Paycheck Calculator
Estimate take-home pay per paycheck after federal, FICA and state taxes.
Take-home per paycheck
$2,382.15
24× per year
Annual take-home
$57,171.50
Federal tax
$8,341.00
FICA (SS + Medicare)
$5,737.50
State tax
$3,750.00
Effective tax rate
23.8%
- Take-home76%
- Federal tax11%
- FICA8%
- State tax5%
Where your $75,000.00 salary goes: you keep $57,171.50 (76%) after federal, FICA and state taxes.
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How the Paycheck Calculator works
The Paycheck Calculator helps employees and salaried workers instantly estimate their take-home pay after federal income tax, FICA (Social Security and Medicare), and state taxes are withheld from each paycheck. Whether you're starting a new job, adjusting your W-4, or comparing a salary offer to your actual net pay, this tool gives you a clear, realistic picture of what lands in your bank account.
The calculator starts with your gross pay — either your annual salary divided by the number of pay periods per year, or your hourly rate multiplied by hours worked — and then applies a series of deductions in a specific order. Pre-tax deductions like 401(k) contributions, health insurance premiums, and HSA contributions are subtracted first, reducing your taxable income before any tax is calculated. This sequencing matters enormously: a $200 per paycheck 401(k) contribution doesn't cost you $200 in take-home pay because it shields that income from federal and state taxes first.
Federal income tax withholding is calculated using IRS marginal tax brackets for the current year, combined with the allowances or adjustments you claimed on your W-4 form. Because the US uses a progressive tax system, only the income within each bracket is taxed at that bracket's rate — not your entire paycheck. The calculator applies this bracket math per paycheck period, which is why your withholding can feel disproportionately high or low compared to what you might naively expect from the headline tax rate.
FICA taxes are straightforward but often overlooked in salary negotiations. Social Security is withheld at 6.2% on wages up to the annual wage base limit (which adjusts each year), and Medicare is withheld at 1.45% with an additional 0.9% surtax applied to high earners above $200,000. These are fixed-rate withholdings, meaning they hit every paycheck at the same percentage regardless of W-4 elections — you cannot adjust FICA through your W-4. Your employer matches the standard FICA amounts, a cost invisible to you but part of your total compensation.
State income tax varies dramatically: nine states have no income tax at all, while others like California and New York have progressive rates that rival federal taxes. The calculator accounts for your state's withholding tables and any local taxes where applicable. A common mistake workers make is ignoring state tax when evaluating a job offer or a raise, only to be surprised when their net pay doesn't reflect the expected increase. Running the numbers through a paycheck calculator before negotiating or accepting an offer gives you the real after-tax comparison that gross salary figures obscure.
Formula
Net = Gross − 401k − federal − FICA (7.65%) − state
Pro tips
- Increase your 401(k) or HSA contribution and re-run the calculator — the tax savings often mean your take-home pay drops by far less than the contribution amount, making retirement savings cheaper than it appears on paper.
- If you received a large tax refund or owed a large tax bill last filing season, use the IRS Tax Withholding Estimator alongside this calculator to fine-tune your W-4 and stop giving the government an interest-free loan.
- When evaluating a job offer in a different state, run side-by-side paycheck estimates for both states — a $10,000 gross salary difference can shrink or flip entirely once state tax differentials are factored in.
- Account for the Social Security wage base cutoff: once your cumulative earnings exceed the annual limit (e.g., $168,600 in 2024), the 6.2% Social Security withholding stops, giving you a visible bump in take-home pay for the rest of the year.
- Biweekly employees receive 26 paychecks per year, meaning two months each year include a 'third paycheck' — useful for budgeting large expenses or extra debt payments if you plan your cash flow around it.
Key terms
- Gross Pay
- — The total amount you earn before any taxes or deductions are removed, calculated as annual salary ÷ pay periods or hourly rate × hours worked.
- Net Pay
- — The actual take-home amount deposited into your account after all federal, FICA, state, and local taxes plus any voluntary deductions have been subtracted from gross pay.
- FICA
- — Federal Insurance Contributions Act taxes, consisting of Social Security (6.2%) and Medicare (1.45%) withheld from every paycheck to fund those federal programs.
- W-4 Withholding
- — The IRS form employees file with their employer to indicate filing status and adjustments that determine how much federal income tax is withheld from each paycheck.
- Pre-Tax Deduction
- — A voluntary deduction such as a 401(k) contribution or health insurance premium that is subtracted from gross pay before taxable income is calculated, reducing your overall tax burden.
- Pay Period
- — The recurring interval at which you receive a paycheck — weekly (52/year), biweekly (26/year), semimonthly (24/year), or monthly (12/year) — which affects how taxes are apportioned per check.
