Three lines, three different shapes
Social Security is a flat 6.2% that ends abruptly at the $184,500 wage base. Medicare is a flat 1.45% that never ends. Additional Medicare is 0.9% that only begins once wages pass $200,000. Every paystub’s FICA section is those three shapes added together.
FICA = 6.2% (to the wage base) + 1.45% (all wages) + 0.9% (wages over $200,000)Worked example · $80,000 of wages, 2026
- Social Security: $80,000 × 6.2% = $4,960 — well under the wage base.
- Medicare: $80,000 × 1.45% = $1,160; no Additional Medicare at this level.
- Employee FICA: $6,120 — and the employer pays another $6,120 alongside, which never touches your paycheck.
The employer match, made visible
For every dollar of Social Security and Medicare withheld from you, your employer sends a matching dollar of its own. The result panel shows that match because it is part of what your work costs and funds — even though only the employee share reduces your take-home. Self-employed people pay both halves themselves through self-employment tax, which is its own calculation.
FICA in the bigger paycheck picture
Payroll taxes are the steady, predictable slice; income tax is the variable one. To see them together on a real paycheck, use the paycheck calculator. For the income-tax line on its own, the federal income tax calculator applies the brackets band by band — and if a bonus is coming, the bonus tax calculator shows how FICA rides on top of the flat withholding rate.
What’s included, and what isn’t
Every figure this calculator produces is an estimate. Here is exactly what it accounts for, and what it does not.
What’s included
- Employee Social Security at 6.2%, capped at the annual wage base.
- Employee Medicare at 1.45% on every dollar of wages.
- Additional Medicare Tax of 0.9% withheld on wages beyond $200,000.
- Your employer's matching share, shown for context — they pay Social Security and Medicare too.
What’s not included
- Federal and state income tax — this tool isolates the payroll taxes.
- Self-employment tax, which covers both halves of FICA through Schedule SE.
- Wages exempt from FICA, such as some student and religious-exemption employment.
- Any true-up between jobs: two employers each withhold Social Security to the base, and the excess comes back on your return.
What this calculator assumes
- FICA is charged on gross wages. Pre-tax retirement contributions do not reduce it.
- Social Security stops at the $184,500 wage base for 2026.
- Additional Medicare Tax follows the employer withholding rule: 0.9% on wages beyond a flat $200,000, regardless of filing status.
- Assumes W-2 employment at one job. Self-employed people pay both halves through self-employment tax instead.
Sources
Every rate and threshold above is transcribed from a primary source and re-checked on the date shown.
Frequently asked questions
What is FICA tax?
The Federal Insurance Contributions Act taxes that fund Social Security and Medicare. Employees pay 6.2% Social Security and 1.45% Medicare through withholding, and employers pay a matching share on top — the match never comes out of your pay.
What is the Social Security wage base for 2026?
$184,500. Social Security tax stops once your wages for the year reach it, which caps the employee share at $11,439. Medicare has no wage base — it applies to every dollar.
What is the Additional Medicare Tax?
An extra 0.9% on high wages, paid by employees only — employers do not match it. Payroll must start withholding it once your wages at that employer pass a flat $200,000, whatever your filing status; your actual liability on the return uses filing-status thresholds, and the difference reconciles at filing.
Does my 401(k) reduce FICA?
No. Traditional 401(k) contributions reduce federal income tax, but FICA is charged on gross wages before them. That is why even aggressive retirement savers see the full Social Security and Medicare lines on every paystub.
What if I have two jobs?
Each employer withholds Social Security independently up to the wage base, so together they can withhold too much. The excess comes back as a credit on your tax return. Medicare has no cap, so nothing needs correcting there.