Paycheck / Take-Home Pay Calculator
Enter your gross salary, filing status, and state to see your estimated take-home pay after federal, state, and FICA taxes — instantly, no signup. A paycheck tax calculator and paycheck estimator in one.
Calculate your paycheck
How this is calculated
Federal tax uses 2026 IRS marginal tax brackets and standard deductions for your filing status. State tax uses each state's published 2026 rates, brackets, and standard deduction (Tax Foundation). FICA is 6.2% Social Security (up to the $184,500 wage base) plus 1.45% Medicare, plus an extra 0.9% Medicare surtax above $200,000 ($250,000 if married filing jointly). 401(k)/403(b) contributions reduce your federal and state taxable income but not your FICA wages. Pre-tax cafeteria-plan deductions (health insurance, FSA, HSA) reduce all three.
Worked example
Using this calculator's defaults — $75,000/year, single, biweekly pay, Texas (no pre-tax deductions):
| Federal income tax | $7,670.00 |
| Social Security (6.2%) | $4,650.00 |
| Medicare (1.45%) | $1,087.50 |
| Texas state tax | $0.00 |
| Total tax | $13,407.50 (17.9% effective rate) |
| Net take-home pay (year) | $61,592.50 |
| Net take-home pay (per biweekly paycheck) | $2,368.94 |
Why state matters — same salary, different state
Run that same $75,000 salary through California instead of Texas and state income tax alone takes another $2,940.85/year (California's standard deduction is $5,540 for a single filer, then a bracket table starting at 1% and climbing with income) — dropping net pay from $61,592.50 to $58,651.65. Everything else (federal tax, FICA) stays identical; the entire gap is the state field.
Why a 401(k) contribution costs less than it looks like
Contributing $6,000/year to a 401(k) on that same $75,000 salary lowers federal taxable income by $6,000, which cuts federal tax by $1,320 (all of it in the 22% bracket). So take-home pay only drops by $4,680 — not the full $6,000 — because part of the contribution is money that would have gone to taxes anyway. FICA is unaffected either way; pretax retirement contributions are still FICA wages.
This is an estimate for planning purposes, not tax advice. It doesn't account for local/county income taxes, itemized deductions, tax credits, or your actual W-4 withholding elections — your real paycheck may differ. Head of Household and Married Filing Separately use each state's "single" bracket table since most states don't publish separate tables for them.
Frequently asked questions
Why doesn't this match my actual paycheck?
Your real paycheck also depends on your W-4 elections, local or county income tax (not modeled here), any itemized deductions or tax credits you claim on your return, and benefits your employer may deduct that aren't in this form (union dues, garnishments, etc). Treat this as a planning estimate, not a substitute for your actual pay stub or a tax return.
Does a 401(k) contribution reduce my Social Security and Medicare tax?
No — traditional 401(k)/403(b) contributions are pre-tax for federal and state income tax, but they're still counted as FICA wages, so they don't lower your Social Security or Medicare tax. Pre-tax cafeteria-plan deductions (health insurance premiums, FSA, HSA) are different: those reduce all three.
What is the Social Security wage base?
It's the maximum amount of earnings subject to the 6.2% Social Security tax in a given year — $184,500 for 2026. Income above that isn't taxed for Social Security (though Medicare's 1.45% has no cap, and an extra 0.9% Medicare surtax kicks in above $200,000 single / $250,000 married filing jointly).
Which states have no income tax?
As of 2026: Texas, Florida, Washington, Nevada, Wyoming, South Dakota, Alaska, Tennessee, and New Hampshire don't tax wage income. Every other state has some form of income tax — pick your state in the dropdown above to see the actual dollar impact for your salary.