California paycheck calculator
California's 6% income tax leaves a $75,000 salary about $57,093 a year in take-home, after 2026 federal and FICA taxes.
California tax & wage facts
State income tax
Minimum wage
Take-home on $75k
Median household income
Graduated 1%–12.3% (2026 brackets), plus 1% on taxable income over $1 million; effective ~6% at typical incomes.
California wage law in 2026, $16.90, daily overtime and SDI
Checked against California agency and statute sources on 26 October 2026. Sources are listed at the end of this section.
| Minimum wage | $16.90 an hour for all employers from 1 January 2026. |
|---|---|
| Next change | $17.40 on 1 January 2027, certified by the Director of Finance on 31 July 2026 (CPI-W up 2.99%). |
| Tipped employees | No tip credit. Tipped staff receive the full $16.90 before tips (US DOL tipped table). |
| Overtime | 1.5 times after 8 hours in a day or 40 in a week; 2 times after 12 hours in a day; on the 7th straight workday, 1.5 times for the first 8 hours and 2 times after that (Labor Code 510, per US DOL summary). |
| Payday rule | Most wages at least twice each calendar month on paydays designated in advance (Labor Code 204, per US DOL). |
| State income tax | Graduated, 1% to 12.3%. The 2026 brackets indexed by FTB start at $11,456 for a single filer, and 1% more applies over $1 million. The 2026 standard deduction is $5,900 single; EDD’s 2026 withholding tables still use the 2025 figure of $5,706. |
| Payroll deduction | State Disability Insurance: 1.3% of all wages in 2026, with no wage cap (EDD). |
California indexes its minimum wage by statute. Each summer the Director of Finance compares the year’s CPI-W change with a 3.5% cap and certifies the next rate, which applies to every employer from 1 January. The 31 July 2026 certification set $17.40 for 2027, a 2.99% rise from the current $16.90. California allows no tip credit, so servers and bartenders earn the full minimum before tips.
Overtime is where California differs most from other states. Hours count by the day as well as the week: anything over 8 in a workday is time and a half, anything over 12 is double time, and the seventh consecutive day in a workweek has its own premium. A worker on four 10-hour shifts earns 8 hours of overtime pay in a week that totals 40 hours, which would earn none under the federal rule.
California paychecks also carry a deduction most states do not have. State Disability Insurance funds disability and paid family leave benefits, and since 2024 it applies to every dollar of wages; the 2026 rate is 1.3%.
Worked paycheck for full time at the California minimum wage
At $16.90 an hour a full-time year is $35,152. Paid semimonthly, each check covers about 86.67 hours.
| Gross pay, semimonthly ($16.90 × 86.67 hours) | $1,464.67 |
| Federal income tax (2026 brackets, standard deduction) | −$84.93 |
| Social Security (6.2%) and Medicare (1.45%) | −$112.05 |
| California income tax, calculator estimate | −$87.88 |
| Take-home per paycheck | $1,179.81 |
| Take-home per year ($35,152 gross) | $28,316 |
Two California items move this result. The calculator applies a flat 6% estimate, but at this wage California’s graduated schedule starts at 1% and EDD’s 2026 method first subtracts a $5,706 standard deduction, so actual state withholding is much lower than the $87.88 a check shown. SDI goes the other way: it is not in the table and takes 1.3% of gross, about $457 a year or $19.04 a check.
Sources
- California Department of Finance, minimum wage determination and certification (31 July 2026), PDF
- California EDD, Contribution and Withholding Rates (SDI 2026)
- California EDD, 2026 Withholding Schedules, Method B, PDF
- Franchise Tax Board, Tax News: 2026 Indexing (2026 tax rate schedules and standard deduction)
- Franchise Tax Board, 2025 California Tax Rate Schedules, PDF
- US Department of Labor, State Minimum Wage Laws (updated July 1, 2026)
- US Department of Labor, State Payday Requirements
- US Department of Labor, Minimum Wages for Tipped Employees
Common questions about California pay
Does California have a state income tax?
Yes. Graduated 1%–12.3% (2026 brackets), plus 1% on taxable income over $1 million; effective ~6% at typical incomes. On a $75,000 salary that is about $4,500/year in California state income tax in this estimate.
What is the take-home pay on $75,000 in California?
About $57,093/year ($2,196 per bi-weekly paycheck) for a single filer, after roughly $7,670 federal tax, $5,738 FICA, and $4,500 California state tax. Adjust the calculator for your salary and filing status.
What is the minimum wage in California?
The California minimum wage is $16.90 per hour. At full time (about 2,080 hours a year) that is roughly $35,152 gross per year.
California state income tax brackets (2026, FTB indexed schedule, single filer)
Marginal rates on taxable income. The calculator above uses a simpler effective-rate estimate; these brackets show the real marginal structure.
| Taxable income | Marginal rate |
|---|---|
| $0 – $11,456 | 1% |
| $11,456 – $27,157 | 2% |
| $27,157 – $42,861 | 4% |
| $42,861 – $59,498 | 6% |
| $59,498 – $75,197 | 8% |
| $75,197 – $384,109 | 9.3% |
| $384,109 – $460,927 | 10.3% |
| $460,927 – $768,213 | 11.3% |
| $768,213 – and up | 12.3% |
Single filers only. Married and head-of-household brackets differ.
California payroll quirks to know
Things the calculator above does not capture, drawn from state revenue departments and official sources.
- California charges State Disability Insurance (SDI) at 1.3% of all wages in 2026, with no wage cap since 2024 (EDD). It is not modeled in this estimate.
- 401(k) contributions are pre-tax for California state tax, matching federal treatment (FTB Form 540).
- The Behavioral Health Services Tax (formerly the Mental Health Services Tax) adds 1% on taxable income over $1,000,000 (FTB Form 540, line 62), so the top rate is 13.3%. It is not modeled here.
- The 2026 brackets and the 2026 standard deduction ($5,900 single, $11,800 joint) come from FTB’s 2026 indexing notice; FTB publishes the complete 2026 tables in late December. EDD’s 2026 withholding tables still use the 2025 thresholds and a $5,706 standard deduction, so paycheck withholding will not match the return exactly.
- California has no local income tax; city and county sales taxes vary but do not affect take-home pay directly.
Other states
Compare your take-home pay in another state.