Where your paycheck goes
Four main bites: federal income tax (progressive brackets from 10% to 37%, applied after the standard deduction — about $16,100 single / $32,200 married for 2026), Social Security (6.2% up to the annual wage cap), Medicare (1.45%, plus 0.9% above $200k), and state income tax (zero in nine states, up to ~13% in California). Pre-tax 401(k) contributions come off the top before income tax — but not before FICA.
Marginal vs effective rate — the misunderstanding that costs people money
Being "in the 22% bracket" does not mean you pay 22% on everything: only the dollars above that bracket's threshold are taxed at 22%, and your first dollars are taxed at 10% and 12%. A $75,000 single filer's effective federal rate is around 11% — roughly half the marginal rate. This also demolishes the myth that a raise can lower your take-home pay; only the new dollars get the higher rate.
The 401(k) discount on saving
Pre-tax contributions reduce taxable income, so saving costs less than it looks: at a 22% marginal rate, putting $450/month into the 401(k) shrinks your paycheck by only about $351. Try raising the 401(k) percentage above and watch how much less your take-home falls than the contribution amount — that gap is the government subsidizing your retirement.
How to use this calculator
Enter your gross annual salary, choose your pay frequency and filing status, set your 401(k) contribution percentage, and add an estimated state tax rate (zero in nine states). The result estimates the taxes and deductions taken from each check and what lands in your account. Use it two ways: to sanity-check a job offer's real take-home before accepting, and to see how much a higher 401(k) percentage actually costs you per check — usually far less than the amount saved, because pre-tax contributions lower your taxable income. Remember it estimates core federal, FICA, and state taxes; your pay stub will also reflect health premiums, HSA deposits, and any local taxes.