{
  "slug": "take-home-pay",
  "title": "Take-Home Pay Calculator",
  "heading": "Take-Home Pay Calculator",
  "category": "financial",
  "url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/take-home-pay",
  "summary": "Gross salary to actual paycheck, after tax and deductions.",
  "description": "Runs federal brackets, Social Security, Medicare, your state rate, and pre-tax deductions to land on what actually hits your bank account each pay period.",
  "formula": "Net = Gross − pre-tax deductions − federal tax − FICA − state tax − post-tax deductions.",
  "dateModified": "2026-09-30",
  "run_url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/api/public/calc?tool=take-home-pay",
  "inputs": [
    {
      "id": "salary",
      "label": "Gross annual salary",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 95000,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "status",
      "label": "Filing status",
      "kind": "select",
      "hint": null,
      "default": "single",
      "options": [
        {
          "value": "single",
          "label": "Single"
        },
        {
          "value": "married",
          "label": "Married filing jointly"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "stateRate",
      "label": "State income tax rate",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 5,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 15
    },
    {
      "id": "pretax",
      "label": "Pre-tax deductions",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": "401(k), health, HSA",
      "default": 9000,
      "unit": "$/yr",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "posttax",
      "label": "Post-tax deductions",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 0,
      "unit": "$/yr",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "frequency",
      "label": "Pay frequency",
      "kind": "select",
      "hint": null,
      "default": "biweekly",
      "options": [
        {
          "value": "weekly",
          "label": "Weekly (52)"
        },
        {
          "value": "biweekly",
          "label": "Bi-weekly (26)"
        },
        {
          "value": "semimonthly",
          "label": "Semi-monthly (24)"
        },
        {
          "value": "monthly",
          "label": "Monthly (12)"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "outputs": [
    {
      "id": "perCheck",
      "label": "Take-home per paycheck",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": true
    },
    {
      "id": "net",
      "label": "Annual take-home",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "fed",
      "label": "Federal income tax",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "fica",
      "label": "Social Security + Medicare",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "state",
      "label": "State income tax",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "effective",
      "label": "Total deduction rate",
      "format": "percent",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    }
  ],
  "worked_example": {
    "inputs": [
      "Gross annual salary: 95000 $",
      "Filing status: Single",
      "State income tax rate: 5 %",
      "Pre-tax deductions: 9000 $/yr",
      "Post-tax deductions: 0 $/yr",
      "Pay frequency: Bi-weekly (26)"
    ],
    "outputs": [
      "Take-home per paycheck: $2,457.63",
      "Annual take-home: $63,898.50",
      "Federal income tax: $10,534.00",
      "Social Security + Medicare: $7,267.50",
      "State income tax: $4,300.00",
      "Total deduction rate: 32.7%"
    ]
  },
  "how_to": {
    "title": "How to use this",
    "steps": [
      "Enter gross annual salary ($).",
      "Enter filing status.",
      "Enter state income tax rate (%).",
      "Enter pre-tax deductions ($/yr) — 401(k), health, HSA.",
      "Enter post-tax deductions ($/yr).",
      "Enter pay frequency.",
      "Read your take-home per paycheck 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": {
        "salary": 57000,
        "status": "single",
        "stateRate": 3,
        "pretax": 5500,
        "posttax": 0,
        "frequency": "biweekly"
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Typical",
      "description": "Defaults — the most common real-world setup.",
      "values": {
        "salary": 95000,
        "status": "single",
        "stateRate": 5,
        "pretax": 9000,
        "posttax": 0,
        "frequency": "biweekly"
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Ambitious",
      "description": "Higher-end numbers — what if things really pop?",
      "values": {
        "salary": 152000,
        "status": "single",
        "stateRate": 8,
        "pretax": 14500,
        "posttax": 0,
        "frequency": "biweekly"
      }
    }
  ],
  "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 take-home pay calculator work?",
      "a": "Runs federal brackets, Social Security, Medicare, your state rate, and pre-tax deductions to land on what actually hits your bank account each pay period. The underlying maths is: Net = Gross − pre-tax deductions − federal tax − FICA − state tax − post-tax deductions."
    },
    {
      "q": "What do I need to enter?",
      "a": "6 values: gross annual salary, filing status, state income tax rate, pre-tax deductions, post-tax deductions, and pay frequency. 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 take-home per paycheck 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/income-tax",
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/paycheck",
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/salary"
  ],
  "license": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "citation": "RevenueLab — Take-Home Pay Calculator (https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/take-home-pay)"
}