What comes out of your paycheck
From your gross pay, four things are withheld before you see it:
- Federal income tax — applied to your income after the standard deduction (2026: $16,100 single · $32,200 married · $24,150 head of household), at the 2026 brackets from 10% to 37%.
- Social Security — 6.2% up to the 2026 wage base of $184,500.
- Medicare — 1.45%, plus an extra 0.9% on high earners.
- State income tax — none in Texas, Florida or Nevada; flat in some states; progressive in California, New York and others.
Key point: the federal brackets are marginal — only the dollars inside each bracket are taxed at that rate, so your effective rate is well below your top bracket.
Why your state can matter as much as your raise
The same $60,000 salary lands very differently depending on where you live. A no-income-tax state (Texas, Florida, Nevada) can leave you well over a thousand dollars more per year than a high-tax state like California — for the identical gross. When you compare job offers in different states, compare the take-home, not the salary.
What's NOT in this number
Take-home excludes voluntary withholding you choose (401(k), health insurance) and credits realized at filing (Child Tax Credit, EITC). Those change your final tax bill but aren't part of the standard paycheck math.
Calculate your take-home in any state → Free tool: your net pay after federal, Social Security, Medicare and state tax — compare two states and see a raise's real value.