{
  "slug": "fica",
  "title": "FICA Tax Calculator",
  "heading": "FICA Tax Calculator",
  "category": "financial",
  "url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/fica",
  "summary": "Social Security and Medicare withholding, employee and employer.",
  "description": "FICA is 7.65% from you and 7.65% from your employer. Social Security stops at the annual wage base; Medicare never stops, and adds another 0.9% above the high-earner threshold.",
  "formula": "Social Security 6.2% up to the wage base, Medicare 1.45% uncapped, plus 0.9% additional Medicare above the threshold.",
  "dateModified": "2026-09-30",
  "run_url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/api/public/calc?tool=fica",
  "inputs": [
    {
      "id": "wages",
      "label": "Annual wages",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 120000,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "threshold",
      "label": "Additional Medicare threshold",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 200000,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    }
  ],
  "outputs": [
    {
      "id": "employee",
      "label": "Your FICA withholding",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": true
    },
    {
      "id": "ss",
      "label": "Social Security",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "medicare",
      "label": "Medicare (incl. additional)",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "employer",
      "label": "Employer's share",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "combined",
      "label": "Combined FICA paid",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "monthly",
      "label": "Your monthly withholding",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    }
  ],
  "worked_example": {
    "inputs": [
      "Annual wages: 120000 $",
      "Additional Medicare threshold: 200000 $"
    ],
    "outputs": [
      "Your FICA withholding: $9,180.00",
      "Social Security: $7,440.00",
      "Medicare (incl. additional): $1,740.00",
      "Employer's share: $9,180.00",
      "Combined FICA paid: $18,360.00",
      "Your monthly withholding: $765.00"
    ]
  },
  "how_to": {
    "title": "How to use this",
    "steps": [
      "Enter annual wages ($).",
      "Enter additional medicare threshold ($).",
      "Read your your fica withholding on the right — it updates as you type.",
      "Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone."
    ]
  },
  "scenarios": [
    {
      "name": "Conservative",
      "description": "Lower-end numbers — what if things land soft?",
      "values": {
        "wages": 72000,
        "threshold": 120000
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Typical",
      "description": "Defaults — the most common real-world setup.",
      "values": {
        "wages": 120000,
        "threshold": 200000
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Ambitious",
      "description": "Higher-end numbers — what if things really pop?",
      "values": {
        "wages": 192000,
        "threshold": 320000
      }
    }
  ],
  "limitations": [
    "Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.",
    "Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.",
    "This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant."
  ],
  "faq": [
    {
      "q": "How does the fica tax calculator work?",
      "a": "FICA is 7.65% from you and 7.65% from your employer. Social Security stops at the annual wage base; Medicare never stops, and adds another 0.9% above the high-earner threshold. The underlying maths is: Social Security 6.2% up to the wage base, Medicare 1.45% uncapped, plus 0.9% additional Medicare above the threshold."
    },
    {
      "q": "What do I need to enter?",
      "a": "2 values: annual wages, and additional medicare threshold. Each field starts with a sensible default, so you can change one number at a time and watch the result move."
    },
    {
      "q": "What does the your fica withholding result mean?",
      "a": "It is returned as a money amount in US dollars and updates live as you edit the inputs, so you can compare two or three versions of a scenario in a few seconds."
    },
    {
      "q": "Is this calculator free, and do I need an account?",
      "a": "Yes, it's free, and no account is required. Nothing you type is stored on our servers — the maths runs entirely in your browser."
    },
    {
      "q": "How accurate is the result?",
      "a": "It applies the standard formula exactly, so the arithmetic is precise. Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them."
    },
    {
      "q": "Who is this tool for?",
      "a": "It's built for anyone comparing money scenarios before committing — budgeting a payment, sanity-checking a quote, or seeing what a change in rate or term actually costs."
    }
  ],
  "related": [
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/take-home-pay",
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/payroll-tax"
  ],
  "license": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "citation": "RevenueLab — FICA Tax Calculator (https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/fica)"
}