MyNetSalary

How we calculate take-home pay

Every number on MyNetSalary comes from an official government publication. Here is exactly what we include, what we assume, and where each figure comes from.

The order of calculation

  1. Convert your pay to an annual figure (hourly pay × hours per week × 52).
  2. Subtract pre-tax deductions you enter: 401(k) and health/HSA (US), RRSP (Canada), or pension (UK, depending on the method).
  3. Work out social contributions on gross pay: Social Security and Medicare, CPP, CPP2 and EI, or National Insurance.
  4. Work out national income tax, then state, provincial or Scottish tax.
  5. Take everything away from gross pay to get take-home pay, then divide it into pay periods.

United States (2026)

  • Federal brackets and standard deductions: IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32.
  • Social Security wage base $184,500: Social Security Administration.
  • State brackets, deductions, exemptions and credits: Tax Foundation 2026 state table, cross-checked with state revenue departments. Where a state had not published 2026 inflation adjustments, the latest published figures are used.
  • State disability, paid-leave and long-term-care premiums (CA, CO, CT, DE, HI, MA, ME, MN, NJ, NY, OR, RI, WA): 2026 rates published by each state program. Where rates depend on employer size, the large-employer rate is used.
  • Special state rules included: Alabama's federal tax deduction and sliding standard deduction, Connecticut's exemption phase-out and recapture, Oregon's federal tax subtraction, Utah's taxpayer credit, Wisconsin's sliding standard deduction, Ohio's income-based exemption, Pennsylvania's treatment of 401(k) contributions.
  • Local taxes are optional; Maryland and Indiana are pre-filled with a typical county rate because every resident pays one.
  • Head of household uses federal head-of-household brackets and state single-filer rules.

Canada (2026)

  • All federal and provincial figures: CRA T4032 Payroll Deductions Tables, January 2026.
  • Includes the federal basic personal amount phase-out, the Canada employment amount, CPP and CPP2 deductions and credits, Ontario's surtax, Health Premium and tax reduction, BC's tax reduction, and Alberta's supplemental credit.
  • Quebec is not covered yet, because it uses QPP, QPIP and a separate provincial return.

United Kingdom (2026/27)

  • All figures: HMRC Rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027.
  • Includes the Personal Allowance taper above £100,000, Scottish bands, Class 1 National Insurance (category A), student loan Plans 1, 2, 4 and 5, Postgraduate Loans, and three pension methods.
  • Assumes tax code 1257L. Marriage Allowance, Blind Person's Allowance and benefits in kind are not included.

Testing

The calculation engine is tested automatically against hand-worked examples and the governments' own published examples, including the CRA's Ontario payroll example (matching to within $3 a year).

Limitations

Results are estimates for one job held for the whole year. Bonuses, multiple jobs, mid-year changes, tax credits for children and itemized deductions can change your real figures. Your annual tax return, not your payslip, settles what you finally owe.

Rates last checked October 14, 2026.

Written by Muhammad Raza. Last updated October 14, 2026.