New Jersey paycheck calculator
New Jersey has a graduated income tax that reaches one of the highest top rates in the country, and its withholding runs on letter-coded rate tables you pick on Form NJ-W4. New Jersey also departs from federal rules on pre-tax benefits: it excludes 401(k) deferrals but taxes HSA contributions and most Section 125 salary reductions. Every paycheck carries three small state insurance deductions for unemployment, disability and family leave.
Take-home per paycheck
$2,239
- Take-home per year
- $58,206
- Total taxes per year
- $16,794
- Effective tax rate
- 22.4%
- Marginal tax rate
- 35.8%
- New Jersey allowances assumed: 1 (you, your spouse if filing jointly, and each dependent). Your NJ-W4 may differ.
Take-home per paycheck: $2,239 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 | −$111 | −$2,881 |
| NJ UI/WF/SWF | −$7 | −$190 |
| NJ SDI | −$5 | −$143 |
| NJ FLI | −$7 | −$173 |
| Take-home pay | $2,239 | $58,206 |
- Take-home pay$58,20678%
- Federal income tax$7,67010%
- Social Security & Medicare$5,7388%
- State & local taxes$3,3864%
How New Jersey taxes your paycheck
- Up to 10.75%
- Seven brackets (eight for joint filers) from 1.4% to 10.75%, with personal exemptions instead of a standard deduction.
- NJ UI/WF/SWF, NJ SDI, NJ FLI
- NJ UI/WF/SWF 0.425% · NJ SDI 0.19% · NJ FLI 0.23%
- None
- New Jersey municipalities do not tax employees' wages. Newark's payroll tax is paid by employers, not withheld from pay.
- Aggregate
- No flat rate: a separately paid bonus is run through the regular rate table for the pay period without any allowances.
New Jersey income tax rates for 2026
These are the return rates. Your employer withholds using New Jersey's withholding method (NJ-WT percentage method — Rate A / Rate B tables (on and after Oct. 1, 2020)), which the calculator above follows.
| Taxable income | Rate |
|---|---|
| $0 – $20,000 | 1.4% |
| $20,000 – $35,000 | 1.75% |
| $35,000 – $40,000 | 3.5% |
| $40,000 – $75,000 | 5.525% |
| $75,000 – $500,000 | 6.37% |
| $500,000 – $1,000,000 | 8.97% |
| Over $1,000,000 | 10.75% |
| Taxable income | Rate |
|---|---|
| $0 – $20,000 | 1.4% |
| $20,000 – $50,000 | 1.75% |
| $50,000 – $70,000 | 2.45% |
| $70,000 – $80,000 | 3.5% |
| $80,000 – $150,000 | 5.525% |
| $150,000 – $500,000 | 6.37% |
| $500,000 – $1,000,000 | 8.97% |
| Over $1,000,000 | 10.75% |
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Regular exemption (you, and your spouse/CU partner if filing jointly) | $1,000 |
| Qualified dependent child or other dependent (each) | $1,500 |
Other taxes on New Jersey paychecks
| Employee payroll tax | Rate | Wage base | Annual max |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unemployment / Workforce Development / Supplemental Workforce Fund (UI/WF/SWF) | 0.425% | $44,800 | $190 |
| Temporary Disability Insurance (TDI) | 0.19% | $171,100 | $325 |
| Family Leave Insurance (FLI) | 0.23% | $171,100 | $394 |
$58,570 in New Jersey
$58,570 is the median annual wage in New Jersey (May 2025, BLS OEWS). A single filer paid every two weeks with no other income or deductions takes home $46,926 a year, or $1,805 per paycheck.
| Line | Every 2 weeks | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $2,253 | $58,570 |
| Federal income tax | -$186 | -$4,848 |
| Social Security | -$140 | -$3,631 |
| Medicare | -$33 | -$849 |
| State income tax | -$72 | -$1,878 |
| NJ UI/WF/SWF | -$7 | -$190 |
| NJ SDI | -$4 | -$111 |
| NJ FLI | -$5 | -$135 |
| Take-home pay | $1,805 | $46,926 |
How New Jersey withholds income tax
Employers use the Division of Taxation's percentage-method tables. For each paycheck they subtract a fixed amount for every allowance you claim on Form NJ-W4, then apply Rate A or Rate B to what is left. Single filers and married people filing separately get Rate A; married couples filing jointly, heads of household and qualifying widow(er)s get Rate B.
Two-earner couples and people with more than one job often end up under-withheld on Rate B. The NJ-W4 includes a wage chart that points you to Rate C, D or E instead, which withhold more on the same pay. This calculator uses Rate A or B based on your filing status.
The NJ-W4 has no allowance worksheet. Allowances mirror the personal exemptions on the NJ-1040, so the calculator assumes one for you, one for a spouse on a joint return and one for each dependent. Claiming zero increases your withholding.
Which pre-tax deductions New Jersey taxes
New Jersey excludes 401(k) contributions up to the federal limit, but contributions to other retirement plans, such as 403(b) and 457 plans, are included in New Jersey wages. That is why Box 16 on a New Jersey W-2 can be higher than Box 1.
New Jersey does not follow the federal treatment of most cafeteria plans. Salary-reduction and premium-conversion arrangements, including pre-tax health premiums and flexible spending accounts, remain taxable, and HSA contributions are not excluded either. Only a narrow set of employer-required cafeteria benefits and Archer MSA contributions are exempt.
Unemployment, disability and family leave deductions
New Jersey workers pay into three state funds. The unemployment, workforce development and supplemental workforce fund contributions are combined on your W-2 and stop once your wages pass a fairly low annual wage base. Temporary Disability Insurance and Family Leave Insurance continue on much higher wages before they cap out.
If your employer runs an approved private disability plan instead of the State Plan, your TDI deduction may differ. Rates and wage bases are reset every January by the Department of Labor and Workforce Development.
Local taxes and working across state lines
No New Jersey city or county taxes employees' wages. Newark levies a payroll tax, but it is charged to employers and is not deducted from paychecks.
New Jersey and Pennsylvania have a reciprocal agreement: a Pennsylvania resident working in New Jersey can file Form NJ-165 so the employer withholds Pennsylvania tax instead, and New Jersey residents working in Pennsylvania are generally withheld for New Jersey. The agreement does not cover Pennsylvania local wage taxes such as Philadelphia's.
What changed recently
- 2026: The taxable wage bases for unemployment insurance and for disability and family leave insurance both rose for 2026. Source
- 2026: New worker contribution rates for disability and family leave insurance took effect January 1, 2026. Source
- 2025: The NJ-WT employer withholding instructions were reissued in September 2025; the percentage-method rate tables in use since October 2020 still apply. Source
Questions people ask
Does New Jersey tax 401(k) contributions?
No, not up to the federal contribution limit. New Jersey does tax contributions to other retirement plans in the year you make them, including 403(b) and 457 plans, so those do not reduce your New Jersey withholding.
Are HSA contributions taxable in New Jersey?
Yes. New Jersey does not exclude HSA contributions or pre-tax health premiums taken through salary reduction, so they are included in your New Jersey wages even though they are excluded federally.
How much are NJ SDI and FLI deductions in 2026?
Workers pay 0.19% for Temporary Disability Insurance and 0.23% for Family Leave Insurance on the first $171,100 of wages in 2026, a maximum of $325.09 and $393.53. The combined unemployment and workforce fund deduction is 0.425% on the first $44,800.
What withholding rate should I choose on the NJ-W4?
Single filers are withheld at Rate A and joint filers, heads of household and qualifying widow(er)s at Rate B. If you are married and both spouses work, or you have more than one job and combined wages above $50,000, the NJ-W4 wage chart may point you to Rate C, D or E to avoid owing at tax time.
How are bonuses taxed in New Jersey?
New Jersey has no flat bonus rate. If the bonus is paid with your regular wages, tax is withheld on the combined amount. If it is paid separately, your employer applies the regular rate table to the bonus without any of your allowances.
Does Newark take a payroll tax out of my paycheck?
No. Newark's payroll tax is imposed on employers for work performed in the city, so it is not withheld from employees. No New Jersey municipality levies an income tax on wages.
Sources
- NJ-WT New Jersey Income Tax Withholding Instructions (September 2025) · retrieved 2026-10-16
- New Jersey Withholding Rate Tables (Tables for Percentage Method of Withholding) · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Form NJ-W4 Employee's Withholding Allowance Certificate (1-21) · retrieved 2026-10-16
- NJ Income Tax Rates (rate schedules 2020 and after) · retrieved 2026-10-16
- 2025 NJ-1040 Resident Return Instructions · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Exempt (Nontaxable) Income · retrieved 2026-10-16
- M-6025 W-2 Sample Reporting Guidelines (2026) · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Division of Employer Accounts — Rate Information · retrieved 2026-10-16
- New benefit rates and wage bases for 2026 (press release, Dec. 29, 2025) · retrieved 2026-10-16
- Payroll Tax (City of Newark) · 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