Payroll Tax Calculator
Calculate employer payroll taxes including Social Security, Medicare, FUTA, and SUTA based on employee wages.
Published by:
isCalculator Editorial Team
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How to use this tool?
This calculator estimates the total employer payroll tax liability for an employee. Follow these steps:
- Enter Employee Wages: Input the gross wages (in dollars) for the pay period. Use numbers only (e.g., 50000).
- Select Filing Status: Choose Single or Married (affects tax thresholds, though not used in current calculations).
- Choose Pay Period: Select the frequency (Weekly, Biweekly, Semi-monthly, or Monthly) to align with wage entry.
- Select State: Pick the employee’s work state to apply the correct SUTA rate (varies from 2.7% to 3.5%).
- Calculate: Click Calculate Payroll Tax to see results.
Results show:
- Social Security (6.2%) – applied up to $142,800 annual wages.
- Medicare (1.45%) – no wage cap.
- FUTA (0.6%) – on first $7,000 of wages.
- SUTA (state rate) – on first $7,000 of wages (most states).
- Total Employer Payroll Tax – sum of all above.
Note: All values are in USD. Ensure wages are entered as a positive number.
Previous Results
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Frequently Asked Questions
The Social Security wage base is $142,800 for 2025. Wages above this amount are not subject to Social Security tax.
No, Medicare tax applies to all wages with no cap. However, there is an additional 0.9% Medicare surtax for high earners, which is not included in this calculator.
FUTA (Federal Unemployment Tax Act) is a 6% tax on the first $7,000 of wages, but employers can receive a credit of up to 5.4% for paying state unemployment taxes, resulting in a net rate of 0.6%.
