How Gross. calculates
your paycheck

1. Model assumptions

• W-2 wages only — self-employment income, capital gains, rental income, and other non-wage income are not modeled.
• Standard deduction applied — no itemized deductions, no Schedule A.
• No credits or exemptions — child tax credit, EITC, education credits etc. are out of scope. Results will understate take-home for those who qualify.
• Resident-side local tax rates — nonresident withholding (where an employer withholds for your work city) is not modeled in v1.
• Pre-tax 401(k) reduces federal and most state taxable income — does not reduce FICA base. PA-specific 401(k) non-deductibility is a known v1 approximation.
• Section 125 health premiums (employer-sponsored) reduce both federal taxable income and FICA wages.
• Ohio school district income tax (SDIT) is never auto-applied from ZIP code alone. ZIP→school-district mapping requires Finder boundary data. User must confirm their district.
• Single filing status used for all precomputed SEO tables (see locality pages). Use the calculator for your actual status.

2. Federal tax

Income tax brackets & standard deduction

Source: IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32. 2026 inflation-adjusted brackets. Standard deductions: $16,100 (single), $32,200 (married filing jointly), $24,150 (head of household).

3. FICA (Social Security & Medicare)

• Social Security: 6.2% on wages up to $184,500 (2026 wage base).
• Medicare: 1.45% on all wages (no ceiling).
• Additional Medicare: 0.9% on wages above $200,000 (single/HoH) or $250,000 (MFJ). Note: this threshold is not inflation-adjusted.
• Health premiums reduce FICA wages (Section 125 cafeteria plan). 401(k) contributions do NOT reduce FICA wages.

4. Local & state-level sources

Every jurisdiction carries a status: VERIFIED (official government publication only) or SECONDARY (aggregator or pending official source). The UI shows a BETA badge whenever any SECONDARY or approximate rule contributed to a result.