from federal adjusted gross income, so your 401(k) and health premiums usually lower state tax too. Pennsylvania doesn't exclude 401(k) deferrals; New Jersey doesn't exclude Section 125 health premiums.
• Deductions and exemptions — some states use the federal standard deduction, some set their own, some use exemptions or credits instead, and several shrink them as income rises.
• Local taxes — Maryland counties, Indiana counties, New York City and Yonkers are built into this calculator. Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky, Missouri and a few others have city or school-district taxes; enter your rate if you have one.

If you live in one state and work in another, you generally owe tax to the state where you work and claim a credit at home; some neighboring states have reciprocity agreements so only your home state taxes you. This calculator assumes you live and work in the same state.

State disability and paid leave deductions

Several states fund disability insurance, paid family and medical leave or long-term care through employee payroll deductions. They're not income tax, but they reduce take-home pay:

How your W-4 changes withholding

On a 2020-or-later Form W-4, payroll starts from your annualized wages and subtracts a fixed amount ($12,900 for married filing jointly, $8,600 otherwise) unless you check the Step 2 box. Then:

• Step 2 checkbox (two jobs) switches to a table that withholds more, so the household doesn't under-withhold.
• Step 3 credits reduce withholding across the year.
• Step 4(a) other income increases it; 4(b) extra deductions reduce it — the 2026 W-4 worksheet includes the new deductions for tips, overtime, car-loan interest and seniors; 4(c) adds a fixed amount to every paycheck.

Hourly pay and overtime

Choose Hourly to enter your rate, regular hours and overtime. We annualize it over 52 weeks. Overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act is at least 1.5 times your regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek. From 2025 to 2028, the federal "no tax on overtime" deduction can cover the extra half — see the tips and overtime deduction calculator. Withholding doesn't reflect the deduction unless you add it to W-4 Step 4(b).

Example paychecks (biweekly, 2026, federal only)

Add your state above, or open your state's page for examples that include state tax.

What this doesn't include

• Other income (investments, side work), itemized deductions, and the new 2025–2028 deductions for tips, overtime, car-loan interest and seniors in the yearly estimate (use the deduction calculator).
• Credit eligibility — you enter federal credits yourself. State credits we include are listed on each state page.
• After-tax deductions (Roth contributions, union dues, garnishments) and employer-specific payroll rounding.
• Working in a different state from the one you live in.
• Local taxes outside the areas built in, unless you enter a rate.

Sources

1. Revenue Procedure 2025-32 (2026 inflation adjustments) — Internal Revenue Service. Accessed 2026-10-09. Rev. Proc. 2025-32, sections 4.01 and 4.14
2. IRS releases tax inflation adjustments for tax year 2026, including amendments from the One, Big, Beautiful Bill — Internal Revenue Service. Accessed 2026-10-09. IR-2025-103, Oct. 9, 2025
3. 2026 Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) Fact Sheet — Social Security Administration. Accessed 2026-10-09. 2026 fact sheet (October 2025)
4. Topic no. 560, Additional Medicare Tax — Internal Revenue Service. Accessed 2026-10-09. Page last reviewed 24-Sep-2026
5. Publication 15-T (2026), Federal Income Tax Withholding Methods — Internal Revenue Service. Accessed 2026-10-09. Publication 15-T (2026), Worksheet 1A and Annual Percentage Method Tables
6. 2026 Income Tax Changes and Withholding Information — Pasadena City College (reproducing IRS Publication 15-T 2026). Accessed 2026-10-09. Reproduction of Pub 15-T (2026) Head of Household schedules

State sources are listed on each state's page.