Pay stub abbreviations are the short codes payroll software prints in place of full line names: FIT for federal income tax, OASDI for Social Security, MED for Medicare, YTD for year to date, REG and OT for regular and overtime pay.
No law fixes the spelling, so every payroll provider picks its own, and the same line can read three different ways at three different jobs.
The table below decodes the common ones, A to Z. After it, a real stub from our engine shows each line written out next to the codes other systems use, and a short method for cracking any code that is not on the list.
What do the codes on my pay stub mean? A to Z
Each row names the section of the stub where the code usually sits. Where we have written a full guide on that line, the last column links to it.
| Code | Means | Section | Our guide |
|---|---|---|---|
| 401K, 401K CU | 401(k) contribution; CU is the catch-up amount for older workers | Deductions | Read |
| 403B, 457 | Retirement plans for schools, nonprofits and governments | Deductions | Read |
| ADDL MED | Additional Medicare tax on wages above the yearly threshold | Taxes | Read |
| BEN, BENE | Benefit deduction, often a bundle of insurance premiums | Deductions | |
| BON, BONUS | Bonus pay, withheld as supplemental wages | Earnings | Read |
| BRV, BRVMT | Bereavement pay | Earnings | |
| CHK DT, PAY DT | Check date or pay date: the day the money is paid | Other | Read |
| COMM | Commission | Earnings | |
| CS, CSUP | Child support withheld under a court or agency order | Deductions | |
| CUR, CURRENT | This pay period's amount, beside the year-to-date column | Other | Read |
| DCAP, DCFSA | Dependent care account contribution | Deductions | Read |
| DD, DIR DEP | Direct deposit: where the net pay went | Other | Read |
| DEN, DENT | Dental insurance premium | Deductions | |
| DT | Double time, paid at twice the regular rate where policy or state law calls for it | Earnings | Read |
| EE, ER | Employee and employer: EE amounts come out of your pay, ER amounts are paid on top by the company | Other | Read |
| EIN, FEIN | The employer's federal tax ID number | Other | Read |
| EMP ID, EE ID | Your employee number inside the company | Other | Read |
| FED, FIT, FITW, FWT | Federal income tax withheld | Taxes | Read |
| FICA | Social Security and Medicare together | Taxes | Read |
| FLI, PFL, PFML | Paid family leave or family and medical leave insurance, in states with a program | Taxes | |
| FSA | Health flexible spending account contribution | Deductions | Read |
| FUTA | Federal unemployment tax; an employer-only tax, so never a deduction from your pay | Other | Read |
| GARN, GRSH, LEVY | Wage garnishment or tax levy | Deductions | Read |
| GROSS | Pay before anything is taken out | Other | Read |
| GTL | Group-term life insurance over the tax-free amount, added to taxable wages but not paid in cash | Earnings | Read |
| HOL | Holiday pay | Earnings | |
| HRS | Hours paid on that line | Earnings | Read |
| HSA | Health savings account contribution | Deductions | Read |
| LIT, LWT, LOCAL, CITY | Local income tax: city, county or school district | Taxes | |
| LOAN, 401K LN | Repayment of a loan from your 401(k) | Deductions | Read |
| LTD, STD | Long-term and short-term disability insurance | Deductions | |
| MED INS, MEDICAL | Health insurance premium (not the Medicare tax) | Deductions | Read |
| MED, MEDI, MEDFICA, FICA-HI | Medicare tax withheld | Taxes | Read |
| NET | Take-home pay after taxes and deductions | Other | Read |
| NON-NEG | Non-negotiable: the paper is a record, not a check | Other | Read |
| OASDI, SS, SOC SEC, FICA-OASDI | Social Security tax withheld | Taxes | Read |
| OT | Overtime pay | Earnings | Read |
| PP, PER END | Pay period and its last day | Other | Read |
| PTO, VAC, SICK | Paid time off used this period; a BAL column shows hours left | Earnings | |
| REG | Regular hours or regular salary | Earnings | Read |
| REIMB, EXP | Expense reimbursement, untaxed when paid under an accountable plan | Earnings | Read |
| RETRO | Retroactive pay for an earlier period, such as a raise that started late | Earnings | |
| ROTH | Roth 401(k) contribution, taken after tax | Deductions | Read |
| S, M, HH | Filing status from your W-4: single, married, head of household | Other | Read |
| SDI | State disability insurance, in states that run a program | Taxes | |
| SHIFT, DIFF | Shift differential for nights, weekends or other set hours | Earnings | |
| SIT, SWT, ST | State income tax withheld | Taxes | Read |
| SUI, SUTA | State unemployment tax; a deduction only in the few states that charge employees a share | Taxes | Read |
| TIPS, CC TIPS | Tips reported or paid through payroll | Earnings | Read |
| UNION, DUES | Union dues | Deductions | Read |
| VIS | Vision insurance premium | Deductions | |
| YTD | Year to date: totals since January 1 | Other | Read |
Two codes trip people up more than the rest. MED can mean the Medicare tax or a medical insurance premium, so check which section it sits in: under taxes it is Medicare, under deductions it is health cover. And a FUTA line belongs to the employer; it is never money taken from your pay.
A stub decoded, line by line
Here is one pay period for an invented warehouse lead in Frederick County, Maryland, paid hourly every two weeks with some overtime, a 401(k), health insurance and union dues. Our generator writes each line out in full; the last column shows what the same line looks like on stubs from other payroll systems.
| Section | Line, written out | Current | YTD | Same line as a code |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Earnings | Regular pay | $1,928.00 | $42,416.00 | REG, REG HRS |
| Earnings | Overtime (1.5x) | $216.90 | $4,771.80 | OT, OVT |
| Taxes | Federal income tax | $152.99 | $3,365.78 | FED, FIT, FWT |
| Taxes | Social Security | $129.02 | $2,838.44 | OASDI, SS, FICA-OASDI |
| Taxes | Medicare | $30.17 | $663.74 | MED, MEDFICA, FICA-HI |
| Taxes | Maryland income tax | $81.69 | $1,797.18 | SIT, SWT, MD ST |
| Taxes | Local tax | $55.03 | $1,210.66 | LIT, LOCAL, CNTY |
| Deductions | 401(k) | $107.25 | $2,359.50 | 401K |
| Deductions | Health insurance | $64.00 | $1,408.00 | MED INS, MEDICAL |
| Deductions | Union dues | $26.00 | $572.00 | UNION, DUES |
| Gross pay (GROSS) | $2,144.90 | $47,187.80 | ||
| Net pay (NET) | $1,498.75 | $32,972.50 | ||
Notice the two Maryland lines: state income tax plus a county income tax on top, which is why a Maryland stub often carries a LOCAL or CNTY code that a Texas or Florida stub never shows. Our list of states with no income tax covers where the state line disappears.
The federal lines follow fixed rates you can check yourself. Social Security is 6.20% of taxable wages and Medicare is 1.45%, so OASDI and MED should always sit in that ratio unless health premiums or a wage cap change the base.
How the codes are grouped
Earnings codes describe money paid to you: hours and rates for REG, OT and DT, then lump sums such as BONUS, COMM or RETRO. A GTL line also sits here even though no cash changes hands, because it adds the taxable value of employer life insurance to your wages.
Taxes are what the law makes the employer withhold: federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare, then state and local lines where they apply. Combined FICA appears on some stubs instead of separate OASDI and MED lines. Our guide to FIT on a pay stub explains why the federal line moves from check to check.
Deductions are amounts you agreed to, or a court ordered. Pre-tax ones such as 401K, HSA and MED INS come out before income tax is figured; post-tax ones such as ROTH, UNION or GARN come out after. Our guides to pre-tax deductions and post-tax deductions show the difference in take-home pay.
Other codes label the stub itself: pay period dates, the check or deposit number, filing status, CUR and YTD column headings, GROSS and NET. The YTD column is the one lenders and tax software read most.
When a code is not on the list
- Find its section. Earnings add to gross, taxes and deductions subtract from it. That alone narrows most codes down.
- Read it as a word. Most codes drop vowels or cut a word short: BRVMT for bereavement, SHFT for shift, ACCR for accrued.
- Check the ER and EE prefixes. ER means the employer paid it; EE means it came out of your pay. An ER 401K line is the company match, not money you lost.
- Look for the key. Many payroll portals and employee handbooks have a code legend, and large employers often post one on the intranet.
- Ask payroll. They set the codes up and can tell you in one line. Ask before tax season, not during it.
Codes you will not find on a stub
Some letter codes look similar but belong to other documents. The codes in box 12 of a W-2, such as D for 401(k) deferrals or DD for health coverage cost, are a separate IRS list with fixed meanings; our guide to W-2 box 12 codes covers all of them.
Employer numbers are another source of confusion. An EIN line in the company block is the employer’s federal tax ID, not a code for anything you were paid, and an ID beside your name is your employee number. Our guide to the EIN on a pay stub shows how to tell them apart.
A NON-NEGOTIABLE stamp is not a code either. It marks a deposit advice that only reports pay already sent to your bank; our guide on what non-negotiable means explains it, and how to read a pay stub walks through a whole stub top to bottom.
If you issue stubs yourself, the simplest fix for confused employees is to skip the codes. Our pay stub generator prints every line in plain words, as in the decoded stub above, with current and year-to-date columns side by side.
Sources: Colorado Office of the State Controller, Employee Paystub Glossary; Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, How to read a pay stub; IRS Publication 15 (2026). Example amounts from our pay stub engine with Maryland state and county withholding. Checked October 29, 2026.
