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FICA calculator

Employee FICA for 2026: 6.2% Social Security up to $184,500 of wages plus 1.45% Medicare with no wage base.

Inputs
Enter values to calculate

Gross wages subject to FICA for this pay period. This version does not rebuild Section 3121 exclusions.

Leave 0 if this is your only job or first period. Used to apply the $184,500 Social Security wage base.

Results

Enter your FICA-taxable wages to see the employee Social Security and Medicare withholding.

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FICA Calculator United States 2026

FICA is the employee share of Social Security and Medicare withholding on your wages. For tax year 2026 the rates are 6.2% for Social Security and 1.45% for Medicare.

The two parts work differently:

  • Social Security (6.2%) applies only until your cumulative wages for the year reach the $184,500 wage base. Above that, employee Social Security stops for the rest of 2026.
  • Medicare (1.45%) has no wage base: it applies to every dollar of wages, all year.
Employee FICA (one pay period)

SS wage-base room = max(0, $184,500 − YTD Social Security wages before this period)

Social Security wages = min(period wages, SS wage-base room)

employee Social Security = 6.2% × Social Security wages

employee Medicare = 1.45% × period wages

employee FICA = employee Social Security + employee Medicare

Worked example

You are paid $10,000 in one period and you have already had $180,000 of Social Security wages taxed this year. Only $4,500 of wage-base room remains, so:

  • Social Security: $4,500 × 6.2% = $279
  • Medicare: $10,000 × 1.45% = $145
  • Employee FICA total: $424

If this period is early in the year (YTD = $0), a $2,000 paycheck costs $124 in Social Security plus $29 in Medicare — $153 total.

What this calculator does not include

  • The Additional Medicare Tax (0.9%), which has separate withholding and filing thresholds.
  • Self-employment (SECA) taxes, federal income tax, W-4 settings, or Form 1040.
  • State or local taxes, FUTA/SUTA, cafeteria-plan or 401(k) wage-base rebuilds.
  • Any non-U.S. system: this page is about United States federal payroll only.
Employer match

Your employer pays a matching 6.2% Social Security and 1.45% Medicare on top of its own side, but that money never appears in your paycheck, so this tool shows only the employee share.

Not tax advice

Educational estimate from 26 U.S.C. § 3101(a)–(b)(1), IRS Topic 751, and the 2026 OASDI contribution and benefit base of $184,500 set by the Social Security Administration (Federal Register 2025-19763). Confirm with IRS Publication 15 or a tax professional for your situation.

Official sources

The employee share of FICA for 2026: Social Security at 6.2% on wages up to $184,500 and Medicare at 1.45% with no wage base.

No. Employee Medicare (1.45%) applies to all wages with no annual limit. Employee Social Security (6.2%) stops once your year-to-date Social Security wages reach $184,500 in 2026.

No. This version covers only the basic employee withholding and excludes federal income tax, self-employment tax, and state taxes.