No state income tax comes out of a Washington paycheck, but two state programs do, and they make the Washington stub longer than those in most other states without an income tax. The first is Paid Family and Medical Leave. The premium is split between employer and employee, with the employee carrying the larger share, and it stops once your wages for the year reach the Social Security wage base. Employers with fewer staff do not have to pay their part but must still collect yours, and some employers choose to cover part or all of the employee share themselves.
The second is the WA Cares Fund, the state’s long-term care insurance program. It is paid entirely by the employee and, unlike Paid Leave, has no wage cap, so it keeps running on every dollar of salary. Some workers hold an approved exemption from the Employment Security Department; once they give the approval letter to their employer, nothing is deducted. The calculator below has a box for that case. Tips are left out of the wages both programs are charged on.
A third deduction can appear that this calculator does not model: workers’ compensation. Employers may take an employee share as an hourly amount that depends on the industry risk class, so it varies too much by job to estimate. Check your stub for an L&I line.
Washington does not tax income at the city or county level either. A new tax on very high incomes has been enacted, but it starts in a later year and has no effect on current paychecks.
The lack of an income tax shapes commuting around Vancouver and Spokane. Washington residents who work in Oregon have Oregon tax withheld in full, and Washington has no tax to credit against it, so living on the Washington side does not avoid Oregon tax on an Oregon job. Idaho works the same way for people commuting from Spokane to Coeur d’Alene. For the federal side, the W-4 helper shows how to set withholding when federal tax is the only income tax you pay.
How Washington taxes your paycheck
State income tax withholding
Washington has no state income tax on wages, so nothing is withheld for it and there is no state withholding certificate to fill in. Federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare are withheld as everywhere else, and Washington adds the payroll levies below.
Payroll levies
Washington takes two payroll levies besides any income tax, together $874 a year at the median wage.
- WA Paid Family & Medical Leave (employee): 0.8072% of wages up to $184,500 a year. On the median wage that is $508.31 a year.
- WA Cares Fund (long-term care): 0.58% of all wages, with no yearly cap. On the median wage that is $365.30 a year. Workers with an approved exemption pay nothing; the calculator has a box for it.
City and county taxes
No Washington city or county taxes wages either, so the levies above are the only Washington lines on a pay stub.
Living in one state and working in another
With no income tax, Washington has nothing to withhold from people who commute in. If you live in Washington and work in a state that taxes wages, that state withholds and Washington gives nothing back, because there is no Washington tax to credit it against.
Washington 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 Washington. It runs from $994.96 every two weeks on $30,000 to $4,296.55 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 | $497.46 | $994.96 | $1,077.86 | $2,155.74 | $25,869 |
| $40,000 | $649.34 | $1,298.66 | $1,406.88 | $2,813.76 | $33,765 |
| $50,000 | $801.18 | $1,602.38 | $1,735.88 | $3,471.79 | $41,662 |
| $60,000 | $953.04 | $1,906.06 | $2,064.90 | $4,129.81 | $49,558 |
| $75,000 | $1,164.47 | $2,328.93 | $2,523.01 | $5,046.00 | $60,552 |
| $90,000 | $1,363.39 | $2,726.79 | $2,954.02 | $5,908.04 | $70,897 |
| $100,000 | $1,496.03 | $2,992.03 | $3,241.37 | $6,482.74 | $77,793 |
| $125,000 | $1,826.34 | $3,652.67 | $3,957.06 | $7,914.13 | $94,969 |
| $150,000 | $2,148.28 | $4,296.55 | $4,654.59 | $9,309.19 | $111,710 |
Hourly pay after tax in Washington
At 40 hours a week, $25.00 an hour comes to $831.55 in a weekly paycheck and $43,241 over the year, which is $20.79 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 | $515.70 | $26,816 | $12.89 |
| $20.00 | $673.62 | $35,029 | $16.84 |
| $25.00 | $831.55 | $43,241 | $20.79 |
| $30.00 | $989.47 | $51,453 | $24.74 |
| $40.00 | $1,273.22 | $66,207 | $31.83 |
| $50.00 | $1,549.07 | $80,551 | $38.73 |
Worked example: the median wage in Washington
The median annual wage in Washington is $62,990: 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 | $2,422.69 | $62,990.00 |
| Federal income tax | $206.88 | $5,378.88 |
| Social Security | $150.21 | $3,905.46 |
| Medicare | $35.13 | $913.38 |
| Washington income tax | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| WA Paid Family & Medical Leave (employee) | $19.55 | $508.31 |
| WA Cares Fund (long-term care) | $14.05 | $365.30 |
| Take-home pay | $1,996.87 | $51,918.67 |
You keep 82.4% of gross pay. Of the $11,071 withheld, federal income tax is the largest part at $5,379, followed by Social Security at $3,905.
Washington paycheck questions
How much is $62,990 a year after taxes in Washington?
Paid every two weeks as a single filer with no pre-tax deductions, $62,990 a year in Washington leaves $51,919 after tax, or $1,996.87 a paycheck. Federal income tax takes $5,379 and Social Security and Medicare $4,819; state payroll levies take $874. $62,990 is the median annual wage for all jobs in Washington in the Bureau of Labor Statistics survey for May 2025.
Does Washington have a state income tax?
No. Washington does not tax wages, so no state income tax is withheld. Your employer does deduct WA Paid Family & Medical Leave (employee) (0.8072% of wages up to $184,500 a year) and WA Cares Fund (long-term care) (0.58% of all wages, with no yearly cap).
What is $75,000 a year biweekly in Washington?
$2,328.93 a paycheck, single, with no 401(k) or other deductions. Paid twice a month it is $2,523.01, and monthly $5,046.00. Over the year that is $60,552.
Sources
- IRS Publication 15-T, Federal Income Tax Withholding Methods
- Social Security Administration, contribution and benefit base
- Washington: no state income tax on wages
- WA Paid Family & Medical Leave (employee)
- WA Cares Fund (long-term care)
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
Rules checked . How we calculate.