🧾 Paycheck Calculator

How to Use This Calculator

Your salary is not what lands in your bank account. Federal income tax, Social Security, Medicare, and any pre-tax deductions all come out first. This calculator estimates what is left per paycheck so you can budget with the real number.

How the Estimate Works

The calculator annualizes your pay first, because federal income tax brackets are annual. It subtracts your pre-tax deductions from that annual total, then applies the progressive brackets: each slice of income is taxed at its own rate, so moving into a higher bracket never taxes your whole income at the higher rate. The result is divided back down to a per-period amount. Social Security takes 6.2 percent of gross pay but stops once your yearly earnings pass the $176,100 wage base; high earners see this tax disappear late in the year. Medicare takes 1.45 percent of all gross pay with no cap.

What the estimate leaves out matters too. There is no state or local income tax here, and states differ enormously, from zero income tax to steep progressive systems. The standard deduction is not applied, which makes this estimate slightly conservative (you would owe a bit less in reality). Tax credits, the additional 0.9 percent Medicare tax above $200,000, and Roth vs traditional 401k treatment are also simplified away. Treat the result as a solid planning number, not a tax filing.

Worked Example

Take $5,000 of gross pay, paid semi-monthly (24 periods), single filing status, and no pre-tax deductions. Annual gross is 5,000 x 24 = $120,000. Federal tax on $120,000: 10 percent of the first $11,925 = $1,192.50; 12 percent of the next $36,550 = $4,386.00; 22 percent of the next $54,875 = $12,072.50; 24 percent of the remaining $16,650 = $3,996.00. The total is $21,647.00 per year, or $901.96 per period. Social Security is 5,000 x 6.2 percent = $310.00 per period, since $120,000 is under the wage base. Medicare is 5,000 x 1.45 percent = $72.50. Net pay per period: 5,000 - 901.96 - 310.00 - 72.50 = $3,715.54. Annualized, that is about $89,173 in take-home pay from a $120,000 salary.

Practical Tips for Your Paycheck

If your net pay feels tight, start with pre-tax deductions, because they are the lever you control. Raising your 401k contribution lowers your taxable income today and builds retirement savings, and many employers match part of it, which is effectively free money. Review your W-4 withholding if you consistently get a large refund or owe at tax time: a big refund means you lent the government money interest-free all year. Remember that a raise does not get taxed at one flat higher rate; only the dollars inside the new bracket face the higher percentage. Finally, when comparing job offers, compare net pay after your state's taxes and the real cost of benefits, not just the headline salary, because two identical salaries can produce very different paychecks in different states.

As with every number on this site, this is an estimate for planning only, not financial or tax advice. For decisions with real money behind them, like adjusting withholding or choosing between pre-tax and Roth contributions, confirm with a qualified tax professional.