Paycheck Calculator 2026: US Take-Home Pay
Estimate your 2026 US take-home pay after federal income tax, Social Security, Medicare and state taxes. Pick your state and filing status, add a 401(k) and see every rate, editable.
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About the Paycheck Calculator
The Paycheck Calculator estimates your 2026 take-home pay in the United States. Enter your gross salary per year, month, 4 weeks, 2 weeks or week, choose your state and filing status (single, married filing jointly or head of household), and add a traditional 401(k) contribution if you have one. The result shows net pay per year, per month and per pay period, the total deductions and their share of your pay, and a breakdown where every line carries its scope, the 2026 tax year and its rate.
The page opens with Texas, which has no state income tax, so the first result shows the federal lines on their own. Pick another state to add its lines, or open a state page such as the New Jersey Paycheck Calculator or the Pennsylvania Paycheck Calculator for an explanation of that state's rules.
Federal income tax
Taxable income
Federal taxable income is your wages minus the 401(k) contribution minus the 2026 standard deduction: 16,100 for single filers, 32,200 for married filing jointly and 24,150 for heads of household. It is never below 0.
Rate schedule
The 2026 schedule from IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32 has seven bands at 10%, 12%, 22%, 24%, 32%, 35% and 37%. For a single filer the bands start at 0, 12,400, 50,400, 105,700, 201,775, 256,225 and 640,600. Each slice of taxable income is charged at its own band's rate, so a raise never lowers your take-home pay.
Social Security and Medicare (FICA)
Social Security
6.2% of wages up to the 2026 wage base of 184,500, so it tops out at 11,439.00 a year.
Medicare
1.45% of all wages, plus Additional Medicare of 0.9% on wages above 200,000 (single and head of household) or 250,000 (married filing jointly, one earner). A 401(k) does not lower Social Security or Medicare.
Worked example
75,000 a year, single, Texas
Taxable income is 75,000 − 16,100 = 58,900. Federal income tax is 1,240 + 4,560 + 1,870 = 7,670.00. Social Security is 4,650.00 and Medicare 1,087.50, so net pay is 61,592.50 a year and 5,132.71 a month. A 10% 401(k) takes 7,500.00 and lowers federal tax to 6,020.00, for net pay of 55,742.50. A 401(k) above the 2026 limit of 24,500 is capped, and the page says so.
What the estimate leaves out
The result is the 2026 annual liability for one employee, not the amount withheld from each paycheck under the Publication 15-T withholding tables. It uses the exact rate schedule, so the IRS Tax Table for taxable income under 100,000, which works in 50-dollar rows, can differ by a few dollars. It leaves out credits such as the child tax credit and the earned income credit, itemised deductions, the 2025 law's deductions for tips, overtime, seniors and car-loan interest, and local taxes such as New York City, Yonkers, Ohio municipal and school-district taxes and Pennsylvania's local earned income tax and LST. Married filing jointly assumes one earner.
States whose 2026 values are not yet officially published are not offered until they are confirmed.
Edit and reset the rates
Each federal band, Social Security, Medicare, Additional Medicare and every state rate is a field in the Tax rates panel, with its default beside it. The standard deduction, the wage base and the thresholds are read-only text. Reset to 2026 defaults restores every rate.
Privacy
Nothing is uploaded; every calculation runs in your browser and never leaves your device. Your salary and the rates you enter are not stored or sent anywhere.
Related tools
Work out gross pay from an hourly rate and overtime with the Gross Pay Calculator, or compare salaries in other countries with the Net Salary Calculator.
Frequently asked questions
How is federal income tax on my paycheck worked out?
Your wages minus a traditional 401(k) and the 2026 standard deduction (16,100 single, 32,200 married filing jointly, 24,150 head of household) are taxed by the 2026 rate schedule: 10%, 12%, 22%, 24%, 32%, 35% and 37%, each on its own slice of income.
How much are Social Security and Medicare in 2026?
Social Security is 6.2% of wages up to 184,500, so at most 11,439.00 a year. Medicare is 1.45% of all wages, plus Additional Medicare of 0.9% above 200,000 for single and head of household filers and 250,000 for married filing jointly.
Does a 401(k) lower my taxes?
A traditional 401(k) lowers federal income tax and most state income taxes, but not Social Security, Medicare or state payroll items. Pennsylvania taxes the contribution. The 2026 limit is 24,500, and a larger percentage is capped there.
What is take-home pay on 75,000 a year?
For a single filer in a state with no income tax, such as Texas, federal income tax is 7,670.00, Social Security 4,650.00 and Medicare 1,087.50, so take-home pay is 61,592.50 a year, or 5,132.71 a month.
Is this the same as my paycheck withholding?
Not exactly. The page works out the 2026 annual liability with the exact rate schedule. Employers withhold with the Publication 15-T tables, so each paycheck can differ slightly, and credits or a second job change the result.
Why is my state missing?
A state is offered only once its 2026 values are confirmed from an official source. California, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Ohio, Arizona and Colorado are added when their 2026 schedules or deductions are published.