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

The Department of Revenue's Circular M, effective January 1, 2026, gives a percentage method. From the paycheck's wages it subtracts the Social Security and Medicare tax taken from that paycheck (until the year's total reaches $2,000) and the exemption factors for your pay period, multiplies by the pay periods in a year, takes 5% of the result (9% of the part over $1,107,750) and divides by the pay periods. For a $60,000 salary with 1 exemption, the year's pay less 26 times $176.54 and 26 times $169 is $51,015.96, which is taxed $2,550.80, or $98.11 every two weeks at first.

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

For a single employee who claims 1 exemption on the M-4 and is paid every two weeks, a $60,000 salary takes home $1,829.34 for the first paychecks and $1,824.37 on average, which is $47,433.50 a year. The year's taxes are $5,020.08 of federal income tax, $2,680.26 of Massachusetts income tax, $3,720.08 of Social Security, $869.96 of Medicare and $276.12 of paid family and medical leave contribution.

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

At 40 hours a week and weekly pay, $20 an hour is $800.00 gross and $648.35 take-home a week for a single employee with 1 exemption. That is $54.08 of federal income tax, $32.69 of Massachusetts income tax, $49.60 of Social Security, $11.60 of Medicare and $3.68 of paid leave contribution. Switch the calculator to hourly and type your own hours, including overtime.

What do I put on line 4 of the Massachusetts Form M-4?

Line 4 adds up your exemptions. Line 1 is 1 for you, or 2 if you are 65 or older. Line 2 is 4 for a spouse whose exemption is allowed, or 5 if your spouse is 65 or older. Line 3 is the number of qualified dependents, and you add 1 more if one of them will be under 12 at the end of the year. Boxes A to C on the form cover head of household, being blind and a blind spouse who is not subject to withholding. With no M-4 on file, your employer must withhold as if you had no exemptions. On the $60,000 example, 0 exemptions withhold $106.56 a paycheck against $98.11 with 1 and $96.21 with 2.

Why does my Massachusetts income tax go up partway through the year?

Because the employer may subtract your Social Security and Medicare tax from your pay before figuring the tax, but only up to $2,000 a year. On the $60,000 example that tax is $176.54 a paycheck, so the limit runs out in paycheck 12 and the Massachusetts tax rises from $98.11 to $106.93 a paycheck for the rest of the year. Circular M tells the employer to stop the step once the year's total reaches the limit. Over the year the employer withholds $2,680.26 in this example.

What is the 4% surtax, and does it change my paycheck?

Massachusetts adds 4% to income over $1,107,750 in 2026, so that part is taxed at 9%. Circular M builds it into the percentage method: when a year's taxable pay after the subtractions is over $1,107,750, the employer takes 9% of the part over that line and 5% of the rest. It only matters for very high pay, such as $100,000 a month.

Why do payroll tables give a few cents different from this calculator?

Circular M offers two ways to find the withholding: wage bracket tables and the percentage method. This calculator follows the percentage method, with the exemption factors printed for each pay period. The tables work from the middle of each wage range and divide the yearly exemption amounts by the pay periods without rounding, so for some exemption counts they come out a few cents apart. Both are the Department's own methods.

How does Massachusetts tax a bonus?

Circular M's rules for supplemental wages, such as a bonus, take 5% of the payment with no exemption subtracted, and 9% of the part that carries the year's pay over $1,107,750. This calculator treats all pay as regular pay.

What does Massachusetts paid family and medical leave cost me?

In 2026 the contribution is 0.88% of wages up to the Social Security wage base of $184,500. You can be charged all of the 0.18% family leave part and 40% of the 0.70% medical leave part, which is 0.28%, so 0.46% in all. On a $60,000 salary that is $10.62 a paycheck, $276.12 a year, and the most anyone pays in 2026 is $848.70. An employer with 25 or more covered individuals pays the other 0.42% of the medical leave part, $252.00 a year on that salary, and one with fewer owes no share of its own.

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

Massachusetts follows the federal exclusion for 401(k) deferrals, so they come out before the state tax. Putting 6% of a $60,000 salary into a 401(k) ($138.46 a paycheck) cuts Massachusetts withholding by $6.93 and take-home pay by only $114.91. The paid leave contribution is charged on the pay before the deferral.

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

The employer does, to the Department of Unemployment Assistance. A new Massachusetts employer pays 2.42% in 2026 on the first $15,000 of each employee's pay, except construction employers, which pay 6.08%. That is $363.00 a year per employee at a $60,000 salary.

Massachusetts Paycheck Calculator

Last updated October 21, 2026FreeNo signupFormula shown

Enter your pay, how often you are paid, and the exemptions on your Form W-4 and Massachusetts Form M-4, and this Massachusetts paycheck calculator shows your 2026 take-home pay. It follows the Department of Revenue's percentage method, a flat 5% after your exemptions, adds the paid family and medical leave contribution, and works out the employer's side of the bill under it.

State

Massachusetts

I'm paid

Yearly salary (USD)

Pay frequency

Filing status on Form W-4

Massachusetts withholding

Exemptions on Form M-4 (line 4)

Line 4 adds you (1, or 2 if you are 65 or older), a spouse who is not claiming their own (4, or 5 if 65 or older) and each dependent (plus 1 if one is under 12). Choose Head of household above for box A.

Blind persons on Form M-4 (boxes B and C)

1 if you are blind, and 1 more if your spouse is blind and not subject to withholding.

Form W-4 steps 2 to 4

Step 2 box is checked

Two jobs with similar pay, or both spouses work.

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

$1,829.34

$2,307.69 gross · $478.35 withheld (20.7%)

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
Massachusetts income tax: - $98.11
Massachusetts paid family and medical leave0.46%, up to $848.70 a year: - $10.62
401(k): - $0.00
Health premiums: - $0.00
HSA: - $0.00

Take-home pay$1,829.34

Over the year, 26 paychecks

Gross pay: $60,000
Taxes: - $12,567
Pre-tax deductions: - $0
Share kept: 79.1%

Take-home pay$47,434

Of every $100 of gross pay, $79 is take-home.

Federal income tax$5,020 · 8.4%
Social Security$3,720 · 6.2%
Medicare$870 · 1.4%
Massachusetts income tax$2,680 · 4.5%
Massachusetts paid family and medical leave$276 · 0.5%
Take-home pay$47,434 · 79.1%

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

Gross payTake-home pay

This pay costs the employer $65,247 a year, $2,509.50 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
Massachusetts unemployment2.42% of the first $15,000: $363
Massachusetts paid family and medical leave, employer share0.42% of the first $184,500: $252

Employer taxes$5,247

Total cost of the employee

Gross pay: $60,000
Employer taxes: + $5,247
Per pay period: $2,509.50

Per year$65,247

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Massachusetts withholds a flat 5% of pay, after your Social Security and Medicare tax (up to $2,000 a year) and your exemptions.

Circular M, the Department of Revenue's withholding guide, builds the tax in steps. The employer takes the paycheck's wages, subtracts the Social Security and Medicare tax taken from it, subtracts a dollar amount for the exemptions on your Form M-4, multiplies by the pay periods in a year, takes 5% and divides by the pay periods again. Head of household and blindness then take a few dollars off. There are no brackets, and the part of a year's pay over $1,107,750 is taxed at 9%.

A $60,000 Massachusetts salary takes home $1,829.34 every two weeks at first.

The calculator opens on this case: a single employee with 1 exemption on the M-4 and a standard Form W-4, paid every two weeks, with no pre-tax deductions. These are the first paychecks of the year; the state tax rises once the $2,000 limit is used up, as explained below.

Gross pay: $60,000 ÷ 26 = $2,307.69
Federal income tax: $193.08
Massachusetts income tax: $60,000 − 26 × $176.54 − 26 × $169 = $51,015.96, × 5% = $2,550.80, ÷ 26 = $98.11
Social Security: 6.2% × $2,307.69 = $143.08; Medicare: 1.45% = $33.46
Paid family and medical leave: 0.46% × $2,307.69 = $10.62
Take-home pay: $1,829.34 a paycheck at first, $47,433.50 a year

Of $60,000 gross, $47,434 reaches the bank account.

Federal income tax$5,020 · 8.4%
Social Security$3,720 · 6.2%
Medicare$870 · 1.4%
Massachusetts income tax$2,680 · 4.5%
Massachusetts paid family and medical leave$276 · 0.5%
Take-home pay$47,434 · 79.1%

Each paycheck: $1,829.34Kept: 79.1%

A single employee on a $60,000 salary, paid every two weeks, with 1 exemption. Invented example. Each tax is rounded to the cent in every paycheck, as payroll does.

Your first exemption on the M-4 takes $169 off each biweekly paycheck before tax, and every one after it takes $38.

At 5% that is $8.45 and $1.90 less tax a paycheck. Line 4 of the form counts you, a spouse whose exemption is allowed (as 4, or 5 at age 65 or older) and each dependent, so a married parent with two children, one under 12, claims 1 + 4 + 2 + 1 = 8. The factors are printed for each pay period in Circular M, and the saving is the same at every pay level, because the rate is flat.

The first exemption on line 4 takes $8.45 off the Massachusetts tax of a biweekly paycheck, and each one after it $1.90.

0 exemptions$106.56
1 exemption$98.11
2 exemptions$96.21
3 exemptions$94.31
5 exemptions$90.51

Invented example: a $60,000 salary, single, paid every two weeks, first paycheck of the year. The exemption factors are the biweekly amounts in Circular M.

Your Massachusetts tax rises from $98.11 to $106.93 a paycheck partway through the year.

The employer may take your Social Security and Medicare tax off first, but only while the year's total is under $2,000. On this example that tax is $176.54 a paycheck, so the limit runs out in paycheck 12 and the tax is $8.82 higher from paycheck 13 on. Over the year the employer withholds $2,680.26.

Massachusetts tax rises from $98.11 to $106.93 a paycheck once the $2,000 limit is used.

Paychecks 1 to 11$98.11
Paycheck 12$104.03
Paychecks 13 to 26$106.93

Invented example: a $60,000 salary, single, paid every two weeks. Social Security and Medicare tax is $176.54 a paycheck, so the $2,000 limit is used up in paycheck 12.

Head of household takes $4.62 off the tax of a biweekly paycheck, and each blind person $4.23.

The M-4 has a box for each. Choose head of household as your filing status in the calculator if you mark box A, and enter the blind persons (you, and a spouse who is not subject to withholding) in the second field. These are the flat amounts printed in Circular M for a biweekly period; weekly, twice-a-month and monthly pay have their own.

The same $60,000 salary is withheld $98.11 a paycheck for a single worker and $93.49 for a head of household.

Single$98.11
Head of household$93.49
Single, blind$93.88
Single, you and a spouse blind$89.65

Invented example: a $60,000 salary paid every two weeks, 1 exemption, first paycheck of the year.

With one blind person the paycheck is withheld $93.88; with two, $89.65.

Massachusetts takes 0.46% of your pay for paid family and medical leave, up to $848.70 a year.

The 2026 contribution is 0.88% of wages up to the Social Security wage base of $184,500. You can be charged all of the 0.18% for family leave and 40% of the 0.70% for medical leave, which comes to 0.46%, and an employer with 25 or more covered individuals pays the rest. On the $60,000 example that is $10.62 a paycheck. A salary of $250,000 reaches the cap in the 9th month and pays $848.67 for the year.

Together the contributions stop at $848.70 a year, once pay passes $184,500.

$30,000 a year$138.06 a year
$60,000 a year$276.12 a year
$100,000 a year$459.94 a year
$200,000 a year$848.59 a year

Massachusetts paid family and medical leave

Invented salaries, single, paid every two weeks. Massachusetts paid family and medical leave is 0.46% of the first $184,500.

A 401(k) comes out before Massachusetts tax, but not before the paid leave contribution.

A 401(k) deferral of 6% on the $60,000 example is $138.46 a paycheck, and it lowers Massachusetts withholding by $6.93. Social Security, Medicare and the paid leave contribution still apply to the whole paycheck.

A 6% 401(k) lowers federal tax by $16.62 and Massachusetts tax by $6.93 a paycheck.

Federal tax, no 401(k)$193.08
Federal tax, 6% 401(k)$176.46
Massachusetts tax, no 401(k)$98.11
Massachusetts tax, 6% 401(k)$91.18

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

Hiring that employee costs $65,247 a year in Massachusetts.

On top of the $60,000, the employer matches Social Security and Medicare at 6.2% and 1.45%, which is $4,590, and an employer with 25 or more covered individuals pays 0.42% for paid leave, $252.00. It pays federal unemployment tax of 0.6% on the first $7,000, which is $42; Massachusetts is not on the Labor Department's list of states with a 2026 credit reduction. A new Massachusetts employer pays unemployment tax at 2.42% on the first $15,000 of pay, which is $363.00 a year per employee.

On $60,000 of pay, the employer owes $5,247 more in taxes.

Employer Social Security$3,720
Employer Medicare$870
Massachusetts unemployment$363
Massachusetts paid family and medical leave, employer share$252
Federal unemployment (FUTA)$42

An employee on a $60,000 salary. Massachusetts unemployment is the 2026 new-employer rate of 2.42% on the first $15,000.

Take-home pay in Massachusetts runs from $32,456 on $40,000 to $105,921 on $150,000.

For a single employee with 1 exemption, paid every two weeks. Switch the table to weekly pay if you are paid every week. To see how a neighboring state compares, try the New Jersey paycheck calculator.

Take-home pay in Massachusetts for a single employee on a standard Form W-4, paid every two weeks, with no pre-tax deductions. Massachusetts taxes are its income tax and paid family and medical leave.
Salary	Federal tax	Social Security and Medicare	Massachusetts taxes	Take-home a year	Every two weeks
$40,000	$2,620	$3,060	$1,864	$32,456	$1,250.33
$50,000	$3,820	$3,825	$2,410	$39,945	$1,539.85
$60,000	$5,020	$4,590	$2,956	$47,434	$1,829.34
$75,000	$7,670	$5,738	$3,775	$57,817	$2,230.92
$100,000	$13,170	$7,650	$5,140	$74,040	$2,858.54
$150,000	$24,734	$11,475	$7,870	$105,921	$4,092.10

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 Massachusetts work out the income tax taken from my paycheck?: The Department of Revenue's Circular M, effective January 1, 2026, gives a percentage method. From the paycheck's wages it subtracts the Social Security and Medicare tax taken from that paycheck (until the year's total reaches $2,000) and the exemption factors for your pay period, multiplies by the pay periods in a year, takes 5% of the result (9% of the part over $1,107,750) and divides by the pay periods. For a $60,000 salary with 1 exemption, the year's pay less 26 times $176.54 and 26 times $169 is $51,015.96, which is taxed $2,550.80, or $98.11 every two weeks at first.
How much is $60,000 a year after tax in Massachusetts?: For a single employee who claims 1 exemption on the M-4 and is paid every two weeks, a $60,000 salary takes home $1,829.34 for the first paychecks and $1,824.37 on average, which is $47,433.50 a year. The year's taxes are $5,020.08 of federal income tax, $2,680.26 of Massachusetts income tax, $3,720.08 of Social Security, $869.96 of Medicare and $276.12 of paid family and medical leave contribution.
How much is $20 an hour after tax in Massachusetts?: At 40 hours a week and weekly pay, $20 an hour is $800.00 gross and $648.35 take-home a week for a single employee with 1 exemption. That is $54.08 of federal income tax, $32.69 of Massachusetts income tax, $49.60 of Social Security, $11.60 of Medicare and $3.68 of paid leave contribution. Switch the calculator to hourly and type your own hours, including overtime.
What do I put on line 4 of the Massachusetts Form M-4?: Line 4 adds up your exemptions. Line 1 is 1 for you, or 2 if you are 65 or older. Line 2 is 4 for a spouse whose exemption is allowed, or 5 if your spouse is 65 or older. Line 3 is the number of qualified dependents, and you add 1 more if one of them will be under 12 at the end of the year. Boxes A to C on the form cover head of household, being blind and a blind spouse who is not subject to withholding. With no M-4 on file, your employer must withhold as if you had no exemptions. On the $60,000 example, 0 exemptions withhold $106.56 a paycheck against $98.11 with 1 and $96.21 with 2.
Why does my Massachusetts income tax go up partway through the year?: Because the employer may subtract your Social Security and Medicare tax from your pay before figuring the tax, but only up to $2,000 a year. On the $60,000 example that tax is $176.54 a paycheck, so the limit runs out in paycheck 12 and the Massachusetts tax rises from $98.11 to $106.93 a paycheck for the rest of the year. Circular M tells the employer to stop the step once the year's total reaches the limit. Over the year the employer withholds $2,680.26 in this example.
What is the 4% surtax, and does it change my paycheck?: Massachusetts adds 4% to income over $1,107,750 in 2026, so that part is taxed at 9%. Circular M builds it into the percentage method: when a year's taxable pay after the subtractions is over $1,107,750, the employer takes 9% of the part over that line and 5% of the rest. It only matters for very high pay, such as $100,000 a month.
Why do payroll tables give a few cents different from this calculator?: Circular M offers two ways to find the withholding: wage bracket tables and the percentage method. This calculator follows the percentage method, with the exemption factors printed for each pay period. The tables work from the middle of each wage range and divide the yearly exemption amounts by the pay periods without rounding, so for some exemption counts they come out a few cents apart. Both are the Department's own methods.
How does Massachusetts tax a bonus?: Circular M's rules for supplemental wages, such as a bonus, take 5% of the payment with no exemption subtracted, and 9% of the part that carries the year's pay over $1,107,750. This calculator treats all pay as regular pay.
What does Massachusetts paid family and medical leave cost me?: In 2026 the contribution is 0.88% of wages up to the Social Security wage base of $184,500. You can be charged all of the 0.18% family leave part and 40% of the 0.70% medical leave part, which is 0.28%, so 0.46% in all. On a $60,000 salary that is $10.62 a paycheck, $276.12 a year, and the most anyone pays in 2026 is $848.70. An employer with 25 or more covered individuals pays the other 0.42% of the medical leave part, $252.00 a year on that salary, and one with fewer owes no share of its own.
What does a 401(k) do to my Massachusetts paycheck?: Massachusetts follows the federal exclusion for 401(k) deferrals, so they come out before the state tax. Putting 6% of a $60,000 salary into a 401(k) ($138.46 a paycheck) cuts Massachusetts withholding by $6.93 and take-home pay by only $114.91. The paid leave contribution is charged on the pay before the deferral.
Who pays unemployment tax in Massachusetts, and how much is it?: The employer does, to the Department of Unemployment Assistance. A new Massachusetts employer pays 2.42% in 2026 on the first $15,000 of each employee's pay, except construction employers, which pay 6.08%. That is $363.00 a year per employee at a $60,000 salary.

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