Bonus Tax Calculator
See how much federal income tax, Social Security, Medicare and state tax is withheld from a bonus — and how much of it you take home.
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How bonuses are taxed
The IRS treats a bonus as supplemental wages. Publication 15 gives employers two ways to withhold federal income tax from it; the calculator does both.
Flat rate: 22%
If the bonus is paid or identified separately from regular wages, the employer can withhold a flat 22%, without looking at your W-4. Supplemental wages above $1 million in a year are withheld at 37%.
Aggregate method
The bonus is added to your regular pay for the period and income tax is figured on the total. What your regular paycheck alone would have had withheld is then subtracted; the rest is the tax on the bonus.
Social Security, Medicare and state tax
6.2% and 1.45% apply to the bonus as they do to regular wages. State income tax is estimated with your state's withholding formula — the same one behind the paycheck calculator.
Federal withholding on a bonus at the flat rate
What comes out for federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare, before any state income tax and assuming wages for the year are under the Social Security wage base. On a pay stub a bonus is its own earnings line — you can add one in the pay stub generator.
| Bonus | Federal income tax (22%) | Social Security (6.2%) | Medicare (1.45%) | Left before state tax |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $1,000.00 | $220.00 | $62.00 | $14.50 | $703.50 |
| $2,500.00 | $550.00 | $155.00 | $36.25 | $1,758.75 |
| $5,000.00 | $1,100.00 | $310.00 | $72.50 | $3,517.50 |
| $10,000.00 | $2,200.00 | $620.00 | $145.00 | $7,035.00 |
| $25,000.00 | $5,500.00 | $1,550.00 | $362.50 | $17,587.50 |
Common questions
How much tax is taken out of a bonus?
Most employers withhold federal income tax at a flat 22%, plus 6.2% for Social Security and 1.45% for Medicare — 29.65% before any state income tax. A $5,000 bonus has $1,482.50 withheld for those three, leaving $3,517.50 before state tax.
What is the difference between the flat and the aggregate method?
With the flat method the employer withholds 22% of the bonus, whatever your pay. With the aggregate method the bonus is added to a regular paycheck, income tax is figured on the total as if it were one payment, and the tax already withheld from the regular pay is subtracted. The aggregate method often withholds more, because the combined amount reaches higher brackets.
Why does my bonus seem to be taxed more than my paycheck?
A bonus isn't taxed at a higher rate — it is withheld differently. The 22% flat rate may be higher than the share withheld from your regular pay. Withholding is only an advance payment: when you file your return, the bonus is taxed as ordinary income along with the rest of your wages, and any excess comes back as a refund.
Is a bonus over $1 million taxed differently?
Yes. Once supplemental wages paid to an employee in a calendar year pass $1 million, the amount above $1 million has federal income tax withheld at 37%, with no option to use another method.
Do Social Security and Medicare apply to bonuses?
Yes. A bonus is wages, so Social Security (6.2% up to the $184,500 wage base for 2026) and Medicare (1.45%, plus 0.9% on wages over $200,000 in the year) are withheld. If your wages for the year have already passed the Social Security wage base, enter them under wages paid so far and that line drops to zero.
How do states tax a bonus?
States with an income tax withhold it from bonuses too, by their own rules — some use a flat supplemental rate, others the same tables as regular pay. This calculator estimates state tax as if the bonus were added to a regular paycheck, so treat that line as an estimate.
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