Calculate your monthly paycheck and take-home pay

Gross monthly pay

Gross monthly pay is the amount you earn before federal income tax, Social Security, Medicare, state taxes, insurance premiums, retirement contributions, and other deductions are taken out.

Monthly take-home pay

Take-home pay is the amount left after estimated taxes and deductions. It is the amount that is generally available to spend, save, or use toward financial goals.

Monthly payroll means 12 checks

If an employer pays monthly throughout a full year, annual salary is normally spread across 12 pay periods. This differs from semimonthly and biweekly payroll.

Your paycheck can vary

Your actual check can differ from a simple salary calculation because withholding depends on your W-4, benefits, deductions, state rules, year-to-date wages, and other payroll details.

Example: $60,000 salary

$60,000 ÷ 12 = $5,000 gross monthly pay. This is before federal income tax, FICA, state taxes, and other deductions.

Example: $90,000 salary

$90,000 ÷ 12 = $7,500 gross monthly pay. The amount deposited into your account will normally be lower after taxes and deductions.

Federal income tax

Federal income tax withholding depends on earnings, filing status, Form W-4 information, and other withholding adjustments. The IRS explains that withholding is affected by the amount earned during the payroll period and information provided on Form W-4.

Social Security

Social Security is part of FICA. For 2026, the employee Social Security withholding rate is 6.2%, subject to the annual Social Security wage base.

Medicare

Medicare is also part of FICA. The standard employee Medicare tax rate for 2026 is 1.45%, with an additional Medicare tax applying to wages above the applicable threshold.

State income tax

State tax treatment varies by state. Some states do not impose a broad individual income tax, while others apply state income tax. This calculator uses the centralized state rules available in the PaycheckMint tax engine.

Pre-tax deductions

Depending on the type of benefit and payroll treatment, pre-tax deductions can reduce the amount of income considered for certain taxes.

• Traditional 401(k) contributions
• Health insurance premiums
• HSA contributions
• FSA contributions
• Other eligible pre-tax deductions

Post-tax deductions

Post-tax deductions are generally taken after applicable taxes have been calculated. They still reduce the amount ultimately deposited into your account.

• Roth 401(k) contributions
• Loan repayments
• Garnishments
• Other post-tax payroll deductions

Monthly pay

Normally 12 paychecks per year. Annual salary is divided by 12 to determine gross pay per paycheck.

Semimonthly pay

Normally 24 paychecks per year. Employees are usually paid twice each month, often on predetermined dates.

Biweekly pay

Normally 26 paychecks per year. Employees receive a paycheck every two weeks, which means some months can contain three paychecks.

Weekly pay

Normally 52 paychecks per year. Weekly payroll can make each individual check smaller even though annual gross salary remains the same.

1. Enter annual gross pay

Enter your salary before taxes and payroll deductions. For example, someone earning $75,000 annually would enter 75000.

2. Select your state

Select your state so the calculator can apply the corresponding state-tax rule available in the PaycheckMint calculation engine.

3. Choose your filing status

Your federal tax estimate can change based on whether you are single, married filing jointly, or filing as head of household.

4. Add deductions

Enter applicable retirement contributions, insurance, HSA/FSA contributions, loan repayments, and other payroll deductions for a more useful estimate.

Start with net income

Use estimated monthly take-home pay as the income starting point for your household budget.

Account for fixed expenses

Include recurring expenses such as housing, utilities, insurance, minimum debt payments, and other obligations.

Plan savings separately

Consider emergency savings, retirement contributions, short-term goals, and other financial priorities.

Leave room for variable expenses

Food, transportation, entertainment, and other variable costs can change from month to month, so avoid assigning every dollar to a fixed expense.

Annual income

The calculator starts with annual gross income and converts it to monthly gross pay using a 12-pay-period monthly schedule.

Federal estimate

Federal taxable income is estimated using the selected filing status, applicable standard deduction, pre-tax deductions, and dependent information supported by the calculator engine.

FICA estimate

The calculation includes Social Security and Medicare taxes and applies the 2026 Social Security wage base used by the PaycheckMint engine.

State estimate

State tax is estimated using the state rule available in the PaycheckMint tax rules. Local withholding and every employer-specific payroll rule are not fully represented.