Single / Head of Household
Married Filing Jointly
Married Filing Separately
Tax Breakdown
Social Security (6.2%):$0.00
Medicare (1.45%):$0.00
Additional Medicare (0.9%):$0.00
Total FICA Tax:$0.00
Understanding FICA Taxes: Social Security and Medicare
FICA stands for the Federal Insurance Contributions Act. It is a mandatory U.S. federal payroll tax that funds two major social insurance programs: Social Security and Medicare. Both employees and employers share the responsibility of paying these taxes, typically split 50/50.
Components of FICA
The FICA tax rate is composed of two distinct parts:
Social Security: This portion is 6.2% of your gross wages. However, there is a wage base limit. For 2024, only the first $168,600 of your income is subject to Social Security tax.
Medicare: This portion is 1.45% of all your gross wages. Unlike Social Security, there is no income cap for the standard Medicare tax.
Additional Medicare Tax
High earners are subject to an Additional Medicare Tax of 0.9%. This applies to income exceeding specific thresholds based on filing status:
Single / Head of Household: Over $200,000
Married Filing Jointly: Over $250,000
Married Filing Separately: Over $125,000
FICA Calculation Example
Suppose you are a single filer earning $220,000 annually. Here is how your FICA tax is calculated for 2024:
Social Security: $168,600 (cap) × 6.2% = $10,453.20
It is important to note that your employer pays a matching 6.2% for Social Security and 1.45% for Medicare. Employers are not required to pay the Additional Medicare Tax; that is solely the employee's responsibility. If you are self-employed, you are responsible for both the employer and employee portions, commonly known as the Self-Employment Tax (SECA).
function calculateFICA() {
var gross = parseFloat(document.getElementById('grossIncome').value);
var frequency = parseFloat(document.getElementById('payFrequency').value);
var status = document.getElementById('filingStatus').value;
if (isNaN(gross) || gross addlThreshold) {
annualAddlMed = (gross – addlThreshold) * addlMedRate;
}
var annualTotal = annualSS + annualMed + annualAddlMed;
// Formatting
var formatter = new Intl.NumberFormat('en-US', {
style: 'currency',
currency: 'USD',
});
document.getElementById('ssTaxResult').innerHTML = formatter.format(annualSS);
document.getElementById('medicareTaxResult').innerHTML = formatter.format(annualMed);
document.getElementById('additionalMedicareResult').innerHTML = formatter.format(annualAddlMed);
document.getElementById('totalFicaResult').innerHTML = formatter.format(annualTotal);
// Pay period display
if (frequency > 1) {
var periodTotal = annualTotal / frequency;
var frequencyText = "";
if (frequency == 12) frequencyText = "monthly";
if (frequency == 24) frequencyText = "semi-monthly";
if (frequency == 26) frequencyText = "bi-weekly";
if (frequency == 52) frequencyText = "weekly";
document.getElementById('perPayPeriodText').innerHTML = "Estimated " + frequencyText + " FICA withholding: " + formatter.format(periodTotal);
} else {
document.getElementById('perPayPeriodText').innerHTML = "";
}
// Show results
document.getElementById('ficaResults').style.display = 'block';
}