US paycheck take-home: start with FICA, then W-4
A U.S. take-home (net) paycheck is not “gross minus some round percentage.” Employers withhold FICA under federal statute, then federal income tax using your Form W-4 and IRS Publication 15-T. State and local taxes, if any, sit on top. This page covers the federal pieces you can check with official rates—not a 50-state tax map and not Form 1040.
Rates below come from IRS Topic 751 (Social Security and Medicare withholding) and the Social Security wage base published for 2026. Federal income-tax tables change and are not reproduced here. Confirm Publication 15 / 15-T and your pay stub.
Direct answer: what usually leaves the check
For employee wages in 2026 (Topic 751):
| Piece | Official rule | On this site | |---|---|---| | Social Security (employee) | 6.2% of Social Security wages, only until the $184,500 wage base | FICA calculator | | Medicare (employee) | 1.45% of covered wages, no wage base | Same FICA tool | | Additional Medicare | Employer withholds 0.9% once wages paid exceed $200,000 in the calendar year (no employer match) | Additional Medicare calculator | | Federal income tax | From your W-4 + Publication 15-T (not a single “average %”) | Primer below—no invented brackets | | Pre-tax 401(k) / HSA | Elective amounts can lower income-taxable wages; FICA treatment depends on the plan | 401(k) limit, HSA limit |
Employer FICA (another 6.2% + 1.45%) is a company cost. It does not appear as a line you “paid” on the stub.
SS wages = min(this paycheck’s SS wages, remaining room under $184,500)
employee Social Security = 6.2% × SS wages
employee Medicare = 1.45% × this paycheck’s Medicare wages
employee FICA = Social Security + Medicare
Worked FICA example (no income-tax guess)
Early in the year, $2,000 of FICA wages and $0 year-to-date Social Security wages:
- Social Security: $2,000 × 6.2% = $124.00
- Medicare: $2,000 × 1.45% = $29.00
- Employee FICA: $153.00
- Cash left before federal income tax, state tax, and benefits: $2,000 − $153 = $1,847.00
That $1,847 is not take-home. Federal income tax still depends on filing status, W-4 steps, and Publication 15-T. This site does not invent those tables.
Near the Social Security wage base the same $2,000 can cost less Social Security. If you already have $183,000 of SS wages this year, only $1,500 of room remains ($184,500 − $183,000), so Social Security is $1,500 × 6.2% = $93.00, Medicare is still $29.00, FICA = $122.00. Run the FICA calculator with your year-to-date box.
W-4 primer (what the form actually does)
Form W-4 tells payroll how to withhold federal income tax. It is not a refund estimator and it does not compute FICA.
Typical employee steps (read the current form; the IRS revises instructions):
- Filing status (Step 1) selects which Publication 15-T column payroll uses.
- Multiple jobs / spouse works (Step 2) exists so two incomes are not each withheld as if they were the only job.
- Dependents and other credits (Step 3) reduce withholding when you qualify—follow the form’s worksheet, do not invent a credit amount.
- Other income, deductions, extra withholding (Step 4) let you add extra tax per paycheck or account for non-wage income.
Publication 15-T has percentage-method and wage-bracket procedures. Those worksheets are official IRS math. Re-typing 2026 tables here would either go stale or invent numbers. Use the form, your payroll system, or a tax professional. This page will not ship a fake “22% of everything” shortcut.
If you only change W-4 extra withholding (Step 4c), FICA lines should stay the same; income-tax withholding should move. If both FICA and FIT look wrong, check taxable-wage boxes (tips, pretax medical, 401(k)) before assuming the W-4 is the only bug.
Benefits that change the stub (not FICA rates)
- 401(k) elective deferrals have an IRS dollar limit for the year. They often reduce federal income-taxable wages; they do not rewrite the 6.2% / 1.45% rates. Use the 401(k) deferral limit calculator.
- HSA contributions have their own IRS annual limits. Use the HSA contribution calculator.
- Additional Medicare is a separate 0.9% withholding once calendar-year wages exceed $200,000 (Topic 751). Filing-status thresholds for the tax can differ from the employer withholding trigger—see the Additional Medicare calculator.
Pay frequency still matters for budgeting
The rates above are the same on weekly or monthly pay. The dollar withheld per check scales with that check’s wages. If you are comparing a $60,000 offer paid every two weeks versus twice a month, use the salary converter and the companion note Biweekly vs monthly paycheck.
What this page is not
- Not a full paycheck calculator with state income tax or local wage taxes.
- Not overtime math (that is FLSA). See FLSA overtime explained and the overtime calculator.
- Not Mexican ISR, Guatemalan IGSS, or any non-U.S. payroll system.