California Paycheck Calculator
What lands in your account from a California paycheck, using the state's own 2026 withholding formula — the EDD exact calculation your employer's payroll runs — plus SDI, federal income tax, Social Security, and Medicare.
On this page
How this calculator works
Most paycheck calculators estimate your annual California tax and divide it by your number of paychecks. This one does something more direct: it runs the Method B exact calculation from the EDD's 2026 withholding schedules — the same formula California requires employer payroll systems to apply. Low income exemption test, standard deduction, the rate table for your filing status, then the exemption allowance credit, in that order.
That choice matters for honesty. The Franchise Tax Board does not publish the 2026 return-year brackets until its inflation adjustment late in the year, so any calculator claiming to know your 2026 California liability in mid-2026 is extrapolating. The withholding schedules, by contrast, are published, official, and in force since January 1. What this page estimates is what payroll takes out — which is also the number you see missing from your paycheck.
What comes out of a California paycheck
Five things, in decreasing order for most earners: federal income tax, Social Security (6.2% up to the 2026 wage base), California income tax withholding, Medicare (1.45%, plus 0.9% above $200,000), and State Disability Insurance at 1.3% of every dollar — California removed the SDI wage ceiling in 2024, so unlike Social Security it never stops. SDI funds disability and Paid Family Leave benefits and is an employee-paid deduction, not a tax your employer shares.
The withholding rate bands run from 1.1% to 14.63%. If you know California's statutory rates (1% to 13.3% including the mental health services tax), these look inflated — they are, deliberately: the state builds a ten percent cushion into withholding. It is one reason a California refund at filing time is the common outcome rather than the exception.
What reduces California withholding
401(k) and 403(b) deferrals, Section 125 health premiums, and HSA contributions all reduce the wages the formula starts from, the same as they do federally. The formula then subtracts a standard deduction ($5,706 for a single filer, $11,412 for married with two or more allowances or head of household) and, after computing tax, subtracts an exemption allowance credit of $168.30 per allowance — one for you, one for a spouse on a joint schedule, one per dependent. Below the low income exemption ($18,896 single, $37,791 married or head of household), no withholding is due at all.
Worked examples
| Annual salary | CA withholding | CA SDI (1.3%) | Federal income tax | Social Security & Medicare | Take-home per biweekly check | Annual take-home |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $1,143 | $650 | $3,820 | $3,825 | $1,560.06 | $40,562 |
| $75,000 | $3,052 | $975 | $7,670 | $5,738 | $2,214.06 | $57,565 |
| $100,000 | $5,560 | $1,300 | $13,170 | $7,650 | $2,781.52 | $72,320 |
Single filer, paid biweekly, no pre-tax deductions or dependents entered. Generated by the same calculation engine as the calculator above.
Why your pay stub will still differ
This page runs the annual version of the formula and divides evenly. Your employer runs the per-period version against each check, so overtime, a bonus, or an uneven month lands differently. Your DE 4 (or federal W-4 used for state purposes) sets your allowance count, which may not match the household arithmetic here. And if you claimed additional allowances for estimated deductions, payroll subtracts an estimated deduction amount this page does not model. None of those change the year's total tax — they change when it is collected.
Official sources
Every figure in this calculator traces to one of these publications; nothing is estimated from third-party summaries.
- EDD, 2026 California Withholding Schedules — Method B — the exact calculation formula, rate tables, standard deduction, low income exemption, and exemption allowance used here.
- EDD, Contribution Rates and Withholding Schedules — the 2026 SDI rate of 1.3% with no taxable wage limit.
- IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32 — the 2026 federal brackets and standard deduction behind the federal line.
Last reviewed: July 30, 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Why is my California withholding higher than the tax rates I see quoted?
The withholding schedules run about ten percent above the statutory return rates — 1.1% in the bottom band against a statutory 1%, up to 14.63% at the very top. The state builds that cushion in deliberately, which is why most California wage earners see a refund when they file the Form 540.
Does SDI ever stop during the year like Social Security does?
Not any more. Social Security stops at the annual wage base, but California removed the SDI taxable wage ceiling in 2024. For 2026 SDI is 1.3% of every dollar of wages, all year, at any income.
Do any California cities tax my paycheck?
No California city levies an income tax on employees. San Francisco's payroll-related taxes are imposed on employers. State withholding plus SDI is the whole state-side story for an employee paycheck.
Is this my actual 2026 California tax liability?
No — it is the withholding the state's formula collects during the year. Your liability is settled on the Form 540 using the FTB's inflation-adjusted brackets published later in the year, with credits this formula ignores (renter's credit, CalEITC, and others). For most wage earners withholding modestly overshoots liability.
My spouse also works. Which filing status should I pick here?
The EDD itself recommends dual-income married couples withhold on the single schedule to avoid underwithholding — its married schedule assumes one earner. Run this page as single for each job if you both work, or use the married schedule and expect to owe at filing time.
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This calculator is provided for general educational and estimation purposes only. It does not constitute tax, legal, accounting, or financial advice. This is an estimated take-home pay calculation: your employer's actual withholding may differ based on your federal and state withholding forms, payroll timing, local taxes, benefits and employer payroll settings. Review official IRS and state guidance or consult a qualified tax professional before making decisions.