Federal income tax reduces your Alabama tax, and the state’s payroll formula builds that in every pay period. Your employer annualizes your wages, subtracts the federal income tax it is withholding, then takes off a standard deduction, a personal exemption and an amount for each dependent before applying the state’s rate schedule. The practical effect is that Alabama withholding grows more slowly than pay does, because every extra dollar of federal tax shrinks the income Alabama taxes.
The deductions do not stay fixed. The standard deduction steps down as gross income rises, until it reaches a floor, and the allowance for each dependent also shrinks at higher incomes. Two people with the same family situation can therefore see quite different state lines once their salaries are far apart. The rate schedule itself has a lower and a middle band before the top rate, with wider bands for married filers.
Form A-4 is Alabama’s withholding certificate. It asks for a personal exemption code (single, married, married filing separately or head of family), the number of dependents and any extra amount you want withheld. If you never hand one in, the employer must withhold as if you claimed no personal exemption at all, which takes more from each paycheck than most people expect. Updating the A-4 after a marriage or a new child is the usual fix.
Location matters too. Birmingham charges an occupational tax on wages earned for work done inside the city limits, and it applies to residents and commuters alike, while a Birmingham resident working outside the city owes none of it. Pick Birmingham as your work location in the calculator to include it.
Alabama has no reciprocal agreements with neighboring states. Commuters from Georgia or Mississippi have Alabama tax withheld like anyone else working here, and Alabama residents who work in a state that taxes wages get credit for that state’s tax against their Alabama withholding.
How Alabama taxes your paycheck
State income tax withholding
On the tax return, Alabama taxes income in brackets, and the rate on the highest bracket is 5%. Withholding on the highest slice of pay works out to 3.15%, below the return's rate, because Alabama lets you deduct the federal income tax you pay; so withholding as a share of pay levels off, at 4.0% of $150,000, instead of rising toward 5%. The withholding figures here follow Alabama's own instructions for employers.
For a single filer paid every two weeks, Alabama withholds 3.9% of a $30,000 salary and 4.0% of $150,000:
| Salary | Alabama tax withheld | Share of pay |
|---|---|---|
| $30,000 | $1,175 | 3.9% |
| $50,000 | $2,069 | 4.1% |
| $75,000 | $3,127 | 4.2% |
| $100,000 | $4,102 | 4.1% |
| $150,000 | $6,023 | 4.0% |
City and county taxes
Our 2026 tables include one local tax in Alabama. Pick yours in the calculator under the city or county you work in, and the one you live in. If yours is not listed, choose "Other / not listed" and enter the rate from your pay stub.
- Birmingham
The guide to local income taxes covers who owes them and how credits between cities work.
Living in one state and working in another
Alabama has no reciprocal agreements, so it withholds from everyone who works there, wherever they live. If you live elsewhere, your home state may withhold too, usually less a credit for the Alabama tax.
If you live in Alabama and the job is across a state line, both states withhold, but Alabama takes the other state's tax off its own amount. The calculator does this when you enter both states, and the guide to reciprocity agreements explains where neighboring states skip withholding altogether.
Alabama take-home pay by salary
Net pay per paycheck at each salary, single with no 401(k), benefits or extra withholding, living and working in Alabama. It runs from $965.76 every two weeks on $30,000 to $4,144.91 on $150,000. For a 401(k), health premiums or a different filing status, use the calculator above.
| Salary | Weekly | Every two weeks | Twice a month | Monthly | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $30,000 | $482.87 | $965.76 | $1,046.23 | $2,092.48 | $25,110 |
| $40,000 | $628.68 | $1,257.35 | $1,362.12 | $2,724.25 | $32,691 |
| $50,000 | $774.73 | $1,549.47 | $1,678.57 | $3,357.17 | $40,286 |
| $60,000 | $920.79 | $1,841.57 | $1,995.04 | $3,990.09 | $47,881 |
| $75,000 | $1,124.35 | $2,248.69 | $2,436.09 | $4,872.16 | $58,466 |
| $90,000 | $1,316.02 | $2,632.06 | $2,851.39 | $5,702.79 | $68,434 |
| $100,000 | $1,443.82 | $2,887.63 | $3,128.27 | $6,256.54 | $75,078 |
| $125,000 | $1,762.12 | $3,524.23 | $3,817.92 | $7,635.85 | $91,630 |
| $150,000 | $2,072.46 | $4,144.91 | $4,490.32 | $8,980.64 | $107,768 |
Hourly pay after tax in Alabama
At 40 hours a week, $25.00 an hour comes to $803.94 in a weekly paycheck and $41,805 over the year, which is $20.10 for each hour worked. Overtime, tips and a different schedule change these figures: switch the calculator to its Hourly tab to enter them.
| Hourly wage | Weekly paycheck | Year | Per hour after tax |
|---|---|---|---|
| $15.00 | $500.36 | $26,019 | $12.51 |
| $20.00 | $652.04 | $33,906 | $16.30 |
| $25.00 | $803.94 | $41,805 | $20.10 |
| $30.00 | $955.84 | $49,704 | $23.90 |
| $40.00 | $1,229.13 | $63,915 | $30.73 |
| $50.00 | $1,494.93 | $77,737 | $37.37 |
Worked example: the median wage in Alabama
The median annual wage in Alabama is $45,670: half of all jobs pay more and half pay less, in the Bureau of Labor Statistics wage survey for May 2025 (all occupations; survey date May 31, 2025). Paid every two weeks as a single filer, with no 401(k) or benefits, that salary works out like this.
| Line | Each paycheck | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $1,756.54 | $45,670.00 |
| Federal income tax | $126.94 | $3,300.43 |
| Social Security | $108.91 | $2,831.65 |
| Medicare | $25.47 | $662.22 |
| Alabama income tax | $72.25 | $1,878.50 |
| Take-home pay | $1,422.97 | $36,997.20 |
You keep 81.0% of gross pay. Of the $8,673 withheld, federal income tax is the largest part at $3,300, followed by Social Security at $2,832.
Alabama paycheck questions
How much is $45,670 a year after taxes in Alabama?
Paid every two weeks as a single filer with no pre-tax deductions, $45,670 a year in Alabama leaves $36,997 after tax, or $1,422.97 a paycheck. Federal income tax takes $3,300 and Social Security and Medicare $3,494; Alabama income tax takes $1,879. $45,670 is the median annual wage for all jobs in Alabama in the Bureau of Labor Statistics survey for May 2025.
What is the top income tax rate in Alabama on a paycheck?
On the tax return, Alabama taxes income in brackets, and the rate on the highest bracket is 5%. Withholding on the highest slice of pay works out to 3.15%, below the return's rate, because Alabama lets you deduct the federal income tax you pay; so withholding as a share of pay levels off, at 4.0% of $150,000, instead of rising toward 5%. At the median wage, Alabama withholds 4.1% of gross pay.
Do cities or counties in Alabama tax wages?
Yes. Our 2026 tables include Birmingham. Anywhere else, choose "Other / not listed" and enter the rate from your pay stub.
I live in another state and work in Alabama. Which state withholds?
Alabama has no reciprocal agreements, so it withholds from everyone who works there. Your home state may withhold too, usually less a credit for the Alabama tax.
What is $75,000 a year biweekly in Alabama?
$2,248.69 a paycheck, single, with no 401(k) or other deductions. Paid twice a month it is $2,436.09, and monthly $4,872.16. Over the year that is $58,466.
Sources
Rules checked . How we calculate.