United States · Calculator

California Paycheck Calculator 2026

Enter your pay and filing details to see a California paycheck after federal tax, FICA, California income tax and SDI for tax year 2026.

Tax year 2026 · IRS Publication 15-T (2026) · IRS Publication 15 (2026) · California EDD, DE 44 (2026) · checked September 29, 2026Sources

Each state has its own page and its own tax rules.

Your gross pay before any tax or deduction: a yearly salary or an hourly rate.

Pay type

Salary is an amount per year; hourly is an amount per hour.

Shown for hourly pay. Your usual total hours in a week, including overtime hours as your pay stub shows them.

How often you are paid: weekly, biweekly (every two weeks), semimonthly (twice a month) or monthly.

Filing status

As marked in Step 1(c) of your 2020-or-later Form W-4: single or married filing separately, married filing jointly, or head of household.

More deductions 401(k), HSA, W-4 steps 3–4, state form

The share of each paycheck sent to a traditional 401(k) before tax. It lowers federal and California income tax wages, not Social Security, Medicare or SDI wages.

Health savings account contributions made through payroll under a cafeteria plan.

Health, dental or vision premiums and similar deductions taken before tax.

The total from Step 3 of your Form W-4.

Income not from jobs that you asked to have withholding on.

Deductions beyond the standard deduction, as entered on your W-4.

Any additional federal amount withheld each pay period.

The filing status on your California Form DE 4, Employee's Withholding Allowance Certificate. It can differ from your federal W-4.

The filing status on your New York Form IT-2104, Employee's Withholding Allowance Certificate. It can differ from your federal W-4.

The filing status on your New Jersey Form NJ-W4.

The filing status on your North Carolina Form NC-4 or NC-4 EZ, which can differ from your federal W-4.

The Georgia filing status on Form G-4, Employee's Withholding Allowance Certificate. It sets the Georgia standard deduction used in withholding.

The rate table letter selected on Form NJ-W4, if you chose one; otherwise the table set by your filing status is used.

New York City, Yonkers, or elsewhere. New York City and Yonkers taxes are withheld from residents; the choice follows your home address, not your office.

Tick this if you work in Yonkers but live outside it. Yonkers withholds a nonresident earnings tax on those wages.

The number on Line 1 of your Form IL-W-4, Employee's and other Payee's Illinois Withholding Allowance Certificate. With no IL-W-4 on file, your employer uses zero.

The number on Line 2 of your IL-W-4, for age 65 or older, legal blindness, or the same for your spouse. Each one lowers the wages Illinois tax is figured on by $1,000 a year (Illinois Department of Revenue, IL-700-T (2026)).

The number of allowances claimed on Form DE 4. Each allowance lowers California withholding by $168.30 a year (EDD, California Employer's Guide (DE 44) (2026)).

Extra allowances claimed on Form DE 4 for itemized deductions.

The number of New York allowances claimed on Form IT-2104 (the same count applies to New York City and Yonkers withholding).

The number of New Jersey withholding allowances claimed.

The number of North Carolina withholding allowances claimed on Form NC-4.

The number of dependents claimed on Form G-4.

The number of personal and dependent exemptions claimed on Form VA-4, Employee's Virginia Income Tax Withholding Exemption Certificate.

Exemptions for age or blindness, claimed separately on Form VA-4.

The number of Ohio exemptions claimed on Form IT 4, Employee's Withholding Exemption Certificate.

The number of exemptions claimed on Form MI-W4, Employee's Michigan Withholding Exemption Certificate.

Detroit is the only Michigan city included so far: say whether you live there or only work there, because residents and non-residents pay different rates. Other Michigan cities with an income tax are being added.

For people who live or work in Philadelphia, the city's wage tax applies in place of the usual local earned income tax withholding, with separate resident and non-resident rates.

Any extra California amount you asked your employer to withhold.

California taxes wages with graduated rates from 1.1% to 14.63% and withholds State Disability Insurance (SDI) at 1.3% from each paycheck (Franchise Tax Board; EDD, 2026).

Take-home pay per paycheck live

$2,329.01

$60,554.26 a year · every 2 weeks (26 paychecks)

  • Gross pay per paycheck$3,076.92
  • Federal income tax−$337.31
  • Social Security−$190.77
  • Medicare−$44.62
  • California income tax−$135.21
  • California SDI−$40.00
  • Take-home pay per paycheck$2,329.01
  • Take-home pay per year$60,554.26

HSA contributions are taxable wages for California income tax and SDI. The calculator does not model that yet, so the HSA field is not shown for California.

Estimate for tax year 2026 based on IRS Publication 15-T (2026) · IRS Publication 15 (2026) · California EDD, DE 44 (2026). Not tax, legal or financial advice. Your employer's payroll may differ.

Compare two scenarios

Put a California salary next to the same pay in Texas, where wages have no state income tax, and share the link that keeps both.

A blank paycheck stub lying on an office desk beside a pen.

How it works

The calculator takes your gross pay for one pay period, subtracts the pre-tax deductions you entered, and works out each tax on its own line. Federal income tax follows the percentage method in IRS Publication 15-T (2026), Federal Income Tax Withholding Methods, using your W-4 entries. Social Security is 6.2% of wages up to $184,500 for the year (SSA; IRS Publication 15 (2026)). Medicare is 1.45% of all wages, plus Additional Medicare Tax of 0.9% on wages over $200,000 (IRS Publication 15 (2026)).

California income tax follows Method B, the exact calculation method, in the EDD's California Employer's Guide (DE 44) (2026), which carries the California Withholding Schedules for the year. If your yearly wages fall below the low-income exemption amount for your DE 4 filing status ($18,896 for single filers), nothing is withheld. Otherwise the calculator subtracts any estimated deduction allowances and the California standard deduction ($5,706 for single filers), applies the graduated withholding rates from 1.1% to 14.63%, takes off $168.30 for each DE 4 allowance, and divides the result back into one paycheck.

California State Disability Insurance is withheld from employee wages at 1.3% for 2026 (EDD, 2026). It funds disability insurance and Paid Family Leave benefits, so there is no separate family leave line on a California paycheck. California has no city or county income tax on wages, so there is no local tax field on this page.

Not included: employer-paid taxes such as California unemployment insurance and the Employment Training Tax, which are not taken from your pay; after-tax deductions; garnishments; union dues; bonuses and other supplemental wages; and any refund or balance due when you file. Your employer's payroll may round differently or use the EDD's table method instead of the exact method.

Worked example

Take an $80,000 salary paid biweekly, filing single on both the W-4 and the DE 4, with one DE 4 allowance and no other deductions. Gross pay is $80,000 divided by 26 paychecks, which is $3,076.92. Federal withholding under Pub 15-T is $337.31, Social Security is $190.77 and Medicare is $44.62. For California, the calculator turns the paycheck into a yearly wage, checks it against the low-income exemption, subtracts the single standard deduction, applies the graduated rates, takes off the credit for one allowance, and divides by 26: California withholding is $135.21. SDI at 1.3% is $40.00. Take-home pay is $2,329.01 per paycheck, or $60,554.26 over the year.

Frequently asked questions

How much is taken out of a paycheck in California?

A California paycheck has five taxes withheld: federal income tax, Social Security, Medicare, California income tax and SDI. The total share depends on your pay, filing status and allowances; with the example above it comes to 24.3% of gross pay.

What is SDI on a California paycheck?

SDI is State Disability Insurance, an employee-paid payroll deduction run by the EDD. For 2026 it is 1.3% of wages (EDD, 2026), and it also pays for California Paid Family Leave benefits.

Is there a cap on California SDI?

Since 2024 California SDI has no taxable wage limit, so the 1.3% applies to all SDI-subject wages in the year (EDD, 2026).

What is the DE 4 and do I need it?

Form DE 4 is California's Employee's Withholding Allowance Certificate, used to set state withholding separately from the federal W-4. The calculator lets you enter DE 4 filing status and allowances apart from your W-4 entries.

Does California have local income tax?

No. California cities and counties do not withhold a local income tax from wages, so a paycheck shows only federal, FICA, state income tax and SDI lines.

Does the calculator handle California daily overtime?

California counts overtime by the day as well as by the week (California Department of Industrial Relations). Enter your hours as your pay stub shows them, or use the hourly paycheck calculator, which has a separate overtime field.