Texas Wage Calculator & Paycheck Estimator (2026)

Texas wage calculator: 2026 take-home pay

On $60,000 a year paid every two weeks, a single Texan takes home about $1,938.07 per paycheck ($50,390 a year). That's about $2,246 a year more than the same salary in Georgia.

Texas hourly wage calculator

Texas uses the federal minimum wage of $7.25, but most jobs pay much more. At $20 an hour, 40 hours a week, you take home about $1,369.45 every two weeks. Add 10 hours of overtime a week and take-home rises to about $1,875.55, helped by the 2026 overtime deduction.

What comes out of a Texas paycheck

• Federal income tax: set by your W-4 and the IRS 2026 tables.
• Social Security, 6.2%: on wages up to $184,500 in 2026.
• Medicare, 1.45%: plus 0.9% on wages over $200,000.
• No state income tax, no city income tax, no state disability deduction. Texas unemployment tax is paid by employers only.
• Optional: 401(k), health insurance, HSA, Roth and other deductions you elect.

Because there's no state income tax, Texans can't deduct state income tax on a federal return, but they can deduct state and local sales tax if they itemize. Texas also funds services through property taxes, which affect housing costs rather than paychecks.

New for 2026: the tips and overtime deduction

For 2025–2028, federal law (P.L. 119-21) lets workers deduct up to $25,000 of qualified tips and up to $12,500 of qualified overtime pay ($25,000 if married filing jointly). The 2026 Form W-4 lets you put these amounts in Step 4(b) so less federal tax is withheld from each check, instead of waiting for a refund. "Qualified overtime" is only the extra half in time-and-a-half, not the whole overtime check.

Example: a Texas worker earning $20 an hour with 5 hours of overtime a week has about $2,600 of qualified overtime a year. With the deduction on the W-4, take-home is about $1,622.50 every two weeks. The estimator turns this on by default; switch it off under Adjust W-4 if you haven't updated your W-4. The deduction phases out above $150,000 of income ($300,000 joint) and does not reduce Social Security or Medicare.

How to use the Texas paycheck estimator

1. Choose Salary or Hourly, then enter your pay. For hourly pay, add your usual hours and any overtime hours per week.
2. Pick how often you're paid (weekly, every 2 weeks, twice a month or monthly) and your filing status from your W-4.
3. Open Adjust W-4, benefits & local tax to add dependents, 401(k), health insurance, HSA or tips.
4. Read your take-home pay per paycheck and per year. Every line shows what was taken out and why.

Common mistakes when estimating a Texas paycheck

• Assuming "no state tax" means no taxes. Federal tax and FICA still take roughly 15–25% of a typical check.
• Not updating your W-4 for overtime or tips. In a no-income-tax state, the federal deduction is your main way to raise take-home pay.
• Mixing up biweekly and semi-monthly. Every 2 weeks is 26 paychecks a year; twice a month is 24. The same salary gives a smaller biweekly check.
• Forgetting pre-tax benefits. A 401(k) lowers income tax but not Social Security or Medicare; health premiums through a cafeteria plan lower both.
• Comparing an estimate with your first paycheck of the year. Year-to-date caps (Social Security, some state insurance) mean later checks can differ.

How we calculate (and how accurate it is)

Federal income tax uses the IRS Publication 15-T (2026) percentage method for 2020-and-later W-4s, worksheet 1A, the same math payroll software uses. Social Security is 6.2% up to the 2026 wage base of $184,500 and Medicare is 1.45%, plus 0.9% above $200,000. Texas has no state income tax to withhold.

We annualize your pay, apply the tables and divide by your number of paychecks, so results can differ from your employer's per-period tables by a few cents. Tables were last checked against the official sources on October 4, 2026. This is an estimate, not tax advice. For decisions that matter, check with your payroll department or a tax professional.