California take-home pay calculator
What California withholds on top of federal tax, and what reaches your account.
What most calculators get wrong here
California SDI is 1.3% of every dollar you earn. The wage cap was removed in 2024, so calculators that still apply one understate withholding at higher salaries. California also does not follow the federal HSA deduction, which means an HSA contribution lowers your federal tax but not your California tax.
How California taxes wages
California taxes wage income on a bracket schedule. Only the income inside a bracket pays that bracket’s rate.
| From | Up to | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| $0 | $11,079 | 1.00% |
| $11,079 | $26,264 | 2.00% |
| $26,264 | $41,452 | 4.00% |
| $41,452 | $57,542 | 6.00% |
| $57,542 | $72,724 | 8.00% |
| $72,724 | $371,479 | 9.30% |
| $371,479 | $445,771 | 10.30% |
| $445,771 | $742,953 | 11.30% |
| $742,953 | $1,000,000 | 12.30% |
| $1,000,000 | and above | 13.30% |
How California treats pre-tax deductions
- HSA contributions
- Taxed by the state
- Traditional 401(k) contributions
- Pre-tax, as federally
What else California withholds
| Programme | Rate | Wage cap |
|---|---|---|
| State disability insurance | 1.30% | No cap |
What this calculator models for California
Every figure above comes from a published California document. These are the rules behind those figures that this calculator applies, approximates, or leaves out.
| Rule | In this calculator |
|---|---|
| California has not published every figure for this tax year yet, so some come from the prior year or from a withholding circular. | Approximated |
| California builds its withholding tables on a construct that is not the annual tax bill, so your payslip and this page can differ by a small amount that settles when you file. | Approximated |
Questions about take-home pay in California
Sources
Every California figure on this page is transcribed from the document it links to below, last checked .
Enter your own salary in the take-home pay calculator to see these California figures applied to it.