Methodology · Tax year 2026
How every paycheck audit is calculated
Every number on this site is produced by one deterministic engine from a small set of published baselines. Nothing is scraped from job boards, nothing is averaged, and no figure is "estimated" by multiplying a national median by a city index. If a rule below is wrong, every affected page is wrong in the same way and is fixed in one place.
1. Order of operations
Gross salary → subtract pre-tax 401(k) and Section 125 benefits (zero on the published page; adjustable in the widget) → federal taxable income after the $16,100 standard deduction → federal tax across 7 brackets → FICA on wages (401(k) deferrals remain FICA-taxable; Section 125 premiums do not) → state taxable income after the state deduction or exemption → state tax → state payroll programs → local taxes on the base each city specifies → net pay. Monthly is net ÷ 12; bi-weekly is net ÷ 26; weekly ÷ 52; hourly ÷ 2,080.
2. Federal (2026)
Single filer, standard deduction $16,100. Brackets:
| Taxable income over | Rate |
|---|---|
| $0 | 10% |
| $12,400 | 12% |
| $50,400 | 22% |
| $105,700 | 24% |
| $201,775 | 32% |
| $256,225 | 35% |
| $640,600 | 37% |
Source: IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32 — 2026 inflation adjustments (brackets, standard deduction).
3. FICA (2026)
Social Security 6.2% on wages up to $184,500; Medicare 1.45% on all wages; Additional Medicare 0.9% on wages above $200,000 (single). Employer-side contributions are excluded. Source: SSA 2026 OASDI contribution and benefit base; IRS Topic 751 (Medicare).
4. Retirement limits
The 2026 elective deferral limit used by the widget and the scenario table is $24,500 (catch-up contributions at 50+ are not modelled). Source: IRS Notice 2025-67 — 2026 elective deferral limit ($24,500).
5. State rules
Where a state had not yet published its 2026 inflation indexing at audit time, the most recent published schedule is used and the source column says so. Pennsylvania is modelled as taxing 401(k) deferrals, which it does.
| State | Income tax | Deduction | Employee payroll programs | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York | Progressive, 9 brackets (top 10.90%) | $8,000 | NY Paid Family Leave 0.39% | NY Dept. of Taxation — 2026 rate schedule (FY2026 budget rate cuts applied) |
| California | Progressive, 9 brackets (top 12.30%) | $5,540 | CA SDI 1.20% | CA FTB 2025 indexed schedule (2026 indexing pending); EDD 2026 SDI rate |
| Washington | No income tax | — | WA Paid Family & Medical Leave 0.66%; WA Cares Fund 0.58% | WA ESD 2026 premium rates |
| Texas | No income tax | — | — | No state income tax |
| Florida | No income tax | — | — | No state income tax |
| Tennessee | No income tax | — | — | No state income tax |
| Nevada | No income tax | — | — | No state income tax |
| Illinois | Flat 4.95% | $2,850 | — | IL Dept. of Revenue — 4.95% flat, 2026 personal exemption |
| Massachusetts | Flat 5.00% | $4,400 | MA Paid Family & Medical Leave 0.46% | MA DOR — 5% flat; 2026 surtax threshold; DFML 2026 employee share |
| District of Columbia | Progressive, 7 brackets (top 10.75%) | $16,100 | — | DC OTR — rate schedule; standard deduction conforms to federal |
| Pennsylvania | Flat 3.07% | — | — | PA DOR — 3.07% flat; 401(k) deferrals are taxable compensation in PA |
| Colorado | Flat 4.40% | $16,100 | CO FAMLI 0.45% | CO DOR — 4.4% flat; deduction conforms to federal; FAMLI 2026 employee share |
| Georgia | Flat 5.09% | $12,000 | — | GA DOR — HB 111 schedule (5.09% for 2026); $12,000 single deduction |
| Arizona | Flat 2.50% | $16,100 | — | AZ DOR — 2.5% flat; standard deduction conforms to federal |
| Oregon | Progressive, 4 brackets (top 9.90%) | $2,835 | Paid Leave Oregon 0.60% | OR DOR 2025 indexed schedule (2026 indexing pending); Paid Leave Oregon employee share |
| Minnesota | Progressive, 4 brackets (top 9.85%) | $15,400 | MN Paid Leave 0.44% | MN DOR indexed schedule; MN Paid Leave launches Jan 2026 |
| North Carolina | Flat 3.99% | $12,750 | — | NC DOR — 3.99% for 2026; $12,750 single standard deduction |
| Michigan | Flat 4.25% | $5,800 | — | MI Treasury — 4.25% flat; personal exemption |
| Ohio | Progressive, 2 brackets (top 2.75%) | — | — | OH DOT — HB 96 single 2.75% rate above $26,050 for 2026 |
| Utah | Flat 4.50% | — | — | UT Tax Commission — 4.5% flat with taxpayer tax credit phase-out |
| Maryland | Progressive, 10 brackets (top 6.50%) | $2,800 | — | MD Comptroller — 2026 schedule (HB 352 upper brackets); max standard deduction |
| Missouri | Progressive, 8 brackets (top 4.70%) | $16,100 | — | MO DOR — 2026 schedule; deduction conforms to federal |
6. City and county taxes
Local taxes are applied on the base each jurisdiction actually uses — gross wages for Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Columbus, Detroit and Kansas City; state taxable income for New York City, Baltimore and the Portland-area Multnomah and Metro taxes; a percentage of state tax for Yonkers; a fixed annual amount for Denver's occupational privilege tax.
| City | Local taxes modelled |
|---|---|
| New York City | NYC resident income tax |
| Philadelphia | Philadelphia wage tax |
| Denver | Denver Occupational Privilege Tax |
| Portland | Multnomah County Preschool for All; Metro Supportive Housing Services |
| Detroit | Detroit city income tax |
| Columbus | Columbus municipal income tax |
| Baltimore | Baltimore City local income tax |
| Pittsburgh | Pittsburgh earned income tax |
| Kansas City | Kansas City earnings tax |
| Yonkers | Yonkers resident surcharge |
7. Rent benchmark
officialsalary.com curated 1-bedroom median asking rent benchmark (Q1 2026 snapshot of Zumper / Apartment List metro reports). The share-of-net bands follow the housing-cost-burden convention used by HUD: at or under 30% of income is the guideline, 30–50% is cost-burdened, above 50% is severely cost-burdened; we add a "comfortable" band at 25% and below. Rent is compared against net monthly pay, which is stricter than the gross-income rule of thumb landlords use.
8. Known limitations
Single filers only. No dependents, credits (other than Utah's statutory taxpayer credit), itemized deductions, bonuses, equity, or self-employment income. Withholding on a real pay stub follows Form W-4 and may differ from the annual liability shown here. Local taxes assume you both live and work in the city. Figures are rounded to the dollar on the page and computed to the cent underneath.
9. Corrections
Found a rate that changed or a city we model incorrectly? Send a correction with a link to the primary source. Because every page is regenerated from the baselines, a verified fix reaches all affected audits in the next build.