Reviewed September 2026.
Take-home pay (net) is what hits your bank after taxes and deductions. A $72,000 salary is $6,000/month gross, not $6,000 spending money. Estimating net before you accept an offer: or before you rewrite a budget: keeps Budgeting basics honest.
This is a planning estimate, not a tax filing. Your real stub still wins; learn the lines in How to read your pay stub and Paycheck deductions basics.
What comes out of gross pay?
For most W-2 employees, a rough stack looks like:
- Pretax benefits: health premiums, HSA/FSA, traditional 401(k) deferrals (reduce taxable wages)
- Federal income tax withholding: based on W-4 and IRS tables, not a flat “tax rate” on the whole salary
- FICA: Social Security 6.2% of wages up to the annual wage base, plus Medicare 1.45% (extra Medicare surtax can apply at higher incomes)
- State and local income tax: 0% in some states, several percent in others
- Post-tax deductions: Roth 401(k), disability, garnishments, union dues (varies)
W-2 vs contractor cash flow is a different problem: W-2 vs 1099 tax basics. Freelancers who must self-fund tax: How much to save for taxes as a freelancer.
How do I run a quick estimate?
Worked example ($72,000 salary, single, illustrative)
Assume biweekly pay: gross per check ≈ $2,769 ($72,000 ÷ 26).
Illustrative deductions one check:
- Pretax health + traditional 401(k): $220
- Taxable wages for withholding ≈ $2,549
- FICA ≈ 6.2% + 1.45% on applicable wages ≈ $212 (simplified; wage-base caps apply at high incomes)
- Federal withholding (rough planning placeholder): $280
- State withholding (example 4% state): $102
Estimated net ≈ $2,769 − $220 − $212 − $280 − $102 ≈ $1,955 per biweekly check, or about $4,240/month across 26 checks (some months have three deposits: see Biweekly paycheck budgeting).
Change any input (filing status, state, 401(k)%, health plan) and net moves by hundreds per month. Treat online paycheck calculators as a second opinion, then confirm with HR’s sample stub when you can.
What mistakes inflate the estimate?
- Using monthly salary ÷ 12 and ignoring that biweekly pay has 26 checks (two months get three deposits)
- Forgetting FICA when people quote “25% tax”
- Counting employer 401(k) match as cash in your checking account (match goes to the plan)
- Ignoring that a raise can bump federal withholding brackets and benefit premiums together
Employer match math belongs in retirement planning, not the rent envelope: What is an employer match on a 401(k).
Checklist
- Start with annual salary ÷ pay periods (26 biweekly or 24 semimonthly).
- Subtract known pretax benefits you will elect.
- Apply FICA percentages, then a conservative federal/state withholding estimate.
- Build the budget on net, not gross.
- After the first real stub, update the estimate and your autopay map.
Educational only. Not tax advice. Withholding tables, state rules, and benefit elections change outcomes.