Take-home paycheck estimator

Net pay after taxes and deductions.

"Required" indicates required fields

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
Filing status
Your own contribution; the match is not pay.
Your share of premiums, HSA, FSA, commuter benefits.
Flat estimate of your state's effective rate. 0 in Texas, Florida, Washington and six others; 4–6% is common; up to 9–13% in California, New York and Oregon.
An estimate on 2025 federal brackets with the standard deduction and no credits. Your W-4 choices move the withholding, not the tax.
6.2% to the wage base plus 1.45%, and 0.9% above $200,000.
All three taxes as a share of gross pay.

Email me these results

One email with the numbers above, plus a link that brings them back.
Sent once, to this address only. No list, no follow-up.
For WordPress sites

Put this calculator on your site

Get it as a ready-made Gravity Forms template. Import it, match your colors, publish.

  • Import-ready form file
  • Step-by-step build guide
  • Works with any theme
Get the template · $9 Read the free build guide Requires Gravity Forms (any license), GP Advanced Calculations (Gravity Wiz).
Advertisement
Download Monitor

How it's calculated

Pre-tax deductions come off first: your 401(k) percentage and health premiums reduce the pay that is taxed. Federal income tax then applies the 2025 brackets to what is left after the standard deduction ($15,750 single, $31,500 married): 10% on the first slice, 12% on the next, and so on up to 37%, each rate only on the income inside its bracket. Social Security takes 6.2% up to the wage base and Medicare 1.45% of everything, plus 0.9% on high earners. State tax is a flat estimate on the same pre-tax income. What remains, divided by the number of paychecks, is take-home. Credits, dependants, itemized deductions and local taxes are not included.

Taxable = max(0, Gross − pre-tax − deduction) Federal = Σ rate × max(0, min(Taxable, top) − bottom) FICA = min(Gross, 176,100) × 6.2% + Gross × 1.45% Net = Gross − pre-tax − Federal − FICA − State
Why is my paycheck smaller than this?

Local or city income tax, state disability or family-leave insurance, a higher health premium, union dues, after-tax deductions like Roth 401(k) or garnishments, or extra withholding you set on your W-4. Withholding is also only an estimate of tax: a refund in April means too much was taken, a bill means too little.

What is the difference between marginal and effective tax rate?

Marginal is the rate on your next dollar, the bracket you are in: 22% for a single filer with $52,000 of taxable income. Effective is total tax divided by total income, always lower because the first slices were taxed at 10% and 12%. The total tax rate shown here is effective and includes payroll and state tax, which is why it is the number that matches your pay stub.

Does a 401(k) contribution really cost less than its face value?

Yes. Every pre-tax dollar you put in reduces taxable income by a dollar, so at a 22% marginal federal rate and 5% state, a $100 contribution lowers take-home by about $73. Raise the percentage here and watch the paycheck fall by less than the contribution rises.

Advertisement
Gravity Wiz

Related tools

Amortization schedule Auto loan calculator Auto loan refinance calculator Closing cost estimator

Results are estimates for informational purposes only and are not financial, medical or legal advice.