US Salary & Paycheck Calculator — 2026

Estimate your real take-home pay: progressive federal tax brackets, Social Security, Medicare, state and local tax, pre-tax benefits, and post-tax deductions — broken down by year, month, paycheck, and hour.

Pay Information

Annual salary

$15k $500k

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Hourly rate

$7 $200

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Hours per week

1 80

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Weeks worked per year

1 52

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Overtime hours per week

0 40

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Overtime multiplier

1× 3×

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Annual bonus

$0 $200k

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Annual commission

$0 $200k

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Other taxable income / year

$0 $200k

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Filing & Location

Federal filing status

State income tax rate

0% 15%

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Local tax rate (optional)

0% 5%

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Family & Dependents

Qualifying children (under 17)

0 8

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Other dependents

0 8

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Pretax Deductions Withheld by Employer

Traditional 401(k) / 403(b) / 457(b) contribution

% of pay

0% 50%

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Your age

18 75

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2026 elective-deferral limit: $24,500. Catch-up (age 50+): +$8,000. Special catch-up (age 60–63, SECURE 2.0): +$11,250 instead.

HSA coverage

HSA contribution / year (payroll)

$0 $10k

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Healthcare FSA / year

$0 $3.4k

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Dependent Care FSA / year

$0 $5k

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Commuter / transit benefits / year

$0 $5k

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Health / dental / vision premiums / year

$0 $20k

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Above-the-Line Deductions

Student loan interest

$0 $2,500

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Traditional IRA contributions are not modeled here but can be entered as "Other income adjustments" below if desired.

Itemized Deductions

Mortgage interest / year

$0 $50k

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State & local taxes paid (SALT, capped at $10,000)

$0 $30k

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Charitable contributions / year

$0 $50k

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Medical expenses / year

$0 $50k

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Other itemized deductions / year

$0 $20k

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State-Specific Pre-tax Deductions

Other state-specific pre-tax deductions / year

$0 $10k

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Post-tax Deductions

Roth 401(k) / Roth IRA payroll deduction / year

$0 $40k

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Tax Credits

Child Tax Credit per child

$0 $3,000

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Note: Child Tax Credit is estimated at the maximum value. High-income phase-outs (starting at $200k Single / $400k MFJ) are not modeled in this estimate. You can set the credit to $0 if you know you phase out.

Additional Income

Do you have a second job or does your spouse have income?

No Yes

Secondary / spouse income / year

$0 $500k

Please enter a valid value

Employment Type

Are you self-employed or an independent contractor?

No (W-2 employee) Yes (1099 / Self-employed)

Self-employment tax (15.3% on 92.35% of net profit) will be added. Pretax deductions become business expenses.

Estimated Take-Home Pay

Annual net pay

$68,628

Monthly$5,719

Semimonthly (24/yr)$2,859

Biweekly (26/yr)$2,640

Weekly$1,320

Hourly equivalent (net)$33/hr

Paycheck Breakdown (Annual)

Gross Pay$85,000

Pre-tax Benefits−$0

Federal Income Tax−$9,870

Social Security−$5,270

Medicare−$1,233

Additional Medicare−$0

State Income Tax−$0

Local Tax−$0

Post-tax Deductions−$0

Net Pay$68,628

Effective tax rate: 19.3%

Marginal federal rate: 22%

Take-home: 80.7%

Effective rate = total taxes ÷ gross pay. Marginal rate = the tax bracket on your last dollar of federal taxable income — not the rate on your whole paycheck.

Annual Tax Breakdown

Tax	Annual	Monthly
Federal Income Tax	$9,870	$823
Social Security	$5,270	$439
Medicare	$1,233	$103
Additional Medicare	$0	$0
State Income Tax	$0	$0
Local Tax	$0	$0
Total Taxes	$16,373	$1,364

Gross vs. Net Hourly Equivalent

Gross hourly equivalent$41/hr

Net (take-home) hourly equivalent$33/hr

Compare Salaries

Estimated annual take-home at different salary levels, using your current filing status, state, and benefit elections.

Gross Salary	Est. Annual Net Pay	Take-home %
$40,000	$34,320	85.8%
$50,000	$42,355	84.7%
$60,000	$50,390	84.0%
$70,000	$58,075	83.0%
$85,000	$68,628	80.7%
$100,000	$79,180	79.2%
$120,000	$93,250	77.7%
$150,000	$113,791	75.9%
$200,000	$148,927	74.5%
$300,000	$215,177	71.7%

Salary Needed for a Target Take-Home Pay

Work backward from a desired monthly take-home to the gross salary required — using your filing status, state, and benefit elections.

Desired monthly take-home

$500 $50k

Please enter a valid value

Required annual salary $72,736

Bonus Take-Home Calculator

Bonuses are supplemental wages: employers usually withhold federal tax at a flat 22% (37% on amounts over $1M in a year) rather than your regular bracket — this is withholding, not your final tax bill.

Bonus amount

$0 $200k

Please enter a valid value

Year-to-date wages (for accurate SS & Addl. Medicare)

$0 $250k

Please enter a valid value

Gross Bonus	$5,000
Federal Withholding	-$1,100
Social Security	-$310
Medicare	-$73
Additional Medicare Withholding	$0
State Withholding (est.)	$0
Total Withholdings	-$1,483
Estimated Bonus Take-Home	$3,518

Bonus withholding is an estimate and may differ from final tax liability. Actual withholding can depend on the employer payroll method, W-4 information, year-to-date wages, and state rules.

Raise Take-Home Calculator

See how much of a raise actually reaches your paycheck, using your current filing status, state, and benefit elections.

Current annual salary

$15k $500k

Please enter a valid value

New annual salary

$15k $500k

Please enter a valid value

Current annual take-home	$68,628
New annual take-home	$75,663
Annual increase (net)	$7,035
Monthly increase (net)	$586
Biweekly increase (net)	$271
Gross raise	$10,000
Effective raise %	11.8% gross · 10.3% net

401(k) & HSA Impact on Your Paycheck

How much your current 401(k) and HSA elections above shrink your paycheck versus how much tax they save — compared to contributing $0.

	Without these contributions	With your current elections
Net Pay	$68,628	$68,628
Federal Income Tax	$9,870	$9,870
401(k) + HSA Contribution	$0	$0
Paycheck Reduction vs. $0 Elections	$0	$0

How This Calculator Works

Federal income tax is calculated with real progressive 2026 brackets (10%–37%) by filing status — never a single flat percentage of salary.
Social Security is 6.2% of wages up to the 2026 wage base of $184,500 — earnings above that are not taxed for Social Security.
Medicare is 1.45% of all wages with no cap, plus an Additional Medicare Tax of 0.9% withheld once wages exceed $200,000 (true liability thresholds vary by filing status).
State tax is calculated using a manual rate you provide, making it accurate for any state or locality.
Pre-tax deductions (401(k), HSA, FSA, dependent-care FSA, cafeteria-plan premiums) reduce federal and FICA wages according to their actual tax treatment — not a blanket assumption.

This tool provides estimates for planning purposes based on projected 2026 IRS figures and is not tax advice. Local tax coverage is limited to a manual rate entry — check your specific city/school-district rules. Consult a tax professional or your payroll department for exact figures.

How to Calculate Take-Home Pay

1. Gross pay = Regular pay + Overtime + Bonus + Commission + Other taxable income
2. Pre-tax wages = Gross pay − 401(k)/HSA/FSA/cafeteria-plan deductions
3. Federal taxable income = Pre-tax wages − Standard or itemized deduction − Student loan interest
4. Federal tax = Sum of (income within each bracket × that bracket's rate), minus credits
5. FICA = 6.2% Social Security (capped at $184,500) + 1.45% Medicare (uncapped) + 0.9% Additional Medicare above threshold
6. Net pay = Pre-tax wages − Federal tax − FICA − State tax − Local tax − Post-tax deductions

Worked example: on a $85,000 salary filing SINGLE, estimated federal tax comes to $9,870, FICA to $6,503, and state tax to $0 — leaving an estimated net pay of $68,628/year.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How is 2026 federal income tax calculated?

Federal tax uses real progressive brackets (10%, 12%, 22%, 24%, 32%, 35%, 37%) applied to your taxable income after the standard or itemized deduction — never a flat percentage of your whole salary. Only the income inside each bracket is taxed at that bracket's rate.

Q: What is the 2026 standard deduction?

For 2026, the standard deduction is $16,100 for Single and Married Filing Separately, $24,150 for Head of Household, and $32,200 for Married Filing Jointly and Qualifying Surviving Spouse.

Q: Does Social Security tax apply to my whole salary?

No. Social Security is 6.2% of wages up to the 2026 wage base of $184,500. Earnings above that amount are not subject to Social Security tax, though Medicare still applies with no cap.

Q: What is the Additional Medicare Tax?

An extra 0.9% Medicare tax applies to wages above certain thresholds. Employers withhold it once your wages from that employer exceed $200,000, regardless of filing status — but your actual year-end liability threshold depends on your filing status ($250,000 for Married Filing Jointly, $125,000 for Married Filing Separately, $200,000 otherwise).

Q: How does this calculator handle state income tax?

You enter your own state income tax rate. This keeps the calculator accurate for any state, even those with complex brackets, by using an effective flat rate. See the link in the input for current state rates.

Q: Do 401(k) and HSA contributions reduce all my taxes?

Traditional 401(k)/403(b)/457(b) contributions and HSA/FSA contributions typically reduce both your federal taxable wages and your Social Security/Medicare (FICA) wages when made through payroll. Roth 401(k) contributions do not reduce any current-year tax. This calculator applies each deduction's actual tax treatment rather than treating every deduction the same.

Q: Why is my bonus taxed differently than my regular paycheck?

Bonuses are "supplemental wages." Employers typically withhold federal tax on them at a flat 22% (37% on amounts over $1 million in a year) instead of your regular bracket. This is payroll withholding, not your final tax bill — your actual liability on that income depends on your total annual earnings.

Q: What is the difference between payroll withholding and my final tax liability?

Withholding is an estimate the payroll system uses to send money to the IRS throughout the year. Your final tax liability is calculated at filing time based on your full annual income, deductions, and credits. They are often close but not identical — this calculator's annual figures represent estimated liability, while the bonus calculator specifically models withholding.

Q: Is this calculator accurate enough to replace a tax professional?

No — treat it as a planning estimate based on projected 2026 IRS figures. It doesn't model every credit, phase-out, or local jurisdiction. For filing decisions or anything with real stakes, confirm with a tax professional or your payroll department.