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Take-home pay is gross salary minus federal income tax, Social Security, and Medicare. Federal income tax applies the 2026 brackets to income after the standard deduction; Social Security is 6.2% of wages up to the $184,500 wage base; Medicare is 1.45% of all wages. On a $75,000 single salary that's about $7,670 income tax, $4,650 Social Security, and $1,088 Medicare — roughly $61,593 take-home, an effective tax rate near 18%. This models US federal withholding for 2026; it excludes state and local taxes.

Take-Home Pay Calculator — net after federal tax & FICA (2026)

Gross $75,000, filing single, US federal 2026.

Take-home pay$61,592.50
Federal income tax
$7,670.00
Social Security
$4,650.00
Medicare
$1,087.50
Effective tax rate
17.88%

Quick examples

How it's calculated

  1. Taxable income = gross − deduction − pretaxtaxable=gross−deduction−pretax\text{taxable} = \text{gross} - \text{deduction} - \text{pretax}
    gross
    = 75,000
    deduction
    = 16,100
    pretax
    = 0
    58,900
  2. Social Security = 6.2% × min(gross, wage base)SS=6.2%×min⁡(gross,wage base)\text{SS} = 6.2\% \times \min(\text{gross}, \text{wage base})
    base
    = 184,500
    4,650
  3. Medicare = 1.45% × gross (+ 0.9% over threshold)Medicare=1.45%×gross+0.9% over threshold\text{Medicare} = 1.45\% \times \text{gross} + 0.9\% \text{ over threshold}
    1,087.5
  4. Net = gross − pretax − income tax − SS − Medicarenet=gross−pretax−income tax−SS−Medicare\text{net} = \text{gross} - \text{pretax} - \text{income tax} - \text{SS} - \text{Medicare}
    federalIncomeTax
    = 7,670
    61,592.5

Compare scenarios

Side by side across the compared columns.
ScenarioAmountShare of gross
Federal income tax$7,670.0010.2%
Social Security$4,650.006.2%
Medicare$1,087.501.5%
Take-home pay$61,592.5082.1%
Take-home pay$61,592.50

How it works

Three federal withholdings come out of a paycheck. Federal income tax is progressive: the standard deduction comes off gross, then the 2026 brackets tax each slice of what remains at its rate — the same method as the income-tax calculator, run against the same figures. Social Security is a flat 6.2% of wages, but only up to the annual wage base ($184,500 in 2026); earnings above that are not taxed for Social Security, so the dollar amount caps at $11,439. Medicare is 1.45% of all wages with no cap, plus an extra 0.9% on wages above $200,000 (single) or $250,000 (married filing jointly). The teardown table shows each line as a share of gross, so where your salary actually goes is a picture, not a guess.

Worked example

A single filer earning $75,000 takes the $16,100 standard deduction, leaving $58,900 taxable. The 2026 brackets make that $7,670 in federal income tax. Social Security is 6.2% × $75,000 = $4,650, and Medicare is 1.45% × $75,000 = $1,087.50. Total tax is $13,407.50, so take-home is $75,000 − $13,407.50 = $61,592.50 — an effective rate of about 17.9%. Push earnings to the wage base and Social Security tops out at 6.2% × $184,500 = $11,439, exactly the figure SSA publishes.

Frequently asked questions

How do I calculate my take-home pay?

Subtract federal income tax, Social Security (6.2%), and Medicare (1.45%) from your gross. Federal income tax is the 2026 brackets applied to gross minus the standard deduction. On $75,000 single, that's $13,407.50 of tax and about $61,593 take-home. This is federal only — state tax, if any, comes off on top.

Why is Social Security capped but Medicare isn't?

Social Security taxes wages only up to the annual wage base — $184,500 in 2026 — because benefits are also capped, so the tax stops at $11,439. Medicare has no wage cap: 1.45% applies to every dollar, and high earners pay an extra 0.9% Additional Medicare tax above $200,000 (single) or $250,000 (married jointly).

Does my 401(k) contribution lower these taxes?

A traditional 401(k) contribution lowers your federal income tax — it comes out of taxable income — but not your Social Security or Medicare, which are charged on your full gross wages. That's why the pretax field here reduces income tax only. Roth 401(k) contributions lower neither.

What's the difference between this and the income-tax calculator?

The income-tax calculator computes federal income tax alone. This one adds the payroll taxes (Social Security and Medicare) that also come out of a paycheck and reports the net, so it answers "what actually lands in my account?" rather than just the income-tax line. Both use the same 2026 federal brackets.

Is this my actual paycheck withholding?

It's an annual estimate of the taxes owed, not your exact per-paycheck withholding. Real withholding depends on your W-4, pay frequency, and employer's method, and Additional Medicare withholding starts at $200,000 regardless of filing status. Treat this as the yearly total; your paychecks may withhold a bit more or less and true up at filing.

Why doesn't it include state tax?

State and local income taxes vary enormously — some states have none, others exceed 10% — and modeling them needs a per-state pack this calculator doesn't yet carry. It's federal-only by design, and it says so. Add your state's rate separately, or treat the result as your pay before state tax.

How accurate is this, and what does it exclude?

The federal income tax and FICA arithmetic is exact for the salary and filing status entered, using published 2026 figures. It excludes state and local taxes, tax credits (child, EITC), itemized deductions, Section 125 health premiums (which lower FICA too), other pretax benefits, and the employer's share of FICA. It assumes the standard deduction and a single W-2 salary.

How we know this is right

Last reviewed
Jul 23, 2026
Next review
Oct 15, 2026
Precision
Rounded to 2 decimal places.
Read our methodology

Sources