Estimate your federal income tax withholding from your paycheck.
Your Details
Weekly (52 per year)
Bi-weekly (26 per year)
Semi-monthly (24 per year)
Monthly (12 per year)
Single
Married Filing Jointly
Married Filing Separately
Head of Household
Estimated Tax Withholding
Understanding Your Paycheck Income Tax Withholding
Withholding income tax from your paycheck is a mechanism the U.S. government uses to collect taxes throughout the year, rather than requiring a large lump sum payment at tax time. The amount withheld is an estimate of your total tax liability, based on the information you provide on Form W-4, Employee's Withholding Certificate. This calculator provides an estimate of your federal income tax withholding based on common inputs.
How Your Tax Withholding is Calculated
The calculation involves several steps, generally aligning with the IRS's Publication 15-T, Federal Income Tax Withholding Methods. The basic idea is to determine your taxable income per paycheck and then apply the appropriate tax rate.
Annualize Income: Your gross paycheck amount is multiplied by the number of pay periods in a year based on your pay frequency (e.g., weekly, monthly).
Subtract Standard Deduction/Personal Exemption (or equivalent): For simplicity in paycheck withholding, employers often use a standardized method or amounts based on the W-4 information. A common approach is to subtract a prorated amount of the standard deduction and any dependent credits you claim. The number of allowances claimed on your W-4 can directly influence these subtractions. A higher number of allowances generally means less tax is withheld.
Determine Taxable Income Per Period: After annualizing and subtracting deductions/exemptions, you get an estimated annual taxable income. This is then divided by the number of pay periods in a year to arrive at a taxable amount per paycheck.
Apply Tax Brackets: The calculated taxable income per paycheck is then subjected to the progressive federal income tax rates for the current tax year. The tax liability is calculated based on these marginal tax rates.
Simplified Tax Bracket Example (Illustrative – Actual rates may vary by year and specific W-4 adjustments):
Filing Status
Tax Rate
Taxable Income
Single
10%
Up to $11,600
12%
$11,601 to $47,150
22%
$47,151 to $100,525
24%
$100,526 to $191,950
…and higher rates for higher incomes
Married Filing Jointly
10%
Up to $23,200
12%
$23,201 to $94,300
22%
$94,301 to $201,050
24%
$201,051 to $383,900
…and higher rates for higher incomes
Note: These are example 2024 tax brackets for illustration. Actual withholdings also consider standard deductions and personal/dependent credits, which are factored into the calculation.
Key Inputs Explained:
Gross Paycheck Amount: The total amount earned before any deductions.
Pay Frequency: How often you receive a paycheck (weekly, bi-weekly, etc.). This is crucial for annualizing your income.
Filing Status: Your tax filing status (Single, Married Filing Jointly, etc.) affects the tax brackets and standard deduction amounts used in calculations.
Number of Allowances: Traditionally, allowances represented dependents or other tax breaks. On newer W-4 forms, this concept is more directly tied to specific credits and deductions. For simplicity, we use it here as a general factor reducing withholding. A higher number of allowances generally means less tax is withheld.
Why Use This Calculator?
This calculator is a tool to help you:
Estimate how much federal income tax will be withheld from your next paycheck.
Understand the impact of your W-4 information on your take-home pay.
Adjust your W-4 with your employer if you find too much or too little tax is being withheld, ensuring you're closer to your actual tax liability by year-end.
Disclaimer: This calculator provides an ESTIMATE only. It simplifies the complex IRS withholding tables and rules. Actual withholding may vary. For precise calculations or tax advice, consult a tax professional or refer directly to IRS guidelines and tax forms.
function calculateTax() {
var paycheckAmount = parseFloat(document.getElementById("paycheckAmount").value);
var payFrequency = document.getElementById("payFrequency").value;
var filingStatus = document.getElementById("filingStatus").value;
var allowances = parseInt(document.getElementById("allowances").value);
var resultDiv = document.getElementById("result");
var resultContainer = document.getElementById("resultContainer");
var estimatedNetPayDiv = document.getElementById("estimatedNetPay");
resultDiv.innerText = "";
estimatedNetPayDiv.innerText = "";
resultContainer.style.display = 'none';
if (isNaN(paycheckAmount) || paycheckAmount <= 0) {
resultDiv.innerText = "Please enter a valid gross paycheck amount.";
resultDiv.style.backgroundColor = "#dc3545"; // Red for error
resultContainer.style.display = 'block';
return;
}
if (isNaN(allowances) || allowances annualIncome) {
totalAnnualDeduction = annualIncome;
}
var taxableAnnualIncome = annualIncome – totalAnnualDeduction;
if (taxableAnnualIncome 0) {
rate12 = Math.min(remainingIncome, ((47150 – 11600) / payPeriodsPerYear)) * 0.12;
remainingIncome -= ((47150 – 11600) / payPeriodsPerYear);
}
var rate22 = 0;
if (remainingIncome > 0) {
rate22 = Math.min(remainingIncome, ((100525 – 47150) / payPeriodsPerYear)) * 0.22;
remainingIncome -= ((100525 – 47150) / payPeriodsPerYear);
}
var rate24 = 0;
if (remainingIncome > 0) {
rate24 = Math.min(remainingIncome, ((191950 – 100525) / payPeriodsPerYear)) * 0.24;
remainingIncome -= ((191950 – 100525) / payPeriodsPerYear);
}
// Higher brackets would continue here…
taxWithholding = rate10 + rate12 + rate22 + rate24; // Sum up taxes for each bracket portion
} else if (filingStatus === "married_filing_jointly") {
// Simplified marginal tax application per paycheck for MFJ
var rate10 = Math.min(taxableIncomePerPaycheck, (23200 / payPeriodsPerYear)) * 0.10;
var remainingIncome = taxableIncomePerPaycheck – (23200 / payPeriodsPerYear);
var rate12 = 0;
if (remainingIncome > 0) {
rate12 = Math.min(remainingIncome, ((94300 – 23200) / payPeriodsPerYear)) * 0.12;
remainingIncome -= ((94300 – 23200) / payPeriodsPerYear);
}
var rate22 = 0;
if (remainingIncome > 0) {
rate22 = Math.min(remainingIncome, ((201050 – 94300) / payPeriodsPerYear)) * 0.22;
remainingIncome -= ((201050 – 94300) / payPeriodsPerYear);
}
var rate24 = 0;
if (remainingIncome > 0) {
rate24 = Math.min(remainingIncome, ((383900 – 201050) / payPeriodsPerYear)) * 0.24;
remainingIncome -= ((383900 – 201050) / payPeriodsPerYear);
}
// Higher brackets would continue here…
taxWithholding = rate10 + rate12 + rate22 + rate24;
} else if (filingStatus === "head_of_household") {
// Simplified marginal tax application per paycheck for HoH
var rate10 = Math.min(taxableIncomePerPaycheck, (16550 / payPeriodsPerYear)) * 0.10; // Example HoH 2023
var remainingIncome = taxableIncomePerPaycheck – (16550 / payPeriodsPerYear);
var rate12 = 0;
if (remainingIncome > 0) {
rate12 = Math.min(remainingIncome, ((59850 – 16550) / payPeriodsPerYear)) * 0.12;
remainingIncome -= ((59850 – 16550) / payPeriodsPerYear);
}
var rate22 = 0;
if (remainingIncome > 0) {
rate22 = Math.min(remainingIncome, ((95350 – 59850) / payPeriodsPerYear)) * 0.22;
remainingIncome -= ((95350 – 59850) / payPeriodsPerYear);
}
var rate24 = 0;
if (remainingIncome > 0) {
rate24 = Math.min(remainingIncome, ((186600 – 95350) / payPeriodsPerYear)) * 0.24;
remainingIncome -= ((186600 – 95350) / payPeriodsPerYear);
}
// Higher brackets would continue here…
taxWithholding = rate10 + rate12 + rate22 + rate24;
}
var estimatedNetPay = paycheckAmount – taxWithholding;
// Format results
var formattedTax = taxWithholding.toFixed(2);
var formattedNetPay = estimatedNetPay.toFixed(2);
resultDiv.innerText = "$" + formattedTax;
estimatedNetPayDiv.innerText = "Estimated Net Pay: $" + formattedNetPay;
resultContainer.style.display = 'block';
resultDiv.style.backgroundColor = "#28a745"; // Green for success
}