Tax year 2026 · an estimate

Take-home pay

Federal income tax, employee payroll tax, and state income tax on a wage. The result is a comparison figure, not a filing and not advice.

What the estimate assumes

• The tax year is 2026.
• The amount is wage income and it is the only income.
• The filer takes the federal standard deduction and does not itemize.
• Federal tax uses the filing status you select. The return has no dependents.
• Head of household and married filing separately use the real federal schedules for those statuses. State tax for those two statuses uses the state's single-filer schedule.
• No pre-tax retirement, health insurance, or other paycheck deductions are taken out.
• Employee Social Security, Medicare, and Additional Medicare Tax are included.
• State income tax follows the published brackets, standard deduction, and personal exemption for a filer with no dependents.
• Local income taxes are not included.
• State disability and paid-family-leave payroll taxes are not included.
• The result is an estimate for comparison, not a tax return and not tax advice.

Federal brackets: IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32 and IR-2025-102. Payroll tax: IRS Topic No. 751 and the 2026 Social Security wage base of $184,500. State schedules: the Tax Foundation compilation of state statutes and forms published February 17, 2026, with Minnesota checked against the Minnesota Department of Revenue. Read the full method.

National median, single filer, California · $80,000, single filer, Texas