How does Iowa work out the income tax taken from my paycheck?

The Department of Revenue's formula has four steps. T1 is your pay for the period minus a deduction set by your filing status ($13,000 a year for most people, $500.00 biweekly), T2 is T1 times 3.8%, T3 subtracts the total allowance amount on your IA W-4 divided by the pay periods, and T4 adds any extra amount you ask for. For a $60,000 salary that is $2,307.69 less $500.00, $1,807.69; $1,807.69 times 3.8% is $68.69; less $1.54 for one $40 allowance is $67.15 a paycheck.

How much is $60,000 a year after tax in Iowa?

For a single employee on a standard Form W-4 who is paid every two weeks, a $60,000 salary takes home $1,870.92 a paycheck, or $48,643.98 a year. The year's taxes are $5,020.08 of federal income tax, $1,745.90 of Iowa income tax, $3,720.08 of Social Security and $869.96 of Medicare.

How much is $20 an hour after tax in Iowa?

At 40 hours a week and weekly pay, $20 an hour is $800.00 gross and $664.59 take-home a week for a single employee. That is $54.08 of federal income tax, $20.13 of Iowa income tax, $49.60 of Social Security and $11.60 of Medicare. Switch to hourly in the calculator to type your own hours, including overtime.

What do I put on the Iowa IA W-4?

Your filing status (Other including single, Head of Household, Married filing jointly or Qualifying Surviving Spouse), whether your spouse also has earned income if you are married filing jointly, and the allowances in dollars on lines 1 to 7: $40 for each dependent, plus amounts for itemized deductions, adjustments to income, the child and dependent care credit and the federal personal exemption credit. Line 8 adds a fixed amount to every paycheck. An employee who expects no Iowa tax and has a right to a full refund can write "EXEMPT" and the year, and a military spouse can claim the exemption under the federal spouse residency laws.

Why does a married couple with two jobs have more withheld?

If you check Married filing jointly and answer Yes to "does your spouse also have earned income", the Department says the calculation is done as if you were single, with the single deduction. On the $60,000 example that is $67.15 a paycheck, against $48.15 for a married employee whose spouse has no earned income and who gets the larger deduction. A head of household has $57.65 withheld.

My IA W-4 is from 2023 or earlier. Which deduction does my employer use?

The 2026 formula lets an employer keep computing from the most recent IA W-4 on file. For one dated 2023 or earlier, the deduction is $13,000 a year for Single (or married but legally separated) and $26,000 for Married, and the total allowance amount is the number of allowances times $40. The Department encourages employees to file the 2026 IA W-4, which reflects the new standard deduction and itemized deduction rules.

How does Iowa tax a bonus?

When the federal tax on a bonus is withheld at the flat supplemental rate, Iowa withholds its highest rate, 3.8%; otherwise the combined method applies, which adds the bonus to the regular pay, taxes the total and subtracts the tax already withheld. This calculator treats all pay as regular pay, and the bonus tax calculator works out the bonus case.

What does a 401(k) do to my Iowa paycheck?

The calculator takes a 401(k) deferral out of the pay before it applies the formula, so it lowers Iowa withholding. The formula says certain payments the employer makes into employee retirement plans or for employee health insurance are not taxable wages, and it does not list an employee's own deferral separately. Putting 6% of a $60,000 salary into a 401(k) ($138.46 a paycheck) cuts Iowa withholding by $5.26 and take-home pay by only $116.58.

Who pays unemployment tax in Iowa, and how much is it?

The employer does, to Iowa Workforce Development, and nothing comes out of your paycheck for it. In 2026 the taxable wage base is $20,400 per worker and a new non-construction employer pays 1% (a new construction employer pays 5.400%). That is $204 a year for an employee paid $60,000. Iowa is not on the Labor Department's list of states with a 2026 federal credit reduction.

Iowa Paycheck Calculator

Last updated October 22, 2026FreeNo signupFormula shown

Enter your pay, how often you are paid, the filing status and allowances on your IA W-4 and the answers on your Form W-4, and this Iowa paycheck calculator shows your 2026 take-home pay. It follows the Department of Revenue's formula, a flat 3.8% on what is left after a deduction for your filing status, and works out the employer's side of the bill under it.

State

Iowa

Another state? Pick any of the 50 states and DC.

I'm paid

Yearly salary (USD)

Pay frequency

Filing status on Form W-4

Iowa withholding

Allowances on the IA W-4 (line 7, $40 each)

The form adds up dollars: $40 for you ($80 if you file as head of household), $40 for a spouse with no job and $40 for each dependent. Enter the line 7 total divided by $40.

Form W-4 steps 2 to 4

Step 2 box is checked

Two jobs with similar pay, or both spouses work. Iowa reads a married employee whose spouse also has earned income like a single employee, with the single deduction.

Children under 17

Step 3: $2,200 each.

Other dependents

Step 3: $500 each.

Other income per year

Step 4(a).

Deductions per year

Step 4(b).

Extra withholding each paycheck (USD)

Step 4(c).

401(k), % of pay

2026 limit $24,500.

Health premiums per paycheck

Pre-tax.

HSA per paycheck

2026 limit $8,750.

Take-home pay per paycheck

$1,870.92

$2,307.69 gross · $436.77 withheld (18.9%)

Where this paycheck goes

Gross pay: $2,307.69
Federal income tax: - $193.08
Social Security6.2%: - $143.08
Medicare1.45%: - $33.46
Additional Medicare0.9%: - $0.00
Iowa income tax: - $67.15
401(k): - $0.00
Health premiums: - $0.00
HSA: - $0.00

Take-home pay$1,870.92

Over the year, 26 paychecks

Gross pay: $60,000
Taxes: - $11,356
Pre-tax deductions: - $0
Share kept: 81.1%

Take-home pay$48,644

Of every $100 of gross pay, $81 is take-home.

Federal income tax$5,020 · 8.4%
Social Security$3,720 · 6.2%
Medicare$870 · 1.4%
Iowa income tax$1,746 · 2.9%
Take-home pay$48,644 · 81.1%

Take-home pay rises with every extra dollar of salary.

Gross payTake-home pay

This pay costs the employer $64,836 a year, $2,493.69 each pay period.

What the employer adds, per year

Employer Social Security6.2% to $184,500: $3,720
Employer Medicare1.45%: $870
Federal unemployment (FUTA)0.6% of the first $7,000: $42
Iowa unemployment1% of the first $20,400: $204

Employer taxes$4,836

Total cost of the employee

Gross pay: $60,000
Employer taxes: + $4,836
Per pay period: $2,493.69

Per year$64,836

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Iowa withholds a flat 3.8% of pay after a deduction set by the filing status on the IA W-4.

The Department of Revenue's formula starts with the pay for the period and takes off a deduction: $13,000 a year for Other (which includes Single), $19,500 for Head of Household and $26,000 for a married couple filing jointly where the spouse has no earned income. It then takes 3.8% of what is left, and subtracts the total allowance amount from the IA W-4 divided by the pay periods. The deduction is not the federal standard deduction, and Iowa has no brackets.

A $60,000 Iowa salary takes home $1,870.92 every two weeks.

The calculator opens on this case: a single employee with one $40 allowance, on a standard Form W-4, paid every two weeks, with no pre-tax deductions.

Gross pay: $60,000 ÷ 26 = $2,307.69
Federal income tax: $193.08
Iowa income tax: T1 = $2,307.69 − $500.00 = $1,807.69; T2 = $1,807.69 × 3.8% = $68.69; T3 = $68.69 − $40 ÷ 26 = $67.15
Social Security: 6.2% × $2,307.69 = $143.08; Medicare: 1.45% = $33.46
Take-home pay: $1,870.92 a paycheck, $48,643.98 a year

Of $60,000 gross, $48,644 reaches the bank account.

Federal income tax$5,020 · 8.4%
Social Security$3,720 · 6.2%
Medicare$870 · 1.4%
Iowa income tax$1,746 · 2.9%
Take-home pay$48,644 · 81.1%

Each paycheck: $1,870.92Kept: 81.1%

A single employee on a $60,000 salary, paid every two weeks. Invented example. Each tax is rounded to the cent in every paycheck, as payroll does.

The IA W-4 filing status sets a deduction of $13,000, $19,500 or $26,000 a year.

A head of household has $57.65 withheld from the $60,000 example, a married employee whose spouse has no earned income $48.15, and everyone else $67.15. A married employee who answers Yes to “does your spouse also have earned income” is treated as single, so a couple with two jobs does not get the larger deduction twice.

The filing status on the IA W-4 sets the Iowa tax of a biweekly paycheck, from $48.15 to $67.15.

Other, including single$67.15
Head of household$57.65
Married, spouse has no earned income$48.15
Married, spouse also has earned income$67.15

Invented example: a $60,000 salary, one $40 allowance, paid every two weeks, no pre-tax deductions. The federal Form W-4 status changes along with the choice.

Each $40 of allowances on the IA W-4 takes only $1.54 off a biweekly paycheck.

The allowance amount on line 7 is a dollar total, divided by the number of paychecks and subtracted from the tax itself, not from the pay. A dependent's $40 therefore saves $1.54 a paycheck, and five allowances $7.69: $68.69 with none and $61.00 with five.

Each $40 allowance takes $1.54 off the Iowa tax of a biweekly paycheck.

0 allowances$68.69
1 allowance$67.15
3 allowances$64.07
5 allowances$61.00
10 allowances$53.31

Invented example: a $60,000 salary, single, paid every two weeks. One allowance here is $40 on line 7 of the IA W-4.

A 401(k) lowers Iowa withholding by $5.26 a paycheck.

A 401(k) deferral of 6% on the $60,000 example is $138.46 a paycheck. The calculator takes it out of the pay before the formula, so federal and Iowa withholding both fall and take-home pay falls by only $116.58. The Department's formula says employer payments into retirement plans or for health insurance are not taxable wages, and Social Security and Medicare still apply to an employee's own deferral.

A 6% 401(k) lowers federal tax by $16.62 and Iowa tax by $5.26 a paycheck.

Federal tax, no 401(k)$193.08
Federal tax, 6% 401(k)$176.46
Iowa tax, no 401(k)$67.15
Iowa tax, 6% 401(k)$61.89

Invented example: a $60,000 salary, single, paid every two weeks. 6% of pay is $138.46 a paycheck.

Hiring that employee costs $64,836 a year in Iowa.

On top of the $60,000, the employer matches Social Security and Medicare at 6.2% and 1.45%, which is $4,590. It pays federal unemployment tax of 0.6% on the first $7,000, which is $42. A new Iowa employer outside construction pays unemployment tax at 1% on the first $20,400 of pay, which is $204.00. The employee pays nothing toward it.

On $60,000 of pay, the employer owes $4,836 more in taxes.

Employer Social Security$3,720
Employer Medicare$870
Iowa unemployment$204
Federal unemployment (FUTA)$42

An employee on a $60,000 salary. Iowa unemployment is the 2026 new-employer rate of 1% on the first $20,400.

Take-home pay in Iowa runs from $33,334 on $40,000 to $108,625 on $150,000.

For a single employee with one allowance, paid every two weeks. At $100,000 the year's take-home is $75,914. For the neighbor to the east, see the Illinois paycheck calculator.

Take-home pay in Iowa for a single employee on a standard Form W-4, paid every two weeks, with no pre-tax deductions. Iowa taxes are its income tax.
Salary	Federal tax	Social Security and Medicare	Iowa taxes	Take-home a year	Every two weeks
$40,000	$2,620	$3,060	$986	$33,334	$1,282.08
$50,000	$3,820	$3,825	$1,366	$40,989	$1,576.51
$60,000	$5,020	$4,590	$1,746	$48,644	$1,870.92
$75,000	$7,670	$5,738	$2,316	$59,276	$2,279.86
$100,000	$13,170	$7,650	$3,266	$75,914	$2,919.77
$150,000	$24,734	$11,475	$5,166	$108,625	$4,177.89

Methodology & sources

The formula this calculator uses is shown in full above, and every assumption is an input you control. There are no hidden industry presets. All math runs in your browser; nothing you enter is stored or sent to a server. For the reasoning behind the formula and its edge cases, see:

Frequently asked questions

How does Iowa work out the income tax taken from my paycheck?: The Department of Revenue's formula has four steps. T1 is your pay for the period minus a deduction set by your filing status ($13,000 a year for most people, $500.00 biweekly), T2 is T1 times 3.8%, T3 subtracts the total allowance amount on your IA W-4 divided by the pay periods, and T4 adds any extra amount you ask for. For a $60,000 salary that is $2,307.69 less $500.00, $1,807.69; $1,807.69 times 3.8% is $68.69; less $1.54 for one $40 allowance is $67.15 a paycheck.
How much is $60,000 a year after tax in Iowa?: For a single employee on a standard Form W-4 who is paid every two weeks, a $60,000 salary takes home $1,870.92 a paycheck, or $48,643.98 a year. The year's taxes are $5,020.08 of federal income tax, $1,745.90 of Iowa income tax, $3,720.08 of Social Security and $869.96 of Medicare.
How much is $20 an hour after tax in Iowa?: At 40 hours a week and weekly pay, $20 an hour is $800.00 gross and $664.59 take-home a week for a single employee. That is $54.08 of federal income tax, $20.13 of Iowa income tax, $49.60 of Social Security and $11.60 of Medicare. Switch to hourly in the calculator to type your own hours, including overtime.
What do I put on the Iowa IA W-4?: Your filing status (Other including single, Head of Household, Married filing jointly or Qualifying Surviving Spouse), whether your spouse also has earned income if you are married filing jointly, and the allowances in dollars on lines 1 to 7: $40 for each dependent, plus amounts for itemized deductions, adjustments to income, the child and dependent care credit and the federal personal exemption credit. Line 8 adds a fixed amount to every paycheck. An employee who expects no Iowa tax and has a right to a full refund can write "EXEMPT" and the year, and a military spouse can claim the exemption under the federal spouse residency laws.
Why does a married couple with two jobs have more withheld?: If you check Married filing jointly and answer Yes to "does your spouse also have earned income", the Department says the calculation is done as if you were single, with the single deduction. On the $60,000 example that is $67.15 a paycheck, against $48.15 for a married employee whose spouse has no earned income and who gets the larger deduction. A head of household has $57.65 withheld.
My IA W-4 is from 2023 or earlier. Which deduction does my employer use?: The 2026 formula lets an employer keep computing from the most recent IA W-4 on file. For one dated 2023 or earlier, the deduction is $13,000 a year for Single (or married but legally separated) and $26,000 for Married, and the total allowance amount is the number of allowances times $40. The Department encourages employees to file the 2026 IA W-4, which reflects the new standard deduction and itemized deduction rules.
How does Iowa tax a bonus?: When the federal tax on a bonus is withheld at the flat supplemental rate, Iowa withholds its highest rate, 3.8%; otherwise the combined method applies, which adds the bonus to the regular pay, taxes the total and subtracts the tax already withheld. This calculator treats all pay as regular pay, and the bonus tax calculator works out the bonus case.
What does a 401(k) do to my Iowa paycheck?: The calculator takes a 401(k) deferral out of the pay before it applies the formula, so it lowers Iowa withholding. The formula says certain payments the employer makes into employee retirement plans or for employee health insurance are not taxable wages, and it does not list an employee's own deferral separately. Putting 6% of a $60,000 salary into a 401(k) ($138.46 a paycheck) cuts Iowa withholding by $5.26 and take-home pay by only $116.58.
Who pays unemployment tax in Iowa, and how much is it?: The employer does, to Iowa Workforce Development, and nothing comes out of your paycheck for it. In 2026 the taxable wage base is $20,400 per worker and a new non-construction employer pays 1% (a new construction employer pays 5.400%). That is $204 a year for an employee paid $60,000. Iowa is not on the Labor Department's list of states with a 2026 federal credit reduction.

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