Finance calculators

Salary Calculator

Updated May 28, 2026 By Jehan Wadia
Income Type
Salary Details
Enter a valid salary amount
Tax & Withholding Profile

State tax uses a generic flat 5% estimate and local tax uses a generic flat 1% estimate. Results are approximations — actual withholding varies by state and locality.

Legacy W-4 field; has no effect on 2020+ W-4 filers
Each allowance reduces local taxable income by $4,350
Pre-Tax Deductions (Optional)
Percentage of gross salary

Estimated Annual Take-Home
$0
Per Paycheck (After Tax)
$0
Effective Tax Rate
0%
Annual Gross Salary
$0
Federal Income Tax
$0
State Income Tax
$0
Social Security (OASDI)
$0
Medicare
$0
Total FICA
$0
Total Deductions
$0
Equivalent Hourly Rate
$0
Paycheck Breakdown
Per Paycheck
Gross Pay$0
Federal Income Tax$0
State Income Tax$0
Local Tax$0
Social Security$0
Medicare$0
401(k) Contribution$0
Health Insurance$0
Other Pre-Tax$0
Net Pay$0
Annual Summary
Gross Income$0
Adjusted Gross (after pre-tax)$0
Total Federal Tax$0
Total State Tax$0
Total Local Tax$0
Total FICA$0
Total Pre-Tax Deductions$0
Annual Take-Home$0
Salary Conversion Table
Frequency Gross Pay Taxes & FICA Pre-Tax Deductions Net Pay
Work Schedule Summary
Working Days / Year
0
Working Hours / Year
0
Adjusted Days (excl. PTO)
0
Adjusted Hours (excl. PTO)
0
Pay Distribution
Tax Breakdown Comparison

Introduction

Use this free salary calculator to find out how much money you actually take home after taxes and deductions. Enter your yearly salary or hourly wage, and the tool breaks down your federal tax, state tax, Social Security, Medicare, and any pre-tax deductions like a 401(k) or health insurance. You can see your net pay per paycheck, per month, or per year. The calculator also shows your effective tax rate, an equivalent hourly rate, and a full conversion table so you can compare your pay across every pay frequency. Whether you just got a job offer, want to plan a budget, or need to understand your paycheck stub, this tool gives you a clear picture of your earnings in seconds.

How to Use Our Salary Calculator

Enter your pay details below to see your gross income, tax estimates, and take-home pay broken down by pay period and year.

Income Type: Pick "Salary" if you earn a fixed amount or "Hourly" if you are paid by the hour. If you need to convert between the two, try our hourly to salary calculator or salary to hourly calculator.

Salary Amount: Type in how much you earn before taxes. This is your gross pay.

Pay Frequency: Choose how often the amount you entered is paid, such as annually, monthly, or weekly. For a detailed look at biweekly earnings, see our biweekly paycheck calculator.

Hourly Wage: If you picked hourly mode, enter the dollar amount you earn per hour. You can also use our hourly rate calculator to determine a fair rate.

Hours Per Week: Enter the number of hours you work each week. The default is 40. Our work hours calculator can help you track this.

Days Per Week: Enter how many days you work each week. The default is 5.

Holidays Per Year: Enter the number of paid holidays you get each year.

Vacation Days Per Year: Enter how many paid vacation days you receive each year.

Overtime Hourly Wage: If you work overtime, enter your overtime pay rate per hour. Our overtime calculator can help you figure out the right rate.

Overtime Hours Per Week: Enter how many extra hours you work beyond your regular hours each week.

Filing Status: Choose "Single" or "Married" to match how you file your federal taxes. Check our tax bracket calculator to see which brackets apply to you.

Tax Pay Frequency: Select how often you get a paycheck. This is used to calculate your per-paycheck tax withholding.

Number of Dependents: Enter how many dependents you claim. Each one applies a $2,000 Child Tax Credit to lower your federal tax.

Federal Allowances: This is a legacy field for older W-4 forms. It does not affect results for 2020 or newer W-4 filers.

State Allowances: Enter your state tax allowances. Each one reduces your state taxable income by $4,350.

Additional State Allowances: Enter any extra state allowances beyond the standard number.

Local Allowances: Enter your local tax allowances. Each one reduces your local taxable income by $4,350.

Additional Federal Withholding: Enter any extra dollar amount you want withheld from each paycheck for federal taxes.

Additional State Withholding: Enter any extra dollar amount you want withheld from each paycheck for state taxes.

Additional Local Withholding: Enter any extra dollar amount you want withheld from each paycheck for local taxes.

Tax Exemptions: Select "Yes" for any tax you are exempt from, such as federal tax, state tax, or FICA.

401(k) Contribution: Enter the percentage of your gross salary you put into your 401(k) retirement plan. This is taken out before taxes.

Health Insurance: Enter the dollar amount taken from each paycheck for health insurance before taxes.

Other Pre-Tax Deductions: Enter any other dollar amount taken from each paycheck before taxes, such as an HSA or FSA.

Click Calculate to see your results. Click Reset to clear all fields and start over.

What Is a Salary Calculator?

A salary calculator helps you figure out how much money you actually take home from your paycheck. When you earn a salary or hourly wage, your employer takes out taxes and other costs before paying you. This tool shows you exactly how much gets removed and how much you keep. If you want to see your total earnings from all sources on a yearly basis, our annual income calculator is a helpful companion tool.

What Gets Taken Out of Your Paycheck?

Several things reduce your gross pay (the full amount you earn) before it becomes your net pay (what you actually receive):

  • Federal income tax – The U.S. government taxes your income using tax brackets. The more you earn, the higher the rate on the top portion of your income. For 2025, rates range from 10% to 37%. Use our tax bracket calculator to see the exact brackets for your filing status.
  • State income tax – Most states also tax your income. Each state has its own rates. Some states, like Texas and Florida, have no state income tax at all.
  • Local tax – Some cities and counties charge an additional income tax on top of federal and state taxes.
  • Social Security tax (OASDI) – You pay 6.2% of your wages up to $176,100 in 2025. This funds retirement and disability benefits.
  • Medicare tax – You pay 1.45% of all wages. If you earn over $200,000 as a single filer, you pay an extra 0.9% on income above that amount.
  • Pre-tax deductions – These include 401(k) contributions and health insurance premiums. They come out of your paycheck before taxes are calculated, which lowers your taxable income.

How Federal Tax Brackets Work

The U.S. uses a progressive tax system. This means you do not pay one flat rate on all your income. Instead, different portions of your income are taxed at different rates. For example, a single filer in 2025 pays 10% on the first $11,925, then 12% on income from $11,925 to $48,475, and so on. Only the money in each range gets taxed at that range's rate. You can explore each bracket in detail with our tax bracket calculator.

Gross Pay vs. Net Pay

Gross pay is your total earnings before anything is taken out. Net pay is what lands in your bank account after all taxes and deductions. The difference between these two numbers can be significant. For someone earning $75,000 per year, taxes and deductions can reduce take-home pay by 25% to 35% depending on their situation. Our take-home pay calculator focuses specifically on this net amount.

What Is an Effective Tax Rate?

Your effective tax rate is the total percentage of your income that goes to taxes. It is different from your marginal tax rate, which is the rate on your last dollar earned. Your effective rate is almost always lower than your marginal rate because the first portions of your income are taxed at lower brackets.

Filing Status and Dependents

Your filing status affects your tax brackets and standard deduction. Single filers have a standard deduction of $15,000 in 2025, while married filers get $30,000. Each dependent you claim can qualify you for the Child Tax Credit, worth up to $2,000 per child, which directly reduces the tax you owe.

Salary vs. Hourly Pay

Salaried workers earn a fixed amount each year regardless of hours worked. Hourly workers get paid based on the number of hours they work. To compare the two, you can convert an annual salary to an hourly rate by dividing it by the number of working hours in a year. With a 40-hour week and standard time off, that is roughly 2,080 hours. A $75,000 salary equals about $36.06 per hour. Our salary to hourly calculator and hourly to salary calculator make this conversion easy. If you are negotiating a raise, the pay raise calculator can show you how an increase affects your annual and per-paycheck earnings. For freelancers or self-employed workers, the self-employment tax calculator accounts for the additional FICA taxes you owe when you do not have an employer covering half. You may also want to explore the payroll tax calculator to understand employer-side costs, or use the bonus tax calculator if you receive lump-sum bonuses that are taxed differently. Planning for the long term? Tools like the retirement calculator, Roth IRA calculator, and net worth calculator can help you see how your salary translates into future financial security.


Frequently asked questions

Why does my take-home pay look lower than I expected?

Your gross pay gets reduced by federal tax, state tax, local tax, Social Security, Medicare, and any pre-tax deductions like a 401(k) or health insurance. All of these come out before you receive your paycheck. For most people, total deductions remove 25% to 35% of gross pay.

What tax year does this salary calculator use?

This calculator uses 2025 federal tax brackets, the 2025 standard deduction amounts, and the 2025 Social Security wage cap of $176,100. State and local taxes use flat-rate estimates, not state-specific rates.

How accurate is the state tax estimate?

The calculator uses a generic flat 5% rate for state tax and 1% for local tax. These are rough estimates. Your actual state and local taxes depend on where you live. Some states like Texas and Florida have no income tax at all. For precise numbers, check your state's tax agency website.

What is the difference between pay frequency and tax pay frequency?

Pay frequency in the salary section tells the calculator how often the dollar amount you entered is paid, so it can figure out your annual gross. Tax pay frequency tells the calculator how often you actually receive a paycheck, so it can split taxes and deductions into the right per-paycheck amounts.

How does the 401(k) contribution affect my taxes?

A traditional 401(k) contribution is taken out of your paycheck before taxes are calculated. This lowers your taxable income, which means you pay less in federal, state, and local income tax. However, it does not reduce your FICA taxes (Social Security and Medicare).

What does the Federal Allowances field do?

Federal allowances were used on older W-4 forms before 2020. If you filled out a W-4 in 2020 or later, this field does not change your results. It is included for people still using a legacy W-4.

How are dependents handled in the calculation?

Each dependent applies a $2,000 Child Tax Credit that directly reduces your federal tax bill. This is a tax credit, not a deduction, so it lowers the tax you owe dollar for dollar rather than just reducing your taxable income.

What does exempt from FICA mean?

FICA includes Social Security tax (6.2%) and Medicare tax (1.45%). Most workers pay FICA, but some groups are exempt, such as certain religious workers, some student employees, and foreign government employees. If you select "Yes" for FICA exemption, the calculator removes both Social Security and Medicare taxes from your results.

How is overtime pay calculated?

In hourly mode, you can enter an overtime wage and overtime hours per week. The calculator multiplies your overtime wage by your overtime hours and adds that to your regular weekly earnings. It then multiplies the total by 52 weeks to get your annual gross pay.

What is the Social Security wage cap?

In 2025, you only pay the 6.2% Social Security tax on the first $176,100 of your earnings. Any income above that amount is not subject to Social Security tax. Medicare tax has no wage cap and applies to all earnings.

How does the calculator figure out my equivalent hourly rate?

It takes your annual gross salary and divides it by your adjusted working hours per year. Adjusted hours account for holidays and vacation days you entered. For example, if you work 40 hours per week, 5 days per week, with 10 holidays and 15 vacation days, your adjusted hours would be about 1,800.

What is the difference between marginal and effective tax rate?

Your marginal tax rate is the rate on the last dollar you earned. Your effective tax rate is the total taxes you pay divided by your total gross income. The effective rate shown in this calculator includes federal tax, state tax, local tax, and FICA combined.

Can I use this calculator if I am self-employed?

This calculator is built for employees whose employer pays half of FICA taxes. Self-employed workers pay both halves of FICA (12.4% Social Security and 2.9% Medicare). The results will underestimate your tax burden if you are self-employed.

What does the salary conversion table show?

The conversion table breaks your gross pay, taxes, pre-tax deductions, and net pay into every common pay frequency: hourly, daily, weekly, bi-weekly, semi-monthly, monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, and annually. The row matching your selected tax pay frequency is highlighted.

How do holidays and vacation days affect my results?

Holidays and vacation days reduce your adjusted working days and hours per year. This changes your equivalent hourly rate and the hourly and daily rows in the conversion table. For salaried workers, these days do not change your annual gross pay since you are still paid for them. For daily pay frequency in salary mode, they do reduce annual gross because you are paid per day actually worked.

What are state and local allowances?

Each state allowance reduces your state taxable income by $4,350. Each local allowance reduces your local taxable income by $4,350. More allowances mean less state or local tax withheld from your paycheck.

Does this calculator include the Additional Medicare Tax?

Yes. If your adjusted gross income exceeds $200,000 as a single filer or $250,000 as a married filer, the calculator adds the extra 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax on income above that threshold.

What counts as a pre-tax deduction?

Pre-tax deductions are amounts taken from your paycheck before income taxes are calculated. Common examples include traditional 401(k) contributions, health insurance premiums, HSA contributions, and FSA contributions. These lower your taxable income and reduce how much tax you owe.

Why does the pie chart not match my paycheck stub exactly?

This calculator uses estimated flat rates for state and local taxes and simplified federal bracket math. Your actual paycheck stub reflects your employer's specific withholding tables, your exact W-4 selections, and your state's actual tax rates. Use this tool for planning and estimates, not as a replacement for your employer's payroll system.

Can I change the standard deduction amount?

No. The calculator automatically applies the 2025 standard deduction based on your filing status: $15,000 for single filers and $30,000 for married filers. It does not support itemized deductions. If you itemize, your actual federal tax may be different from the estimate shown.