Enter your gross pay and see federal tax, FICA, and state tax broken out line by line, not just a smaller number with no explanation.
What This Calculator Does
A paycheck calculator answers one question: if you earn a certain amount, how much of it actually lands in your bank account after tax? This tool takes your gross pay for a period, your pay frequency, and your state, and walks the same path a payroll system walks: federal income tax withholding, Social Security, Medicare, and, where it applies, state income tax, each shown as its own line so you can see where every dollar goes instead of staring at one final number with no explanation.
It is built for a single filer taking the standard deduction, with no pre-tax deductions, extra W-4 withholding, or dependents modeled. That scope is stated once here, plainly, because a calculator that quietly assumes things about your household and doesn't say so is more dangerous than one that tells you exactly what it left out.
How Federal Withholding Is Estimated
Real payroll withholding uses IRS Publication 15-T's wage-bracket or percentage-method tables, built to approximate your annual tax liability one pay period at a time from your actual W-4. This calculator uses a simpler, closely related approach: the annualized-income method. It takes your pay period amount, multiplies it out to a full year, subtracts the 2026 federal standard deduction for a single filer ($16,100), and applies the 2026 federal marginal tax brackets to what's left, then divides that annual tax back down to your pay period.
| 2026 taxable income (single filer) | Rate |
|---|---|
| $0 – $12,400 | 10% |
| $12,400 – $50,400 | 12% |
| $50,400 – $105,700 | 22% |
| $105,700 – $201,775 | 24% |
| $201,775 – $256,225 | 32% |
| $256,225 – $640,600 | 35% |
| Over $640,600 | 37% |
Marginal means only the income inside each bracket is taxed at that bracket's rate, not your whole paycheck. Source: IRS, Revenue Procedure 2025-32, the same 2026 single-filer brackets already live on our self-employed tax estimator.
FICA: Social Security and Medicare
FICA is not optional and does not depend on your filing status. It has three parts, all withheld from your paycheck as a flat percentage of wages:
- Social Security, 6.2% of wages up to the annual wage base, $184,500 for 2026. Earn more than that in a year and Social Security withholding stops for the rest of the year.
- Medicare, 1.45% of every dollar of wages, no cap.
- Additional Medicare Tax, 0.9% on wages above $200,000 in a year, employee-side only; your employer does not match this piece.
Source: IRS Publication 15 (2026). Your employer pays a matching 6.2% and 1.45% on your behalf that never touches your paycheck, which is why FICA is often described as split evenly between employer and employee, even though only your half shows up on your stub.
State Income Tax: It Depends Entirely on Where You Work
This is the single biggest variable in what your paycheck looks like. This calculator models five specific situations directly:
- Texas and Florida have no state personal income tax at all. Your paycheck gap there is federal tax and FICA, full stop.
- California taxes income on a nine-bracket progressive table (1% to 12.3%, plus a 1% surcharge on income over $1,000,000) and separately withholds State Disability Insurance at 1.3% of wages with no cap.
- New York State taxes income on its own progressive table, separate from federal brackets.
- New York City residents pay New York State tax and a second, separate New York City resident tax on the same income, stacked on top of each other.
Pick "Other" and no state tax is added, useful either if you live somewhere we haven't modeled yet or if you'd rather see the federal-and-FICA-only baseline. For the deep dive on any one of these, see our dedicated guides: Texas, Florida, California, and New York City.
A Worked Example
Say you're paid $2,500 every two weeks (biweekly), no state tax selected. Annualized, that's $65,000 a year. Subtract the $16,100 standard deduction and $48,900 is taxable. Federal tax on that: 10% of the first $12,400 ($1,240) plus 12% of the next $36,500 ($4,380), for $5,620 a year, or $216.15 per paycheck. FICA: Social Security is $2,500 × 6.2% = $155.00; Medicare is $2,500 × 1.45% = $36.25. No state tax selected, so nothing else comes out. Net pay: $2,500 − $216.15 − $155.00 − $36.25 = $2,092.60 take-home per paycheck. Change any of the inputs above and the same math runs on your own numbers.
Why Your Real Paycheck Might Differ From This Estimate
If you've compared this to an actual pay stub, ADP, Gusto, Paychex, or your employer's own system, and the numbers are close but not identical, that's expected, not a bug. A real payroll system reads your actual W-4: filing status, dependents, extra withholding you asked for, multiple jobs, and any pre-tax deductions like a 401(k) contribution or health insurance premium, all of which change the taxable wage base before withholding is even calculated. This tool intentionally models the simple, common case, single filer, standard deduction, nothing pre-tax, so you can sanity-check a number quickly. For a full breakdown of how to read a real ADP-issued stub against this calculator line by line, see our ADP paycheck stub guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
How accurate is this paycheck calculator?
It is an estimate, not your actual withholding. It uses the annualized-income method: your pay is annualized, the 2026 federal standard deduction is subtracted, the federal brackets are applied, then divided back to your pay period, alongside FICA and, where you select one, state tax. Real payroll software applies the IRS wage-bracket tables to your actual W-4 elections (extra withholding, dependents, multiple jobs, pre-tax deductions), which can move the number in either direction. Use this to sanity-check a number, not to file anything.
Why is my paycheck less than my hourly rate times my hours?
Three things come out before you see the money: federal income tax withholding, FICA (Social Security and Medicare), and, in some states, state income tax. This calculator itemizes each one so you can see exactly where the gap comes from instead of just a smaller number.
What is FICA and why do I have to pay it?
FICA is Social Security and Medicare, funded by a 6.2% employee-side Social Security tax on wages up to the annual wage base ($184,500 for 2026) and a 1.45% employee-side Medicare tax with no cap. Your employer pays a matching 6.2% and 1.45% on top, which does not come out of your paycheck. Wages above $200,000 in a year add a 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax, employee-side only.
Does this calculator account for 401(k) contributions or health insurance premiums?
No. Pre-tax deductions like a traditional 401(k) contribution or a pre-tax health insurance premium reduce the wages that federal and (usually) state tax apply to, which means your real withholding would typically be a little lower than this tool shows if you have either. This calculator is scoped to gross pay in, tax withheld, net pay out, stated plainly so the gap is not a surprise.
Why does the state I pick change the result so much?
State income tax rules vary enormously. Texas and Florida have none, so the entire gap between gross and net there is federal tax and FICA. California and New York tax income on a progressive bracket table like the federal government does, and New York City residents pay a second, local bracket table on top of the state one. Pick your state above to see which situation applies to you.
Can I use this if I'm paid a salary instead of hourly?
Yes. Enter your gross pay for one pay period (or your full annual salary with Annual selected) and your pay frequency. If you're paid hourly with variable hours, especially with overtime, our hourly paycheck calculator handles the overtime math for you.
Is this tax, legal, or financial advice?
No. It is an educational estimation tool built from federal and state figures we verify against primary government sources where we can, cited in our methodology. Confirm your actual withholding with your pay stub, your employer's payroll system, or a licensed tax professional before making any financial decision based on it.