California Paycheck Calculator
✦ Finance & MoneyThis California paycheck calculator estimates 2026 take-home pay after federal tax, Social Security, Medicare, California's ten-bracket state income tax and the 1.3% SDI contribution that applies to every dollar of wages.
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The formula
California take-home pay
Net = Gross - 401(k) - federal tax - Social Security - Medicare - CA income tax - CA SDI (1.3% of all wages)California taxable income is gross minus pre-tax deferrals minus the state standard deduction ($5,900 single; $11,800 joint or head of household for 2026, FTB "2026 Indexing"), taxed across the 1% to 12.3% brackets of the filing status's own schedule (X, Y or Z), plus the 1% mental health services tax on taxable income above $1 million for every filing status. SDI is charged on all wages with no ceiling since 2024. The personal exemption credit ($158 single, $316 joint) is not subtracted, so the state figure runs slightly high.
Calculating it by hand
- Subtract any 401(k) or other pre-tax deferral from gross salary.
- Federal: subtract the federal standard deduction and apply the federal brackets; add Social Security (6.2% up to the wage base) and Medicare (1.45%, plus 0.9% above the threshold) on gross wages.
- California: subtract the California standard deduction, then apply the ten state brackets in order. Above $1,000,000 of taxable income add the 1% mental-health surcharge.
- Add SDI at 1.3% of gross wages — there is no cap.
- Subtract everything from gross and divide by the number of pay periods.
Worked examples
$75,000, single, paid bi-weekly, no 401(k) (the defaults)
Federal: taxable 75,000 − 16,100 = 58,900 → tax $7,670.00; Social Security $4,650.00; Medicare $1,087.50California: taxable 75,000 − 5,900 = 69,100 → 114.56 + 314.02 + 628.16 + 998.22 + (69,100 − 59,498) × 8% = 768.16 → $2,823.12SDI: 75,000 × 1.3% = $975.00
Take-home $57,794.38 a year — $2,222.86 per bi-weekly paycheck; California tax and SDI take $3,798.12 of it
$100,000, single, paid bi-weekly, no 401(k)
Federal: taxable 83,900 → tax $13,170.00; Social Security $6,200.00; Medicare $1,450.00California: taxable 100,000 − 5,900 = 94,100 → 3,310.88 through the 8% band, then (94,100 − 75,197) × 9.3% = 1,757.98 → $5,068.86SDI: 100,000 × 1.3% = $1,300.00
Take-home $72,811.14 a year — $2,800.43 per bi-weekly paycheck
$250,000, married filing jointly, 6% to a 401(k), paid bi-weekly
401(k) deferral $15,000 reduces federal and California taxable income, not FICA or SDIFederal taxable 250,000 − 15,000 − 32,200 = 202,800 → $34,040.00; Social Security capped at the $184,500 wage base = $11,439.00; Medicare $3,625.00California taxable 250,000 − 15,000 − 11,800 = 223,200 on Schedule Y → $13,392.72; SDI 250,000 × 1.3% = $3,250.00 with no ceiling
Take-home $169,253.28 a year — $6,509.74 per bi-weekly paycheck — plus $15,000 saved in the 401(k)
Methodology
How California pay is withheld
A California paycheck calculator subtracts two things a federal-only estimate leaves out: state income tax on California's own ten-bracket schedule, after a $5,900 standard deduction, and the 1.3% State Disability Insurance contribution on every dollar of wages. On a $75,000 salary they take $3,798 a year.
Read sources and limitsWhy is a California paycheck smaller than a federal estimate suggests?
Two things make California distinctive. The first is the shape of its income tax: ten graduated brackets, the widest range in the country, from 1% on the first dollars of taxable income to 12.3% on income above $768,213 for a single filer in 2026, plus a further 1% above $1 million that funds mental-health services. A middle-income earner soon reaches the 9.3% bracket, which begins at $75,197 of taxable income — a rate that other states reserve for their highest earners.
The second is State Disability Insurance. SDI funds disability and paid-family-leave benefits and is deducted from every employee's wages at 1.3% for the current year. Until 2024 it stopped at an annual wage ceiling; that ceiling has been removed, so a $300,000 salary now contributes $3,900 a year, where most states' equivalent programmes either do not exist or cap out early. On a payslip it appears as "CA SDI" or "CASDI".
What does California let you deduct?
California has its own standard deduction — $5,900 single and $11,800 for joint filers and heads of household in 2026, far smaller than the federal $16,100 — and it does not follow the federal figure. It also gives a personal exemption credit of $158 per person ($316 joint, $491 per dependant) instead of an exemption amount; this calculator does not subtract it, so the state tax shown is slightly high for most filers.
Traditional 401(k) and 403(b) deferrals reduce California taxable income the same way they reduce federal taxable income, but they do not reduce SDI, Social Security or Medicare, all of which are charged on gross wages. Health savings account contributions are treated differently: California does not recognise HSAs, so an HSA deferral that lowers your federal tax does not lower your California tax.
Does California have local income taxes, and what can this page not see?
California has no city or county income taxes, which is a genuine simplification compared with New York, Maryland or Pennsylvania — the state figure shown here is the whole state-level story. San Francisco levies a payroll expense tax on employers, not employees, so it does not appear on a payslip.
What the estimate cannot see is your Form DE 4 — California's equivalent of the W-4 — and your federal W-4, both of which shape actual withholding per pay period. Treat the result as a planning figure for what you will owe over the year, distributed evenly, rather than a prediction of any single payslip.
California Paycheck questions
What is CA SDI on my paycheck?
State Disability Insurance — a mandatory employee contribution that funds California's disability and paid-family-leave benefits. It is 1.3% of wages for the current year and, since 2024, applies to all wages with no annual ceiling.
What are the California income tax brackets for 2026?
Nine rates from 1% to 12.3%, plus the 1% mental health services tax on taxable income above $1 million. For a single filer (Schedule X) the 9.3% bracket starts at $75,197 of taxable income, 10.3% at $384,109 and 12.3% at $768,213; joint filers' thresholds (Schedule Y) are double — 9.3% from $150,394 — except at the $1 million surcharge line, which is the same for everyone. Source: FTB, 2026 Indexing.
Does California tax 401(k) contributions?
No — traditional 401(k) deferrals reduce California taxable income as they do federally. They do not reduce SDI, Social Security or Medicare, which are charged on gross wages. Note that California does not recognise HSA contributions, so those remain taxable at the state level.
Does California have local income taxes?
No. Unlike New York, Maryland or Pennsylvania, California has no city or county income tax on employees, so the state figure here is the complete state-and-local picture.
Why is my California withholding different from this estimate?
Actual withholding follows your Form DE 4 and W-4 elections and the per-period withholding schedules. This calculator estimates the annual liability from the brackets and spreads it evenly across pay periods, which is close for a straightforward single job but will differ if you claim allowances, have multiple jobs, or request extra withholding.
Is the California standard deduction the same as the federal one?
No. For 2026 California's standard deduction is $5,900 for single or separate filers and $11,800 for joint filers, surviving spouses and heads of household (FTB, 2026 Indexing) — against the federal $16,100 / $32,200 / $24,150. It also replaces the personal exemption with a credit, which this estimate does not include.
How much California state tax is taken from a $75,000 salary?
$2,823.12 of income tax for a single filer in 2026, plus $975.00 of SDI. California taxable income is 75,000 − 5,900 = 69,100, which runs through the 1%, 2%, 4%, 6% and 8% bands. On a bi-weekly schedule that is $108.58 of state tax and $37.50 of SDI per paycheck, and take-home is $2,222.86.
What is the California personal exemption credit?
A credit subtracted from California tax, not from income: $158 for a single filer, $316 for a joint return and $491 for each dependant in 2026, phased out at high incomes. This calculator does not subtract it, so for most filers the California tax it shows is $158 (single) or $316 (joint) a year higher than the return will be.
Does head of household change the California tax?
Yes. A head of household gets the $11,800 standard deduction and Schedule Z, whose bands are wider than single: the 9.3% rate starts at $102,356 rather than $75,197. On $150,000 the California tax is $7,072.94 against $9,718.86 single, before the exemption credits.
Source notes
Method, sources & limitations
Every figure on this page comes from the formula above applied to the values you enter. Nothing is estimated from market data, and no result is a forecast. These are the sources behind the method and any fixed figures it uses:
- California Franchise Tax Board — Tax News, October 2026: 2026 Indexing (Schedules X/Y/Z, standard deduction, exemption credits)
- California EDD — SDI rate and withholding
- IRS — Tax inflation adjustments for tax year 2026
- Social Security Administration — 2026 taxable wage base
Educational information only. Results are estimates produced from the assumptions you enter, and are not financial, tax, legal or medical advice. Check anything that matters against a qualified professional and the cited sources.