2026 FICA rates + wage base

Payroll Tax Calculator

Calculate your Social Security, Medicare, and Additional Medicare Tax — for W-2 employees or self-employed workers.

Your Wage Details

Gross Wages This Year (to date + this check)

Worker Type Filing Status (for Additional Medicare Tax threshold)

Payroll Tax Breakdown

Total Payroll Tax (Your Share)

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calculating…

Social Security (6.2%)

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Medicare (1.45%)

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Additional Medicare (0.9%)

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Employer Match (if W-2)

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⚠️ This calculator covers Social Security, Medicare, and the Additional Medicare Tax only — it does not include federal or state income tax. For your full tax picture, use the Federal Income Tax Calculator alongside this tool. Self-employed figures use the standard 92.35% net earnings adjustment before applying SE tax rates.

What This Payroll Tax Calculator Does

Payroll taxes — Social Security and Medicare, collectively known as FICA — are separate from federal and state income tax, and they fund specific federal programs rather than general government spending. This calculator computes exactly how much you'll pay in payroll taxes based on your gross wages, whether you're a traditional W-2 employee or self-employed, and shows both your share and (for employees) your employer's matching contribution.

This tool is especially useful for the self-employed and freelancers, who pay both the employee and employer halves of FICA — known as self-employment tax — since there's no employer to split the cost with. It's also useful for high earners who need to understand the Additional Medicare Tax, a surtax that kicks in above certain income thresholds and isn't matched by employers.

How It Works

For W-2 employees, Social Security tax is 6.2% of wages, capped once your income exceeds the annual Social Security wage base ($176,100 for 2026 projections) — meaning high earners stop paying the Social Security portion partway through the year. Medicare tax is 1.45% of all wages with no cap. High earners above specific thresholds also pay an Additional Medicare Tax of 0.9%, which is not matched by employers. Your employer pays a separate matching contribution of 6.2% Social Security and 1.45% Medicare on your behalf — this employer share doesn't come out of your paycheck but is a real cost of employing you.

For self-employed individuals, there's no separate employer to split the cost, so self-employment tax combines both halves: 12.4% Social Security and 2.9% Medicare, applied to 92.35% of net self-employment earnings (an adjustment that accounts for the fact that FICA itself isn't taxed under FICA).

Formula & Methodology

W-2 Employee Social Security = min(Wages, $176,100) × 6.2%

W-2 Employee Medicare = Wages × 1.45%

Additional Medicare Tax = max(0, Wages − Threshold) × 0.9%

Additional Medicare Tax thresholds: $200,000 (Single/Head of Household), $250,000 (Married Filing Jointly), $125,000 (Married Filing Separately).

Self-Employment Tax = (Net Earnings × 92.35%) × 15.3% (12.4% Social Security portion capped at the wage base, plus 2.9% Medicare uncapped, plus Additional Medicare Tax above the threshold)

Tips & Best Practices

Self-employed workers can deduct half of SE tax — the employer-equivalent portion of self-employment tax is deductible as an adjustment to income on your federal return, partially offsetting the extra cost of paying both halves.
Track your Social Security wage base if you have multiple jobs — each employer withholds Social Security independently up to the cap. If you switch jobs mid-year and combined wages exceed $176,100, you may have overpaid Social Security and can claim the excess back as a credit when filing.
Budget for Additional Medicare Tax if you're a high earner — this 0.9% surtax isn't automatically withheld by every employer correctly, especially if you have multiple jobs each below the threshold individually but combined above it.
Make quarterly estimated payments if self-employed — self-employment tax isn't withheld automatically like a W-2 job; freelancers and independent contractors generally need to make quarterly estimated tax payments to avoid underpayment penalties.

What Payroll Taxes Actually Fund

Unlike general income tax revenue, payroll taxes are earmarked for specific programs. The 6.2% Social Security tax (12.4% combined for the self-employed) funds retirement, disability, and survivor benefits through the Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI) program — the benefits you'll eventually draw from Social Security are directly tied to your lifetime earnings history, which is why accurate payroll tax reporting matters for your future benefit calculation. The 1.45% Medicare tax (2.9% combined for the self-employed) funds Hospital Insurance (Medicare Part A), which covers inpatient hospital stays, skilled nursing care, and hospice care once you reach Medicare eligibility, typically at age 65.

Because these are dedicated trust-fund taxes rather than general revenue, Congress periodically debates adjusting the rates, the wage base cap, or the benefit formulas to address long-term funding concerns — particularly for Social Security, whose trust fund faces a projected funding gap in the coming decades absent legislative changes. None of that affects the current-year calculation shown here, but it's useful context for understanding why these specific taxes exist separately from income tax.

The Self-Employment Tax Deduction

One relief valve built into the tax code for the self-employed: you can deduct the "employer-equivalent" half of your self-employment tax as an above-the-line adjustment to income on your federal return, even if you don't itemize. This doesn't reduce your self-employment tax bill itself, but it does reduce your income tax liability, partially offsetting the extra burden of paying both FICA halves. This calculator shows your total SE tax liability; consult a tax professional or your tax software to apply the deduction correctly on your return.

Common Mistakes

Confusing FICA with federal income tax. Payroll taxes fund Social Security and Medicare specifically and are calculated completely separately from your federal income tax bracket and liability.
Forgetting the Social Security wage base cap. Unlike Medicare, Social Security tax stops applying once your wages exceed the annual cap — a detail that surprises many high earners who expect a flat percentage all year.
Not accounting for the employer FICA match as a real labor cost. Employers pay a matching 7.65% on top of your wages — this is a genuine cost of employment even though it doesn't appear on your paystub as a deduction.
Self-employed workers forgetting the 92.35% adjustment. Self-employment tax isn't simply 15.3% of your gross self-employment income — it applies to 92.35% of net earnings, a detail that's easy to miss when estimating quarterly payments.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between payroll tax and income tax?

Payroll tax (FICA) funds Social Security and Medicare specifically, at fixed rates (7.65% for employees). Income tax funds general government spending and uses progressive brackets based on your total income and filing status. They're calculated and withheld completely separately.

Why did my Social Security withholding stop partway through the year?

Because Social Security tax only applies up to the annual wage base ($176,100 for 2026 projections). Once your year-to-date wages exceed that cap, Social Security withholding stops for the rest of the year — though Medicare withholding continues on all wages.

Do self-employed people pay more payroll tax than employees?

Effectively yes — self-employed individuals pay both the employee and employer halves of FICA (15.3% combined vs. 7.65% for employees), since there's no employer to split the cost. However, half of this self-employment tax is deductible on your federal return.

What is the Additional Medicare Tax?

An extra 0.9% Medicare tax that applies to wages or self-employment income above $200,000 (Single/HoH), $250,000 (Married Filing Jointly), or $125,000 (Married Filing Separately). Unlike regular Medicare tax, it's not matched by your employer.

Is there a cap on Medicare tax like there is for Social Security?

No — regular Medicare tax (1.45%) applies to all wages with no cap, unlike Social Security which stops once you exceed the annual wage base. This is why high earners see their FICA withholding rate effectively decrease (as a percentage of income) once Social Security stops but Medicare continues.

Related Calculators

For your combined income tax and FICA take-home picture, use the Paycheck Calculator or Take-Home Pay Calculator. Freelancers and independent contractors should also check the Self-Employment Tax Calculator for a more detailed quarterly estimate. For federal income tax on top of payroll tax, see the Federal Income Tax Calculator. To check your future Social Security benefit based on your earnings history, use the Social Security Calculator.