Methodology

What the calculators assume, and where every number comes from. Last reviewed for the 2026 tax year.

Sources

• Federal brackets & standard deduction: IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32 and IR-2025-103 (2026 inflation adjustments, including the OBBBA-amended standard deduction: $16,100 single / $32,200 married filing jointly / $24,150 head of household).
• Social Security wage base ($184,500): Social Security Administration 2026 announcement.
• WA Cares (0.58%) and Paid Family & Medical Leave (1.13% total, 71.43% employee share): Washington Employment Security Department, 2026 rates.
• 401(k) elective deferral limit ($24,500): IRS 2026 announcement.

Assumptions

• Standard deduction, no credits. Everyone is modeled as taking the standard deduction with no children or other tax credits. If you itemize or claim credits, your actual tax will differ.
• W-2 wages only. No self-employment income, capital gains, rental income, or other income types.
• Pre-tax treatment. 401(k) contributions reduce income tax but not Social Security/Medicare wages. HSA contributions and health premiums paid through payroll (Section 125) reduce both.
• State tax base. State income tax is computed on (gross − pre-tax deductions) minus the state's own standard deduction or personal exemption where one is published — except Colorado, which taxes federal taxable income directly. States are only listed once their 2026 figures are verified from official state sources — we'd rather cover fewer states than guess. California is the one labeled exception (see below): its 2026 brackets were unpublished as of September 2026, so it uses the 2025 FTB schedules.
• Withholding vs. actual tax. The calculator estimates your actual tax liability, which is what determines take-home over the year. Your per-paycheck withholding may differ slightly based on your W-4.

State coverage and per-state approximations

v1 covers forty-six states. A state is only included when its 2026 figures are verified from an official state source — accuracy beats coverage. California is the one exception: the Franchise Tax Board had not published 2026 bracket thresholds as of September 2026 (its 2026 estimates worksheet still points to the 2025 tables), so it is modeled on the labeled 2025 FTB rate schedules with the official 2026 standard deduction and SDI rate, and will be refreshed when the FTB publishes. Arizona is omitted for a similar reason: its 2.5% flat rate is confirmed, but the Department of Revenue had not published the 2026 standard deduction as of September 2026. Nebraska is omitted because the 2026 bracket thresholds could not be verified (the Department of Revenue had not published the 2026 schedule as of September 2026, and published compilations disagreed on whether thresholds are inflation-indexed). Wisconsin is omitted because the Department of Revenue had not published 2026 figures as of September 2026. New Jersey is omitted because its income tax is computed from its own gross-income categories rather than federal AGI — this calculator's engine cannot represent that base.

• WA / TX / FL / NV / TN — no personal income tax. Washington additionally has WA Cares (0.58%, no cap) and Paid Family & Medical Leave (~0.81% employee share up to $184,500), both modeled. (Tennessee's Hall tax on investment income was fully repealed in 2021.)
• CO — flat 4.4% on federal taxable income (verified in the DOR's 2026 estimated-tax worksheet). Colorado additions/subtractions to federal taxable income are not modeled.
• IL — flat 4.95% with a $2,925 personal exemption per filer (2026 figure per IDOR). Modeled as one exemption per filer, two for joint filers; dependents' exemptions are not modeled.
• UT — flat 4.45% for 2026 (cut from 4.5% by 2026 S.B. 60; the Tax Commission's own page still showed 4.5% when checked — the statute controls). Utah's taxpayer tax credit is not modeled, so Utah tax may read slightly high.
• MA — flat 5% with personal exemptions ($4,400 single / $8,800 joint / $6,800 head of household) plus a 4% surtax on taxable income above $1,107,750 (the 2026 threshold; $1,083,150 was 2025).
• NY — 2026 brackets verified from the official 2026 IT-2105-I instructions. New York cut its lower-bracket rates for 2026 (3.9/4.4/5.15/5.4/5.9 vs 2025's 4/4.5/5.25/5.5/6). For NY income over $107,650, New York imposes a “benefit recapture” adjustment via supplemental worksheets that this calculator does not model — high earners' NY tax will read low. New York City's resident income tax (3.078%–3.876%, verified from the official IT-201-I NYC tax rate schedule, identical in the 2022/2024/2025 publications; the rates are fixed by NYC Admin Code §11-1701 and have not changed in decades) can be added on top via the city selector — it applies to NY State taxable income. The NYC school tax credit ($63/$125) is not modeled.
• OR — 2026 brackets verified from Publication OR-ESTIMATE. Oregon's federal-tax subtraction credit (up to $8,750) and $260 personal exemption credits are not modeled, so Oregon tax may read slightly high.
• AL — brackets and exemptions verified from ALDOR publications. Alabama's standard deduction is modeled at its statutory maximum ($3,000 single / $8,500 joint / $5,200 head of family) — it phases down as AGI rises, so higher earners' AL tax will read low. Alabama's unlimited deduction for federal income tax paid and its personal exemptions ($1,500 single / $3,000 joint) are not modeled, so Alabama tax may read high for most filers.
• AR — 2026 standard-income table verified from the Department of Finance and Administration's fiscal note on HB1001/SB1 (top rate cut to 3.7% for 2026). The different schedule that applies above $94,700 of net income is not modeled — high earners' AR tax will differ. The standard deduction is $2,470 single / $4,940 joint, unchanged from 2025 (the inflation adjustment rounded to zero).
• GA — flat 4.99% and the higher 2026 standard deduction ($15,000 single / $30,000 joint) come from HB 463, signed May 11, 2026 and retroactive to January 1 (confirmed in the DOR's revised 2026 withholding guide). The $5,000-per-dependent exemption is not modeled, so Georgia tax may read slightly high for filers with dependents.
• KY — flat 3.5% for 2026 with a $3,360 standard deduction per return (joint filers get only one — verified in the Form 740-NP instructions). Kentucky city and county occupational taxes on wages are not modeled.
• LA — flat 3% (LDR RIB 25-012) with the 2026 standard deduction of $12,875 single / $25,750 joint (head of household gets the joint amount), per the Department of Revenue's December 2025 emergency rule. Amounts are indexed to inflation starting in 2026.
• MS — 0% on the first $10,000 of income, 4% above (the legislated phasedown toward 3% by 2030 does not change 2026). Personal exemptions are not modeled, so Mississippi tax may read high.
• NC — flat 3.99% for 2026, the final step of the phasedown legislated in S.L. 2023-134 (4.5% → 4.25% → 3.99%), with the NCDOR standard deduction ($12,750 single / $25,500 joint / $19,125 head of household).
• SC — 1.99% on the first $30,000, 5.21% above (the statute's “5.21% minus $966” phrasing is mathematically identical to this bracket form). The standard deduction ($15,000 single / $30,000 joint / $22,500 head of household) is modeled at full value — its phase-out at higher AGIs is not modeled, so high earners' SC tax will read low.
• VA — 2026 brackets verified from the 2026 Form 760ES: 2%–5.75% with the top bracket starting at just $17,000 (same for all filing statuses). The $930 personal exemption is not modeled, so Virginia tax may read slightly high.
• AK / SD / WY — no personal income tax. Alaska employees still pay 0.5% unemployment insurance on wages up to the $54,200 wage base (2026), which is not modeled as a line item.
• HI — 2026 brackets verified from HRS §235-51 (quoted in 2026 SB 3125): twelve brackets from 1.4% to 11% with separate schedules per filing status. Hawaii starts from federal taxable income but substitutes its own standard deduction ($8,000 single / $16,000 joint / $12,000 head of household, per HRS §235-2.4). The $1,144 personal exemption is not modeled, so Hawaii tax may read high.
• ID — flat 5.3% above a zero floor ($2,500 single / $5,000 joint; head of household is treated as joint), per Idaho Code §63-3024. The floor is inflation-adjusted annually but the 2026 adjusted figure is unpublished, so the statutory floor is modeled. Idaho starts from federal AGI and uses the federal standard deduction; its per-dependent exempt amount is not modeled.
• MT — two rates for 2026 (HB 337): 4.7% up to $47,500 single / $95,000 joint / $71,250 head of household, then 5.65% above. Montana starts from federal AGI with the federal standard deduction. Montana's special capital-gains rates are not modeled (this calculator covers W-2 wages only).
• NM — six brackets from 1.5% to 5.9% per §7-2-7 as amended by HB 252 (effective 2025, no sunset — unchanged for 2026, corroborated by the 2026 withholding formula). Joint and head of household share one schedule; single uses another. New Mexico starts from federal AGI with the federal standard deduction.
• OK — brackets rewritten by HB 2764 for 2026 and later: 0% on the first $3,750, then 2.5%, 3.5%, 4.5% (thresholds double for joint filers), with Oklahoma's own standard deduction ($6,350 single / $12,700 joint). The legislated revenue-triggered rate cuts are not modeled.
• CT — seven brackets from 2% to 6.99% (2026 Table B). Connecticut has no standard deduction; the personal exemption is modeled at its full amount ($15,000 single / $24,000 joint), but it phases out as income rises — high earners' CT tax will read low. The Table C/D recapture add-backs are not modeled. CT Paid Leave (0.5% to $184,500) is not deducted.
• DC — 4% to 10.75% on one schedule for all filers (2026 D-40ES). The standard deduction matches the federal amount. D.C. Paid Family Leave (0.75%) is employer-paid and not deducted.
• DE — 2.2% to 6.6% on one uniform schedule for all filing statuses (30 Del. C. §1105), with the statutory standard deduction ($3,250 single / $6,500 joint). Delaware Paid Leave is not deducted.
• IA — flat 3.8% (SF 2442, confirmed by IDR). The 2026 standard deduction was unpublished as of September 2026, so it is not modeled and Iowa tax reads high.
• IN — flat 2.95%. Indiana has no standard deduction; the $1,000-per-filer personal exemption ($2,000 joint) is modeled. All 92 counties levy their own local income tax (not modeled), so Indiana tax reads low.
• KS — 5.2% then 5.58% (SB 1). Kansas publishes two schedules: joint filers get a $46,000 threshold, everyone else $23,000. The statutory $9,160-per-filer personal exemption is folded into the deduction ($12,765 single / $26,560 joint); the per-dependent exemption is not modeled.
• MD — 2% to 6.5% across ten state brackets (2026). Every county plus Baltimore City adds its own local income tax (2.25%–3.3%) — not modeled, so Maryland tax reads low. No employee paid-leave tax in 2026 (FAMLI starts 2027).
• ME — 5.8% / 6.75% / 7.15%, plus a 2% surcharge on Maine taxable income above $1M single / $1.5M joint (L.D. 2212, 2026, retroactive) — modeled as a 9.15% top band. The $5,300 personal exemption is not modeled.
• MI — flat 4.25%. Michigan has no standard deduction; the $5,900-per-person personal exemption (2026 Withholding Guide) is modeled. City income taxes (Detroit and others) are not modeled.
• MN — four rates from 5.35% to 9.85% (2026) with Minnesota's own standard deduction ($15,300 single / $30,600 joint). The tax starts from federal AGI. The Paid Leave payroll contribution (0.44% employee share to $185,000) is not deducted.
• MO — eight narrow bands from 0% to 4.7%, the same schedule for all filing statuses, with 2026 inflation-indexed thresholds ($1,348 steps). The standard deduction mirrors the federal amount by statute. The 1% Kansas City / St. Louis earnings taxes are not modeled.
• ND — 0% / 1.95% / 2.5% on the 2026 inflation-adjusted schedule, starting from federal taxable income (Form ND-1 line 1b), so the federal standard deduction is modeled as the state deduction — the same approach as ID/MT. There is no separate state deduction.
• NH — no personal income tax (the Interest & Dividends Tax was repealed effective 1/1/2025).
• OH — flat 2.75% on income above a $26,050 zero floor for 2026 (HB 96) — modeled as a 0% first band. Ohio has no standard deduction and starts from federal AGI. Personal exemptions (up to $2,400/person) and local city/school-district taxes are not modeled.
• PA — flat 3.07% with no deductions or exemptions. Local earned income taxes (~1% in most municipalities and school districts) are not modeled.
• RI — 3.75% / 4.75% / 5.99% on one uniform schedule for all filing statuses (2026). The temporary disability insurance payroll tax (1.1% to $1,100) is not deducted.
• VT — 3.35% to 8.75% across four brackets (2026 CPI-indexed schedule; the 2026 IN-111 booklet was unpublished as of September 2026, so figures are corroborated 2026 compilations). Vermont starts from federal AGI with its own standard deduction ($7,850 single / $15,700 joint). The $5,400-per-person personal exemption is not modeled, so Vermont tax reads slightly high.
• CA — the one labeled exception. Brackets are the 2025 FTB rate schedules (Schedules X/Y/Z, verified from the official FTB PDF) because the FTB had not published 2026 thresholds as of September 2026; the standard deduction is the official 2026 FTB figure ($5,706 single / $11,412 joint) from the 2026 Form 540-ES instructions. Nine brackets from 1% to 12.3%, plus the 1% Behavioral Health Services Tax on taxable income over $1 million. State Disability Insurance is modeled as its own line: 1.3% of all wages, no cap (2026 EDD rate; 401(k) deferrals do not reduce it). The brackets will be refreshed to 2026 figures when the FTB publishes them.

Not advice

These are planning estimates, not tax or financial advice. Tax law is full of edge cases (local taxes, credits, AMT, multi-state income). For anything that matters — an offer negotiation, estimated payments — confirm with a tax professional.