Paycheck Calculator

This calculator estimates net pay from an annual salary using your own average tax rates, then splits it across weekly, biweekly, semi-monthly or monthly paychecks. It shows how much goes to FICA, income tax and your 401(k), so you can see where the gap between gross and net comes from.

It works for budgeting, comparing job offers, checking what a raise is worth after tax, and sanity-checking a pay stub. Because you enter average (effective) tax rates rather than brackets, results are only as accurate as those rates: your effective federal rate is your total federal income tax divided by gross income, which you can read from last year's return or estimate with the federal income tax calculator.

The calculator applies FICA at a flat 7.65% of gross pay. Social Security tax actually stops at an annual wage cap, and an extra 0.9% Medicare tax applies to wages above $200,000, so very high earners should adjust. Health insurance premiums, HSA contributions and other deductions are not included; subtract them from the per-paycheck result.

FICA rates come from the Federal Insurance Contributions Act as published in IRS Publication 15. Traditional 401(k) contributions reduce income subject to federal and most state income tax but not wages subject to FICA, which is why FICA is applied to full gross pay. Roth 401(k) contributions do not reduce taxable income at all.

To gross up a payment (find the gross needed for a target net), divide the net amount by (1 − total tax rate). For example, $1,000 net at a combined 29.65% rate needs about $1,421.48 gross.

The annual take-home is identical whatever the schedule; only the slicing changes. Using the $70,000 example above:

Run the calculator twice: once at your current salary and once at the new one. In the $70,000 example, a raise to $75,000 lifts annual take-home from $49,259 to $52,777.50, an extra $3,518.50, or about 70% of the raise. The rest goes to tax, FICA and a larger 401(k) contribution.

A raise never lowers your take-home pay because of tax brackets: only the dollars above a bracket threshold are taxed at the higher rate. Means-tested benefits are a separate issue and can be affected.

• Withholding is not your final tax. Employers withhold using IRS tables and your Form W-4. Your actual liability is settled on your tax return, so a refund or balance due is normal.
• Other pre-tax deductions: health, dental and vision premiums, FSA and HSA contributions usually reduce both income tax and FICA.
• Local taxes: some cities and counties (for example New York City and many Ohio and Pennsylvania localities) levy income tax; add it to the state rate.
• State payroll taxes: a few states deduct disability or paid family leave contributions from wages.
• Bonuses and overtime: these can be withheld at different rates; see the bonus tax calculator and overtime pay calculator.