US Take Home Pay Calculator
Use this calculator to estimate your net pay (take-home pay) after various federal, state, and local deductions. Understand how taxes, FICA, and other contributions impact your paycheck.
Understanding Your US Take Home Pay
Your take-home pay, also known as net pay, is the amount of money you actually receive in your paycheck after all deductions have been subtracted from your gross salary. It's often significantly less than your gross pay, and understanding these deductions is crucial for personal financial planning.
Key Deductions Explained:
- Federal Income Tax: This is a progressive tax levied by the U.S. government on your earnings. The amount you pay depends on your income level, filing status (Single, Married Filing Jointly, Head of Household), and any deductions or credits you qualify for. The calculator uses standard deductions and current tax brackets to estimate this.
- FICA Taxes (Social Security & Medicare): These are mandatory federal taxes that fund Social Security and Medicare programs.
- Social Security: Funds benefits for retirees, the disabled, and survivors. Employees pay 6.2% of their gross wages up to an annual limit (e.g., $168,600 for 2024).
- Medicare: Funds health care for individuals aged 65 or older, and certain younger people with disabilities. Employees pay 1.45% of all gross wages, with no income limit. An additional 0.9% Medicare tax applies to high earners above certain thresholds.
- State Income Tax: Many U.S. states also levy an income tax. The rates and rules vary widely by state. Some states (like Texas and Florida) have no state income tax, while others have flat rates or progressive tax brackets.
- Pre-tax Deductions: These are deductions taken from your gross pay *before* taxes are calculated. Common examples include contributions to a 401(k) or 403(b) retirement plan, health insurance premiums, and Flexible Spending Account (FSA) contributions. Pre-tax deductions reduce your taxable income, lowering your federal and sometimes state income tax liability.
- Post-tax Deductions: These are deductions taken from your pay *after* taxes have been calculated. Examples include contributions to a Roth 401(k) or Roth IRA, union dues, or certain charitable contributions. These do not reduce your taxable income.
How the Calculator Works:
Our US Take Home Pay Calculator takes your gross annual salary and applies the various deductions in the correct order to estimate your net pay per pay period. It considers:
- Your chosen pay frequency to determine gross pay per period.
- Annual pre-tax deductions are subtracted from your gross pay to determine your taxable income for federal and state taxes.
- FICA taxes (Social Security and Medicare) are calculated based on your gross wages.
- Federal income tax is estimated using 2024 standard deductions and tax brackets for your filing status.
- State income tax is calculated based on your selected state of residence (using simplified rates for common states).
- Finally, post-tax deductions are subtracted to arrive at your final take-home pay.
Example Calculation:
Let's consider an individual with the following details:
- Gross Annual Salary: $75,000
- Pay Frequency: Bi-weekly (26 pay periods)
- Federal Filing Status: Single
- Number of Dependents: 0
- State of Residence: California
- Annual Pre-tax Deductions: $5,400 (e.g., $3,000 for 401k, $2,400 for health insurance)
- Annual Post-tax Deductions: $600 (e.g., Roth IRA contributions)
Here's a breakdown of how their bi-weekly pay might be calculated:
- Gross Bi-weekly Pay: $75,000 / 26 = $2,884.62
- Bi-weekly Pre-tax Deductions: $5,400 / 26 = $207.69
- Taxable Gross Bi-weekly Pay: $2,884.62 – $207.69 = $2,676.93
- Annual Taxable Income (for Federal/State): $75,000 – $5,400 = $69,600
- FICA Taxes (Bi-weekly):
- Social Security (6.2% of $2,884.62): $178.85
- Medicare (1.45% of $2,884.62): $41.83
- Total FICA: $220.68
- Federal Income Tax (Bi-weekly estimate based on annual taxable income and standard deduction): This involves complex calculations based on brackets. For $69,600 annual taxable income (Single, $14,600 standard deduction), the annual federal tax would be approximately $7,800. So, bi-weekly: $7,800 / 26 = $300.00 (approx.)
- California State Income Tax (Bi-weekly estimate based on annual taxable income): For $69,600 annual taxable income, California state tax would be approximately $2,500. So, bi-weekly: $2,500 / 26 = $96.15 (approx.)
- Bi-weekly Post-tax Deductions: $600 / 26 = $23.08
- Estimated Bi-weekly Take-Home Pay: $2,884.62 (Gross) – $207.69 (Pre-tax) – $220.68 (FICA) – $300.00 (Federal) – $96.15 (State) – $23.08 (Post-tax) = $2,037.02
Note: This example provides approximate values. Actual tax calculations can be more complex due to various credits, specific withholding elections, and local taxes not included in this simplified calculator.
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function calculateTakeHomePay() {
var grossAnnualSalary = parseFloat(document.getElementById('grossAnnualSalary').value);
var payFrequency = parseInt(document.getElementById('payFrequency').value);
var federalFilingStatus = document.getElementById('federalFilingStatus').value;
var numDependents = parseInt(document.getElementById('numDependents').value);
var stateOfResidence = document.getElementById('stateOfResidence').value;
var preTaxDeductionsAnnual = parseFloat(document.getElementById('preTaxDeductionsAnnual').value);
var postTaxDeductionsAnnual = parseFloat(document.getElementById('postTaxDeductionsAnnual').value);
// Input validation
if (isNaN(grossAnnualSalary) || grossAnnualSalary < 0 ||
isNaN(preTaxDeductionsAnnual) || preTaxDeductionsAnnual < 0 ||
isNaN(postTaxDeductionsAnnual) || postTaxDeductionsAnnual < 0 ||
isNaN(numDependents) || numDependents < 0) {
document.getElementById('result').innerHTML = 'Please enter valid positive numbers for all fields.';
return;
}
var grossPayPerPeriod = grossAnnualSalary / payFrequency;
var preTaxDeductionsPerPeriod = preTaxDeductionsAnnual / payFrequency;
var postTaxDeductionsPerPeriod = postTaxDeductionsAnnual / payFrequency;
var annualTaxableIncomeFederal = grossAnnualSalary – preTaxDeductionsAnnual;
if (annualTaxableIncomeFederal < 0) annualTaxableIncomeFederal = 0;
var annualTaxableIncomeState = grossAnnualSalary – preTaxDeductionsAnnual; // State deductions might differ, but simplifying for this calculator
if (annualTaxableIncomeState additionalMedicareThreshold) {
annualAdditionalMedicareTax = (grossAnnualSalary – additionalMedicareThreshold) * additionalMedicareTaxRate;
}
var totalAnnualFicaTax = annualSocialSecurityTax + annualMedicareTax + annualAdditionalMedicareTax;
var ficaTaxPerPeriod = totalAnnualFicaTax / payFrequency;
// — Federal Income Tax —
var standardDeduction;
var federalTaxBrackets;
if (federalFilingStatus === 'single') {
standardDeduction = 14600;
federalTaxBrackets = [
{ limit: 11600, rate: 0.10 },
{ limit: 47150, rate: 0.12 },
{ limit: 100525, rate: 0.22 },
{ limit: 191950, rate: 0.24 },
{ limit: 243725, rate: 0.32 },
{ limit: 609350, rate: 0.35 },
{ limit: Infinity, rate: 0.37 }
];
} else if (federalFilingStatus === 'marriedJointly') {
standardDeduction = 29200;
federalTaxBrackets = [
{ limit: 23200, rate: 0.10 },
{ limit: 94300, rate: 0.12 },
{ limit: 201050, rate: 0.22 },
{ limit: 383900, rate: 0.24 },
{ limit: 487450, rate: 0.32 },
{ limit: 731200, rate: 0.35 },
{ limit: Infinity, rate: 0.37 }
];
} else if (federalFilingStatus === 'headOfHousehold') {
standardDeduction = 21900;
federalTaxBrackets = [
{ limit: 16550, rate: 0.10 },
{ limit: 63100, rate: 0.12 },
{ limit: 100500, rate: 0.22 },
{ limit: 191950, rate: 0.24 },
{ limit: 243700, rate: 0.32 },
{ limit: 609350, rate: 0.35 },
{ limit: Infinity, rate: 0.37 }
];
}
var federalTaxableIncome = annualTaxableIncomeFederal – standardDeduction;
if (federalTaxableIncome < 0) federalTaxableIncome = 0;
var annualFederalTax = 0;
var previousBracketLimit = 0;
for (var i = 0; i previousBracketLimit) {
var taxableInBracket = Math.min(federalTaxableIncome, bracket.limit) – previousBracketLimit;
annualFederalTax += taxableInBracket * bracket.rate;
}
previousBracketLimit = bracket.limit;
if (federalTaxableIncome 0) {
childTaxCredit = Math.min(numDependents * 2000, annualFederalTax); // Max credit is tax liability
}
annualFederalTax = Math.max(0, annualFederalTax – childTaxCredit);
var federalTaxPerPeriod = annualFederalTax / payFrequency;
// — State Income Tax —
var annualStateTax = 0;
var stateTaxPerPeriod = 0;
if (stateOfResidence === 'CA') { // California (simplified progressive)
var caTaxableIncome = annualTaxableIncomeState;
var caBracketsSingle = [
{ limit: 10412, rate: 0.01 },
{ limit: 24684, rate: 0.02 },
{ limit: 38959, rate: 0.04 },
{ limit: 54081, rate: 0.06 },
{ limit: 68350, rate: 0.08 },
{ limit: 348637, rate: 0.093 },
{ limit: 418361, rate: 0.103 },
{ limit: 697268, rate: 0.113 },
{ limit: 1000000, rate: 0.123 }, // 1% mental health surcharge for income over $1M
{ limit: Infinity, rate: 0.133 }
];
// For simplicity, using single brackets for all filing statuses in CA
var caPreviousBracketLimit = 0;
for (var j = 0; j caPreviousBracketLimit) {
var taxableInBracket = Math.min(caTaxableIncome, bracket.limit) – caPreviousBracketLimit;
annualStateTax += taxableInBracket * bracket.rate;
}
caPreviousBracketLimit = bracket.limit;
if (caTaxableIncome <= bracket.limit) break;
}
stateTaxPerPeriod = annualStateTax / payFrequency;
} else if (stateOfResidence === 'NY') { // New York (simplified progressive)
var nyTaxableIncome = annualTaxableIncomeState;
var nyBracketsSingle = [
{ limit: 8500, rate: 0.04 },
{ limit: 11700, rate: 0.045 },
{ limit: 13900, rate: 0.0525 },
{ limit: 21300, rate: 0.0597 },
{ limit: 80650, rate: 0.0633 },
{ limit: 215400, rate: 0.0685 },
{ limit: 1077550, rate: 0.0965 },
{ limit: 5000000, rate: 0.103 },
{ limit: 25000000, rate: 0.109 },
{ limit: Infinity, rate: 0.109 }
];
// For simplicity, using single brackets for all filing statuses in NY
var nyPreviousBracketLimit = 0;
for (var k = 0; k nyPreviousBracketLimit) {
var taxableInBracket = Math.min(nyTaxableIncome, bracket.limit) – nyPreviousBracketLimit;
annualStateTax += taxableInBracket * bracket.rate;
}
nyPreviousBracketLimit = bracket.limit;
if (nyTaxableIncome <= bracket.limit) break;
}
stateTaxPerPeriod = annualStateTax / payFrequency;
} else if (stateOfResidence === 'PA') { // Pennsylvania (flat tax)
annualStateTax = annualTaxableIncomeState * 0.0307;
stateTaxPerPeriod = annualStateTax / payFrequency;
} else if (stateOfResidence === 'IL') { // Illinois (flat tax)
annualStateTax = annualTaxableIncomeState * 0.0495;
stateTaxPerPeriod = annualStateTax / payFrequency;
} else { // TX, FL, or 'none' (no state income tax)
annualStateTax = 0;
stateTaxPerPeriod = 0;
}
// — Calculate Net Pay —
var netPayPerPeriod = grossPayPerPeriod – preTaxDeductionsPerPeriod – ficaTaxPerPeriod – federalTaxPerPeriod – stateTaxPerPeriod – postTaxDeductionsPerPeriod;
// Display Results
var resultDiv = document.getElementById('result');
resultDiv.innerHTML = `
Estimated Paycheck Breakdown
Gross Pay per Period: $${grossPayPerPeriod.toFixed(2)}
Pre-tax Deductions per Period: $${preTaxDeductionsPerPeriod.toFixed(2)}
FICA Taxes per Period: $${ficaTaxPerPeriod.toFixed(2)}
Social Security: $${(annualSocialSecurityTax / payFrequency).toFixed(2)}
Medicare: $${((annualMedicareTax + annualAdditionalMedicareTax) / payFrequency).toFixed(2)}
Estimated Federal Income Tax per Period: $${federalTaxPerPeriod.toFixed(2)}
Estimated State Income Tax per Period (${stateOfResidence}): $${stateTaxPerPeriod.toFixed(2)}
Post-tax Deductions per Period: $${postTaxDeductionsPerPeriod.toFixed(2)}
Estimated Take-Home Pay per Period: $${netPayPerPeriod.toFixed(2)}
`;
}
// Run calculation on page load with default values
document.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', function() {
calculateTakeHomePay();
});