Calculate Your Contribution
Employee (W-2)
Self-Employed (1099)
Annually
Monthly
Semi-Monthly (24/yr)
Bi-Weekly (26/yr)
Weekly
2024 ($168,600 Limit)
2025 ($176,100 Limit)
Max earnings subject to Social Security tax.
Estimated Tax Withholding
Social Security Rate:
6.2%
Taxable Earnings:
$0.00
Annual Social Security Tax:
$0.00
Annual Medicare Tax:
$0.00
Total FICA per Paycheck:
$0.00
Total Annual FICA Tax: $0.00
Understanding the Social Security Tax Rate
Social Security tax, often listed as OASDI (Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance) on paystubs, is a mandatory payroll tax in the United States. This calculator helps employees and self-employed individuals estimate their tax burden based on current IRS wage base limits.
Current Tax Rates (2024 & 2025)
The rate you pay depends heavily on your employment status:
- Employees: You pay 6.2% of your earnings up to the wage base limit. Your employer matches this with another 6.2%.
- Self-Employed: You are responsible for the full 12.4% (combining both the employee and employer portions) as part of the Self-Employment Tax Act (SECA).
The Wage Base Limit
Social Security tax is not applied to your entire income if you are a high earner. It is capped at a specific limit known as the "contribution and benefit base."
- 2024 Limit: $168,600
- 2025 Limit: $176,100
Any earnings above this threshold are exempt from Social Security tax, though they are still subject to Medicare tax.
Medicare Tax
While this tool focuses on the Social Security rate, it also calculates Medicare tax to give you a complete picture of your FICA deductions. The standard Medicare rate is 1.45% for employees and 2.9% for the self-employed, with no income cap.
How It Is Calculated
The formula used in this calculator follows this logic:
- Determine your gross taxable wages.
- Compare wages to the annual Wage Base Limit.
- Apply the 6.2% (or 12.4%) rate to the lower of the two numbers.
- Add the Medicare tax (calculated on total gross income) to find your total FICA liability.