Estimate where each dollar of your paycheck goes: taxes, Social Security, your 401(k), and take-home pay. Free, no account required, and nothing here is financial advice.
See an estimate of where each dollar of your paycheck goes: taxes, Social Security, your 401(k), and take-home pay.
Based on Single brackets after the $14,600 standard deduction and 401(k) contributions.
Simplified flat-rate estimate for CA. Actual state taxes may use brackets and vary.
6.2% of gross pay up to the $168,600 annual wage cap.
1.45% of all gross pay with no cap. Additional 0.9% may apply above $200K (not modeled here).
6% pre-tax contribution. This reduces your taxable income for federal and state purposes.
Disclaimer: This calculator provides simplified estimates for educational purposes only. It uses flat effective rates for state taxes, 2024 federal brackets, and does not account for local taxes, pre-tax benefits, itemized deductions, tax credits, additional Medicare surcharges, or other withholdings. Your actual paycheck will differ. Consult a tax professional for personalized advice.
The stacked bar breaks one paycheck into its parts so the deductions stop feeling like a mystery. Federal and state taxes, Social Security, and Medicare come out first; your 401(k) is set aside pre-tax; what is left is your take-home. Adjusting the 401(k) slider is a good way to feel the trade-off between a smaller paycheck now and more set aside for later.
This is an illustrative estimate built on simplified 2024 tax rules. Real withholding depends on many factors this tool leaves out, so use it to understand the shape of a paycheck, not to file taxes.
You enter your annual salary, pay frequency, filing status, state, and 401(k) contribution percentage. The tool estimates federal income tax (using a progressive bracket calculation), a simplified flat state tax, Social Security, Medicare, and your pre-tax 401(k), then shows your estimated take-home pay per period and per year.
A traditional 401(k) contribution comes out before federal and state income tax is calculated, which lowers your taxable income. The calculator reflects this, so raising your contribution percentage both reduces your take-home pay and reduces the income that gets taxed.
No. It is a simplified estimate using 2024 federal tax rules and a single flat rate per state. It does not include local taxes, itemized deductions, tax credits, additional Medicare surcharges, or other withholdings, and tax rules change every year. Your real paycheck will differ.
No. Everything runs in your browser; nothing you enter is saved or sent anywhere.
A free account turns your take-home number into the starting point for learning how to put part of it to work.
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