Calculate Your Take-Home Pay
Estimate your net paycheck after federal tax, state tax, Social Security, and Medicare. Salary or hourly.
Understanding Your Paycheck
Your gross pay is reduced by: Federal income tax (10-37% marginal, based on taxable income after deductions), Social Security (6.2% on first $168,600), Medicare (1.45% on all earnings, +0.9% over $200K), State income tax (0-13.3% depending on state), and pre-tax deductions (401k, HSA, health insurance). The result is your net (take-home) pay.
Why Your Effective Tax Rate Is Lower Than Your Bracket
The US uses marginal tax brackets — only income within each bracket is taxed at that rate. Someone in the "24% bracket" does not pay 24% on all income. The first $14,600 (single) is tax-free (standard deduction), the next $11,600 is taxed at 10%, and so on. The effective federal tax rate for most Americans is 12-18%, well below their marginal bracket.
Nine states have no state income tax: Alaska, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming. Moving from California (13.3% top rate) to Texas (0%) saves a $100,000 earner approximately $5,000-8,000 per year in state taxes alone.
