Louisiana paycheck calculator
Louisiana switched to a single flat income tax rate in 2025, replacing three brackets, and nearly tripled the standard deduction at the same time. For 2026 the standard deduction rose again with inflation. Withholding is now one of the simplest in the country: your employer subtracts a share of the standard deduction from each paycheck and withholds a fixed percentage of the rest.
Take-home per paycheck
$2,295
- Take-home per year
- $59,673
- Total taxes per year
- $15,327
- Effective tax rate
- 20.4%
- Marginal tax rate
- 32.7%
- Assumes Form L-4 block A = 1 (single or married filing separately).
Take-home per paycheck: $2,295 every 2 weeks
| Line | Every 2 weeks | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $2,885 | $75,000 |
| Federal income tax | −$295 | −$7,670 |
| Social Security | −$179 | −$4,650 |
| Medicare | −$42 | −$1,088 |
| State income tax | −$74 | −$1,920 |
| Take-home pay | $2,295 | $59,673 |
- Take-home pay$59,67380%
- Federal income tax$7,67010%
- Social Security & Medicare$5,7388%
- State & local taxes$1,9202%
How Louisiana taxes your paycheck
- 3% flat
- One flat 3% rate on Louisiana taxable income since 2025, after a standard deduction that is indexed for inflation.
- None
- Louisiana has no state payroll tax withheld from employees.
- None
- Louisiana parishes and cities do not levy income taxes on wages, so only state income tax is withheld. There is no employee-paid state disability or paid family leave tax.
- Aggregate
- Louisiana has no separate bonus rate. Bonuses go through the regular formula, so most bonuses are withheld at the 3.09% withholding rate.
Louisiana income tax rates for 2026
These are the return rates. Your employer withholds using Louisiana's withholding method (Computer formula method (LDR R-1306, 2026)), which the calculator above follows.
| Taxable income | Rate |
|---|---|
| Over $0 | 3% |
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Standard deduction — Single (2026 figure used in the withholding tables; final 2026 return amount may differ slightly.) | $12,875 |
| Standard deduction — Married filing separately (Same as single.) | $12,875 |
| Standard deduction — Married filing jointly (2026 figure used in the withholding tables; final 2026 return amount may differ slightly.) | $25,750 |
| Standard deduction — Qualifying surviving spouse | $25,750 |
| Standard deduction — Head of household (Head of household gets the married-joint amount.) | $25,750 |
$45,520 in Louisiana
$45,520 is the median annual wage in Louisiana (May 2025, BLS OEWS). A single filer paid every two weeks with no other income or deductions takes home $37,746 a year, or $1,452 per paycheck.
| Line | Every 2 weeks | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $1,751 | $45,520 |
| Federal income tax | -$126 | -$3,282 |
| Social Security | -$109 | -$2,822 |
| Medicare | -$25 | -$660 |
| State income tax | -$39 | -$1,009 |
| Take-home pay | $1,452 | $37,746 |
How Louisiana withholding works
The Department of Revenue's R-1306 booklet gives a one-line formula. Your employer divides the standard deduction by the number of paydays, subtracts it from your pay for the period and multiplies the rest by the withholding rate.
The withholding rate is slightly higher than the 3% income tax rate. Because withholding runs a little ahead of the actual tax, many workers will see a small refund when they file.
Form L-4 (R-1300) has one key choice. Enter 1 if you file as single or married filing separately, 2 if you file jointly, as a qualifying surviving spouse or as head of household, or 0 to have tax withheld on every dollar of pay.
What the 2025 reform changed
Act 11 of the 2024 Third Extraordinary Session repealed the old graduated rates, raised the standard deduction, and doubled it for joint filers and heads of household. It also repealed the extra exemptions for dependents, blindness and age 65, so the number of children you have no longer changes your Louisiana withholding.
The standard deduction is now indexed to inflation each January. The Department notes that the 2026 amounts used in the withholding tables may differ slightly from the final amounts allowed on 2026 returns.
Pre-tax deductions and bonuses
Louisiana income tax starts from federal adjusted gross income, so traditional 401(k) contributions, pre-tax health premiums and cafeteria-plan HSA contributions are generally left out of Louisiana wages the same way they are federally.
Louisiana does not publish a separate bonus rate. Bonuses are run through the same formula, which for most workers means the withholding rate applies to the whole bonus.
No local income tax
New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Shreveport and other Louisiana cities and parishes do not tax wages. There is also no employee-paid disability or paid family leave tax, so state income tax is the only Louisiana tax on your pay stub.
What changed recently
- 2025: Act 11 replaced the three graduated brackets with a flat 3% rate, raised the standard deduction to $12,500 (single or married filing separately) and $25,000 (joint, surviving spouse or head of household), and repealed the dependent, blind and age-65 exemptions. Source
- 2026: The first inflation adjustment raised the standard deduction used in the 2026 withholding tables to $12,875 and $25,750; employers began using the new tables with the first wages paid after December 31, 2025. Source
Questions people ask
What is Louisiana's income tax rate in 2026?
Louisiana has a flat 3% income tax on all taxable income, in place since tax year 2025. Employers withhold at 3.09% after subtracting the standard deduction.
What is the Louisiana standard deduction for 2026?
The 2026 withholding tables use $12,875 for single and married filing separately, and $25,750 for married filing jointly, qualifying surviving spouse and head of household. The Department says the final amounts on 2026 returns may differ slightly after the January 2026 inflation update.
Do I still get a Louisiana exemption for my children?
No. The 2025 reform repealed the separate exemptions for dependents, blind persons and people over 65 and replaced them with a much larger standard deduction.
What should I enter on Louisiana Form L-4?
Enter 1 if you will file single or married filing separately, or 2 if you will file jointly, as a qualifying surviving spouse or as head of household. Entering 0 means no standard deduction is subtracted, so more tax is withheld.
Does New Orleans have a city income tax?
No. No Louisiana city or parish taxes wages.
How are bonuses taxed in Louisiana?
There is no special bonus rate. The bonus goes through the regular formula, so it is typically withheld at the 3.09% withholding rate.
Sources
- R-1306 (1/26) Louisiana Withholding Tables and Formulas · retrieved 2026-10-16
- R-1210 (1/26) Withholding Tax Formula Method · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Revenue Information Bulletin 26-005: Notice Concerning Updated Withholding Tables Effective January 2026 · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Declaration of Emergency: Income Tax Withholding Tables (LAC 61:I.1501) · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Notice of Intent: Income Tax Withholding Tables (LAC 61:I.1501), Louisiana Register · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Revenue Information Bulletin 25-012: Louisiana Individual Income Tax Reform · retrieved 2026-10-16
- La. R.S. 47:111 (withholding definitions) and 47:112 (income tax withheld at source) · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Publication 15-T (2026), Federal Income Tax Withholding Methods · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Publication 15 (2026), (Circular E), Employer's Tax Guide · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Rev. Proc. 2025-32: 2026 inflation-adjusted tax items · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Form W-4 (2026), Employee's Withholding Certificate · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Publication 505 (2026), Tax Withholding and Estimated Tax · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Form 1040-ES (2026), Estimated Tax for Individuals · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Schedule 1-A (Form 1040) 2026, Additional Deductions (early-release draft) · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Schedule 8812 (Form 1040) 2026, Credits for Qualifying Children and Other Dependents (early-release draft) · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Working Families Tax Cuts: Individuals and workers (tips, overtime, seniors, car loan interest) · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Working Families Tax Cuts provisions (charitable deduction for non-itemizers, Section 70424) · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Child Tax Credit · retrieved 2026-10-16
- IR-2025-111: 401(k) limit increases to $24,500 for 2026 · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Rev. Proc. 2025-19: 2026 HSA limits · retrieved 2026-10-16
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025, median annual wage by state · retrieved 2026-10-16