A US paycheck has three or four deductions and only two of them are the same everywhere. FEDERAL Income Tax, on income above the standard deduction, which the IRS sets at $16,100 for a single filer in 2026, at rates from 10% to 37%. FICA, which is 6.2% for Social Security on earnings up to $184,500 and 1.45% for Medicare with no ceiling. Then STATE income tax, which is anything from nothing at all to double figures, and often a city tax on top. On $75,000 the federal half is $7,670.00 of Income Tax and $5,737.50 of FICA, leaving $61,592.50 before a state has taken anything.
The federal bands for 2026
For a single filer the IRS sets the 2026 standard deduction at $16,100, so the first $16,100 of salary carries no federal Income Tax. Above it the rates step: 10% to $12,400 of taxable income, 12% to $50,400, 22% to $105,700, 24% to $201,775, 32% to $256,225, 35% to $640,600 and 37% above. The thresholds are on TAXABLE income, which is the salary less the standard deduction and any pre-tax items, so a $50,000 salary produces $33,900 of taxable income and $3,820.00 of federal tax, not the amount its headline band would suggest.
FICA, and the two ceilings
Social Security is 6.2% of earnings up to the contribution and benefit base, which the Social Security Administration sets at $184,500 for 2026; above that the deduction stops entirely, which is why a very high salary shows a jump in net pay part way through the year. Medicare is 1.45% with no ceiling at all, plus an Additional Medicare Tax above a threshold for high earners. Together the base rate is 7.65%: $3,825.00 on $50,000, $5,737.50 on $75,000 and $7,650.00 on $100,000. Your employer pays the same again on top, which is the US equivalent of employer National Insurance.
What this calculation does not include
State income tax, which ranges from none in several states to rates in the double figures elsewhere, and is the single biggest reason two identical salaries take home different amounts. Local or city income tax, which a handful of cities levy. Pre-tax deductions, which in the US are larger and more common than in the UK: health insurance premiums, 401(k) contributions and HSA contributions all come out before federal tax and change the answer materially. And filing status: married filing jointly doubles the standard deduction and widens the bands, so the single-filer figures above are the least generous case.
Reading a US offer from the UK
Three differences catch people. Salaries are quoted as an annual gross exactly as in the UK, but the paycheck is usually twice a month or every two weeks, so a "$3,000 paycheck" may be $72,000 or $78,000 a year depending on which. Health insurance is a payroll deduction rather than a tax, and a family plan can take several hundred dollars a month out of the same pay. And there is no National Insurance equivalent for healthcare, which is what makes the headline deduction rate look lighter than the UK's until the insurance line is added back.
The comparison people are actually making
On $75,000 the federal deductions are 17.9% of gross. On the equivalent UK salary the deduction rate at £60,000 is 24.40%, and the UK figure includes the health system. Converting one to the other honestly means adding US health premiums and any state tax to the US side and comparing what is left against cost of living, not against the other gross. This site computes the UK half exactly, on the published rates for the tax year, and the calculator on the United Kingdom page will take any figure you give it.
Questions people ask about us tax calculator
How much tax on a $75,000 US salary?
$7,670.00 of federal Income Tax and $5,737.50 of FICA in 2026 for a single filer taking the standard deduction, leaving $61,592.50 before any state or local tax and before health insurance.
What is the 2026 standard deduction?
$16,100 for a single filer. It is the amount of salary that carries no federal Income Tax, and it replaces the UK's Personal Allowance in the arithmetic.
What is FICA?
Social Security at 6.2% on earnings up to $184,500 and Medicare at 1.45% with no ceiling, 7.65% together. Your employer pays the same again, which is the US equivalent of employer National Insurance.
Why does my US net pay change mid-year?
Usually the Social Security ceiling: once your earnings pass $184,500 the 6.2% stops for the rest of the calendar year and your paycheck rises.