USA Salary Calculator
Take-Home Paycheck After Tax
This USA salary calculator applies the 2026 IRS brackets, the standard deduction and FICA to your gross pay. Use it as a paycheck calculator to see exactly what you take home after tax, yearly, monthly and weekly.
Your USA take-home pay after tax
Enter your salary and state, then hit Calculate to see your actual 2026 take-home pay and full tax breakdown.
Where Your Tax Dollar Comes From
A bracket-by-bracket look at the federal tax on your own result above, once you calculate.
Calculate your salary above to see your bracket breakdown here.
How You Compare
The same salary, run through a few other states and countries this site already calculates for.
Other states
Calculate your salary above to see how your state compares.
Other countries
Calculate your salary above to see how the US compares internationally.
How it Calculates
Exactly what this calculator does with your USA salary and every assumption it makes along the way.
How we work out your take home pay
Two deductions reduce a US paycheck, and they use different bases. Federal income tax applies to taxable income, which is salary less pre-tax deductions and less the standard deduction. FICA applies to gross wages from the first dollar with no deduction. A $60,000 single-filer salary produces $5,020 federal income tax and $4,590 FICA, leaving $50,390 take home pay at a 16.0% effective deduction rate.
Step by step
- We start with your gross annual salary.
- Traditional 401(k) contributions are subtracted, because pre-tax deferrals reduce your federal taxable wages.
- Your standard deduction is subtracted, based on your filing status.
- The 2026 federal brackets are applied progressively to what is left, 10% on the first slice, then 12%, 22% and upward. Only the income inside each bracket is taxed at that bracket’s rate.
- Social Security (6.2% up to the wage base) and Medicare (1.45%, uncapped) are calculated separately on your gross wages.
- Everything is subtracted from your gross salary to give take-home pay.
Assumptions we make
- You are a W-2 employee, not self-employed or a contractor;
- You take the standard deduction rather than itemising;
- Your 401(k) contribution is traditional (pre-tax), not Roth;
- No dependants, Child Tax Credit or Earned Income Tax Credit are applied;
- State and local income taxes are not included;
- Employer-paid FICA is excluded, it never comes out of your pay;
- Additional Medicare withholding uses the $200,000 employer threshold, not your filing-status liability threshold;
- Pay is spread evenly across the year, rather than modelled with Publication 15-T per-period withholding.
When this is the wrong tool
The calculator assumes you’re an employee, tax-resident for the whole year. If you’re self-employed, moved country mid-year, or take a large part of your pay as bonus or equity, the figure will be too generous. What this doesn’t cover.
| Gross salary | $60,000 |
|---|---|
| Income tax | $5,020 |
| FICA | $4,590 |
| Take home pay | $50,390 |
| Effective deduction rate | 16% |
What each field means
Each field below carries a definition and the effect it has on the calculated figure.
Gross (pre-tax) income
Everything you are paid before anything is taken out, the number on your offer letter and the Gross pay line on your pay stub.
Every other figure is calculated from this. Enter it yearly, monthly or weekly and we’ll convert it for you.
Tax year
The US tax year is the calendar year: 1 January to 31 December 2026.
Brackets, the standard deduction and the Social Security wage base are re-set every year for inflation, so the year decides which numbers apply.
Filing status
The status you use on your Form 1040; Single, Married Filing Jointly, Married Filing Separately, Head of Household, or Qualifying Surviving Spouse.
It does two things at once: it sets your bracket thresholds and it sets your standard deduction. Married Filing Jointly roughly doubles both, which is why the same salary can produce very different tax.
State
The state whose income tax rules apply to you, normally where you live and work.
State tax is not yet included in this estimate. We ask so the page can tell you plainly what is missing rather than quietly leaving it out. Nine states levy no individual income tax at all.
How old are you?
Your age band, not your exact age.
Age changes what you are allowed to contribute: catch-up contributions open at 50, a larger one applies from 60 to 63 and the enhanced senior deduction depends on age.
Traditional 401(k) contribution
The pre-tax slice of your paycheck you put into a workplace retirement plan, before income tax is calculated. The 2026 employee limit is $24,500.
This is the single most useful field on the form, because it does something people usually get wrong. A traditional 401(k) reduces your federal taxable wages, so you pay less income tax. It does not reduce your FICA wages; Social Security and Medicare are still charged on the full amount. A Roth 401(k) reduces neither, because it is funded from pay you have already been taxed on.
Exclude FICA? (advanced)
Turns off Social Security and Medicare so you can see income tax on its own.
Useful for comparing income tax across countries and for the small number of roles that really are FICA-exempt, such as some student and non-resident visa employment.
Other pre-tax deductions (advanced)
An annual amount that reduces federal taxable income, for example HSA contributions or certain employer insurance premiums.
These lower your taxable income the same way a traditional 401(k) does, so leaving them out overstates your tax.
Understanding your US paycheck calculator results: gross pay, taxable income and net pay
How federal income tax works in the United States
US federal income tax applies seven progressive brackets to income slices, so reaching the 24% bracket taxes only the portion above that threshold at 24%. The effective rate therefore stays below the marginal rate, and a pay rise never reduces take home pay.
Before any of that happens, the standard deduction comes off. For 2026 the IRS set it at $16,100 for single filers, $32,200 for married couples filing jointly and $24,150 for heads of household. Personal exemptions no longer exist.
FICA: Social Security and Medicare
FICA is the payroll tax funding Social Security and Medicare, charged on gross wages from the first dollar with no allowance and no deduction.
Social Security is 6.2% of wages up to an annual wage base, above which you stop paying it entirely. Medicare is 1.45% with no cap at all, plus an extra 0.9% on wages above $200,000. Your employer pays a matching amount but that is their cost and is never deducted from your pay.
A traditional 401(k) contribution lowers income tax and leaves FICA unchanged, because those contributions remain Social Security and Medicare wages.
Taxes this calculator excludes
State and local income tax sits outside this calculation. Rates differ by state, nine states levy no individual income tax, and some cities and counties add a further charge. Those rules come from each state Department of Revenue rather than a national source, so the calculator states the exclusion with the result.
Also outside scope: itemised deductions, the Child Tax Credit, the Earned Income Tax Credit, HSA and FSA treatment and the Schedule 1-A deductions for qualified tips and overtime.
Paycheck calculators by state
Federal tax and FICA are the same everywhere. State income tax is what changes take home pay by address, so each state has its own calculator.
USA salary tax FAQs
How much is $100,000 after tax in the USA?
A $100,000 single-filer salary leaves roughly $76,000 as take home pay after federal income tax and FICA in 2026. State income tax sits outside this calculation, so residents of California, New York and New Jersey keep less than residents of Texas or Florida.
Does a traditional 401(k) contribution reduce federal income tax?
Yes, for income tax only. A traditional 401(k) reduces federal taxable wages and therefore income tax. Social Security and Medicare still apply to gross wages. A Roth 401(k) reduces neither, because contributions come from post-tax pay.
What is the difference between marginal and effective tax rate?
The marginal rate applies to the next dollar earned, and the effective rate divides total tax by total income. Progressive brackets hold the effective rate below the marginal rate. A $60,000 single filer reaches a 12% marginal rate at a 16.0% effective deduction rate once FICA applies.
Why does an actual paycheck differ from this estimate?
Withholding follows Form W-4 and IRS Publication 15-T rather than annual tax liability. Four further inputs move a paycheck: benefit deductions, bonuses, pay frequency and state tax. This figure reports an annual estimate rather than a single payslip.
Which source supplies the 2026 federal figures?
The IRS 2026 inflation adjustments supply them. Federal brackets, standard deductions and FICA thresholds all come from that release, checked on 11 August 2026. Confirm against IRS.gov before a financial decision.
Reviewed by a US tax specialist
Your US tax figures, checked by Sam
Sam has spent 12 years on US federal and state returns, and reviews the figures this calculator produces against the IRS tables each year.
- Federal income tax
- State income tax
- Social Security
- Medicare
- Payroll tax
- Self-employment tax
Need help filing your US tax return?
Sam and the US filing team prepare, review and file the return for you. Packages start at $99.