Collect the information payroll actually uses
Have a recent pay stub, your current federal W-4, state withholding certificate, pay schedule, and benefit elections available. If you have not been paid yet, use the offer and enrollment documents, but treat missing elections as uncertainty—not as evidence that no tax or deduction will be taken.
Choose a period before entering numbers. Weekly generally means 52 checks, biweekly 26, semimonthly 24, and monthly 12. Biweekly is every two weeks; semimonthly is twice a month. An actual payroll calendar can occasionally contain an extra weekly or biweekly payday. Our calculators use the fixed period counts shown, so compare against your employer’s calendar for annual budgeting.
Sources: IRS Publication 15-T (2026) — federal withholding methods
Build gross pay before estimating deductions
For a fixed salary, divide annual salary by the applicable number of checks. For hourly wages, multiply the applicable rate by paid hours in the period; add separately calculated overtime and other earnings. Unpaid leave, shift premiums, commissions, and taxable benefits can make a particular check differ from an ordinary check.
Use the salary calculator when the starting figure is annual salary and the hourly calculator when you have a rate and hours. The weekly, biweekly, and monthly pages lock that pay frequency. Do not enter your bank deposit as gross pay: it already has deductions removed.
There is more than one taxable wage base
Federal income-tax wages, Social Security wages, Medicare wages, and state wages can differ. A qualifying traditional 401(k) salary deferral generally reduces federal income-tax wages but remains subject to Social Security and Medicare. Qualifying health premiums through a Section 125 cafeteria plan are generally excluded from those wage bases. A deduction being described as “pre-tax” is not enough to determine its treatment for every tax.
In this site’s withholding mode, the traditional 401(k) field remains FICA-taxable; health insurance assumes a qualifying cafeteria plan. Other pre-tax deductions reduce income-tax wages but not FICA in the model. State treatment can differ, and the state wage override is available for a known amount. See deductions explained before entering a Roth contribution or an unfamiliar benefit.
Sources: IRS Publication 15 (2026) — employer payroll taxes; IRS — retirement plan FAQs regarding contributions
Estimate taxes and subtract every cash deduction once
Federal withholding uses the pay frequency, taxable wages, filing status, and W-4 entries. State withholding uses the applicable employer table and state certificate, not simply a top income-tax rate. Enter local tax and other payroll charges as actual per-check amounts where required. Our calculator does not independently compute county tax, disability insurance, or paid-leave premiums.
For 2026, an ordinary employee’s Social Security share is 6.2% up to $184,500 of wages subject to that tax. Medicare is 1.45% without a wage cap; employers also withhold 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax on wages they pay above $200,000, regardless of filing status. Enter year-to-date taxable wages before the current check, rather than year-to-date tax withheld.
Net cash pay is gross cash earnings minus employee taxes, benefit contributions, and other deductions. Pre-tax contributions reduce relevant tax wages and are still subtracted from cash pay—but must not be subtracted from the cash balance twice. Keep employer-paid benefits and employer matching contributions out of employee deductions.
Sources: IRS Publication 15 (2026) — employer payroll taxes; IRS Publication 15-T (2026) — federal withholding methods; Social Security Administration — contribution and benefit base
Compare lines, then plan for the year
If the estimated deposit differs from payroll, compare gross earnings first, then each taxable wage base, then each tax and benefit line. Check whether deductions were annual rather than per-paycheck inputs, whether a bonus method was used, and whether the employer has different year-to-date wage information. A refund expectation does not mean today’s withholding is zero.
Our annual display repeats the calculated check across the selected period count. It is not a forecast of later wage-cap changes, irregular earnings, or a complete return. Use the IRS estimator for yearwide withholding planning, and payroll records for the official paycheck. See the About and methodology page for the exact coverage and limits.
Sources: IRS Tax Withholding Estimator
Try the calculators
Sources
Related guides
Gross pay vs. net pay: what the numbers mean
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