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How we calculate: 2026 tax year
Every tax figure on a generated pay stub comes from a versioned data file with a named official source and the date we checked it. Nothing is typed from memory.
Federal income tax withholding
We use the percentage method tables for automated payroll systems from IRS Publication 15-T (Worksheet 1A) for a 2020 or later Form W-4. The pay for the period is annualized, adjusted for the W-4 entries (Step 2 checkbox, Step 3 credits, Step 4 other income and deductions), run through the annual table for the filing status, and divided back to the pay period. Step 4(c) extra withholding is added per period.
Social Security and Medicare
- Social Security: 6.2% of wages up to the 2026 wage base of $184,500, applied on a year-to-date basis.
- Medicare: 1.45% of all wages, plus 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax on year-to-date wages above $200,000.
- Pre-tax retirement deferrals reduce income tax wages only. Section 125 items (health premiums, HSA, other cafeteria plan deductions) reduce FICA wages as well.
State income tax
States are handled in three ways. Calculated states use the state's published withholding formula from our tax engine, shared with our sister site. No wage tax states show no state line. For the remaining states the generator shows a field for the amount withheld, to be taken from payroll records, until their tables are added.
| Calculated | No income tax on wages | Manual entry |
|---|---|---|
| Georgia, Ohio, Oklahoma, Missouri, Maryland | Alaska, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, Wyoming | Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin |
Year-to-date columns
The pay date and pay frequency give the number of pay days so far in the year. Each line's YTD figure is the current amount multiplied by that count, which assumes the same pay each period. The count is editable in the form. Social Security stops at the wage base on a year-to-date basis.
Sources
Federal (2026)
- IRS Publication 15-T (2026), Federal Income Tax Withholding Methods (checked 2026-09-24)
- Rev. Proc. 2025-32 (2026 inflation adjustments) (checked 2026-09-24)
- IRS news release: tax inflation adjustments for tax year 2026 (checked 2026-09-24)
- IRS Child Tax Credit page (checked 2026-09-24)
- SSA Contribution and Benefit Base (checked 2026-09-24)
- SSA COLA information for 2026 (checked 2026-09-24)
- IRS Topic 751, Social Security and Medicare withholding rates (checked 2026-09-24)
Georgia (2026)
- Georgia Department of Revenue, 2026 Employer's Withholding Tax Guide (revised June 2026) (checked 2026-09-24)
- Georgia Department of Revenue, Important Tax Updates (2026 income tax changes) (checked 2026-09-24)
Ohio (2026)
- ODT Employer Withholding page (tables list, supplemental rate, reciprocity, IT 4) (checked 2026-09-24)
- ODT Percentage Method withholding tables effective Aug 1, 2026 (checked 2026-09-24)
- ORC 5747.02 Tax rates (HB 96) (checked 2026-09-24)
- ORC 5747.025 Personal exemptions (HB 96) (checked 2026-09-24)
- ODT Taxing School Districts effective Jan 1, 2026 (checked 2026-09-24)
- City of Columbus Income Tax Division (checked 2026-09-24)
- CCA (Cleveland) Tax Rates 2026 (checked 2026-09-24)
- City of Cincinnati Income Taxes (checked 2026-09-24)
- City of Toledo Tax FAQ (checked 2026-09-24)
- City of Akron Individual/Joint Filers (checked 2026-09-24)
- City of Dayton Income Tax Ordinance No. 32072-23 (checked 2026-09-24)
- Parma Codified Ordinances 183.22 (checked 2026-09-24)
- City of Canton FAQ - income tax rate (checked 2026-09-24)
- Youngstown Codified Ordinances 183.03 (checked 2026-09-24)
- City of Lorain FAQ - tax rate (checked 2026-09-24)
Oklahoma (2026)
- OTC Packet OW-2 2026 Oklahoma Income Tax Withholding Tables (rev. 11-2025) (checked 2026-09-24)
- Engrossed HB 2764 (2025) - 68 O.S. 2355 rate changes for TY2026 (checked 2026-09-24)
- OTC 2025 Form 511 Packet (standard deduction amounts) (checked 2026-09-24)
- Tax Foundation - Local Income Taxes: A Primer (checked 2026-09-24)
Pending verification: The annual withholding tables are taken directly from Packet OW-2 2026 (Table 7) and are verified. The statutory married brackets behind them (68 O.S. 2355(D) as amended by HB 2764) could only be partly read from the bill text, and the $6,350 single and $12,700 married standard deductions embedded in the tables were confirmed from the 2025 Form 511 packet because the 2026 packet is not yet published. The withholding result does not change if those figures are confirmed.
Missouri (2026)
- 2026 Missouri Withholding Tax Formula (checked 2026-09-24)
- Missouri DOR Individual Income Tax Year Changes (TY2025 table, 4.7% rate) (checked 2026-09-24)
- Missouri DOR 2026 Tax Legislative Changes (checked 2026-09-24)
- Kansas City, MO Earnings Tax (checked 2026-09-24)
- City of St. Louis Employer Withholding and Payroll Expense Tax (checked 2026-09-24)
Maryland (2026)
- Maryland Withholding Tax Facts January 2026 - December 2026 (checked 2026-09-24)
- 2026 Maryland Employer Withholding Guide (checked 2026-09-24)
- Tax Alert: Changes to Standard and Itemized Deductions and to State and Local Income Tax Rates from the 2025 Legislative Session (checked 2026-09-24)
- 2026 Form MW507 (checked 2026-09-24)
- Maryland FAMLI (checked 2026-09-24)
Updates
Tax data is stored per year and updated every January when the IRS and states publish new tables. The tax year is printed on every generated document. Questions or corrections: contact us.