Massachusetts Paycheck Calculator
Easily estimate take home pay after income tax so you can have an idea of what to possibly expect when planning your budget
Last reviewed on January 29, 2023
Results
Income Before Tax
Take Home Pay
Total Tax
Average Tax Rate
$ = US Dollar
Income Before Tax
Federal Income Tax
State Income Tax
State Tax Credits
Social Security
Medicare
State Disability Insurance
State Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML)
State Unemployment Insurance
State Worker Comp
State Transit Tax
Mental Health Services Tax
Local Income Tax
Total Tax
Take Home Pay
Federal Deductions
State Deductions
Average Tax Rate
Table of Contents
Summary
Enter your employment income into the paycheck calculator above to estimate how taxes in Massachusetts, USA may affect your finances. You'll then get your estimated take home pay, an estimated breakdown of your potential tax liability, and a quick summary down here so you can have a better idea of what to possibly expect when planning your budget.
This paycheck calculator also works as an income tax calculator for Massachusetts, as it shows you how much income tax you have to pay based on your salary and personal details.
To learn more about Massachusetts, its income tax, and tax brackets, so that you can get a deeper understanding of how your budget and finances may be affected, scroll down to the detail section below!
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the income tax rate in Massachusetts?
The state income tax rate in Massachusetts is 5% while federal income tax rates range from 10% to 37% depending on your income. This paycheck calculator can help estimate your take home pay and your average income tax rate.
How many income tax brackets are there in Massachusetts?
The state income tax system in Massachusetts only has a single tax bracket. However, there are multiple tax brackets for federal income tax. For more details, check out our detail section.
How Your Massachusetts Paycheck Works
The main item taken from your earnings is income tax. As the name suggests, this tax is imposed by governments on income generated by individuals or businesses. In Massachusetts, there are two levels of income tax: federal and state. Federal income tax is collected by the U.S. government and applies to all U.S. residents regardless of where they live or work. State income tax is collected by Massachusetts and applies to residents and non-residents who earn income here in the state.
Massachusetts, also called the Bay State, has a flat income tax rate of 5% for all taxable income. For the most part, this means that almost everyone will pay the same percentage of their income to the state. That said, a couple exceptions do exist. For example, if you earn less than certain limits in a year, you don’t have to file a Massachusetts tax return. In addition, starting from 2023, there will be an additional 4% surtax on taxable income over $1 million.
To determine how much state income tax to withhold from your paycheck, you need to fill out a form called Massachusetts Employee’s Withholding Exemption Certificate (Form M-4). This form allows you specify your personal situation, such as your marital status, number of dependents, or other factors that may affect your taxable income. You can also request additional withholding amounts if you want to have more taxes taken out of your paycheck.
Form M-4 is similar to Form W-4, which is the federal equivalent. Form W-4 tells your employer how much federal income tax to withhold from each paycheck based on factors such as your filing status (single, married, etc), number of dependents, and more. The federal income tax has different rates and brackets depending on your filing status.
You should fill out both forms when you start a new job or when your personal or financial situation changes significantly. You can update them at any time during the year if needed. By doing so, you can avoid underpaying or overpaying taxes throughout the year.
In Massachusetts, state income tax also applies to unearned income, such as interest and dividends. This means that if you have any investments or savings accounts that generate interest or dividends, you'll have to pay 5% state income tax on those earnings as well.
Aside from income tax, another federal withholding that applies to most workers in Massachusetts is Social Security tax. This is a federal program that provides retirement benefits and disability insurance for workers and their dependents. The Social Security tax rate is 6.2% of your wages up to a certain limit ($147,000 for 2022).
There's also Medicare tax as well. This is another federal program that provides health insurance for seniors and people with certain disabilities. The Medicare tax rate is 1.45% of all your wages. High income earnings are also subject to an additional 0.9% Medicare surtax.
Both Social Security and Medicare make up the FICA taxes, which stands for the Federal Insurance Contributions Act.
Depending on your job, you may also have other things taken out of your gross pay. Some examples include: health insurance premiums, retirement plan contributions (401(k), IRA, Roth IRA, etc), flexible spending accounts (FSA, HSA, etc), life insurance premiums, and disability insurance premiums.
As far as standard deductions go, a state personal exemption exists and varies based on your filing status. Massachusetts is unique in that contributions to social security and medicare are both deductible up to a certain limit.
Aside from income tax, there is also paid family and medical leave (pfml) insurance tax which is calculated based on your income up to the social security limit.
More From Investomatica:
For sales tax, please visit our Massachusetts Sales Tax Rates and Calculator page.
Calculate Your Paycheck in Other States and US Regions
Calculate Your Paycheck in Other Parts of North America
Disclaimer
- The content shown on this page is strictly for educational purposes only. It does not represent advice nor is it a substitute for a professional advisor.
- Estimated results are just estimates. They are not a guarantee of future results.
- While internal calculations are not rounded, all final resultant numbers are rounded normally with numbers ending in 0.5 and above being rounded up.
- Tax situations vary widely and calculations can get very complex. This paycheck calculator only provides a rough estimate according to the most common scenarios for standard employment income that comes from an employer. If you are self-employed, your taxes might differ.
- There may be additional deductions, credits, exemptions, allowances, reliefs, etc depending on many factors. Some factors are about your family such as the number of dependents, children, relatives, parents, etc. Other factors may include mortgage payments, property depreciation, charitible donations, additional voluntary retirement contributions, etc. Whether or not you are handicapped and/or disabled may also sometimes be an additional factor.
- Depending on region and jurisdiction, salary bonuses may be treated and taxed differently from standard salary.
- Calculators from other sites may show slightly different numbers due to different deductions/credits being included or they are based on data from a different year.
- Generally, we review changes once a year since tax codes usually change once a year. If you notice a major miscalculation or error with our paycheck calculator (most likely caused by a typo somewhere), feel free to direct message us on twitter and let us know. However, if you have specific questions about your own personal situation, please consult a licensed tax professional.
Ratings for Massachusetts Paycheck Calculator
Most Relevant Reviews
Investomatica Comment Policy
Discussions are welcome. Please stay on topic and remember to be kind to each other. If you would like to report a bug or issue with one of our pages or calculators, please direct message us on twitter instead.