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Georgia Paycheck Calculator 2026 — 4.99% Flat Tax & Take-Home Pay
Georgia cut its flat income tax to 4.99% for 2026 and raised the standard deduction to $15,000 — see exactly what that means for your paycheck, plus federal tax and FICA — free, private, no sign-up.
How Georgia Paychecks Work
- Federal tax: progressive brackets 10%–37% minus the $16,100 standard deduction (single, 2026) — same as everywhere.
- FICA: 6.2% Social Security (up to the $184,500 wage base) + 1.45% Medicare — same as everywhere.
- State tax: 4.99% flat. House Bill 463 cut Georgia's rate from 5.19% retroactive to January 1, 2026. The 4.99% applies to Georgia taxable income after a $15,000 standard deduction (single). Withholding follows Form G-4.
Worked Example: $85,000 Single Filer
Georgia vs Texas vs California on $85,000
The same single filer keeps $65,134 in Georgia against $68,627 in Texas and $63,760 in California. Georgia's 2026 cut to 4.99% plus the $15,000 standard deduction narrowed the gap with zero-tax states. Model any state in the calculator.
Illustrative estimate for a single filer, standard deduction, no pre-tax contributions. Confirm with the IRS or a tax professional.
Federal Withholding on a Georgia Paycheck
Only one income tax touches a Georgia paycheck: the federal one. Withholding follows the IRS percentage method in Publication 15-T, and three inputs drive it: your filing status, the dependents and credits you claim on Form W-4, and any extra withholding you request. Change any of the three and the same salary produces a different stub, which is why two Georgia workers earning $85,000 can take home different amounts.
Federal tax is progressive, which means it applies in slices, not to the whole salary at once. Only the dollars inside each bracket are taxed at that bracket's rate, so a single filer's effective rate is always lower than their top marginal rate. The standard deduction then removes a further slice of income from tax entirely before the brackets even start. Pre-tax items shrink the taxable wage base further: 401(k) contributions and health premiums taken pre-tax reduce the wages the percentages apply to, though the exact treatment differs by deduction type, so read your stub labels rather than assuming.
Our US paycheck calculator models this with an editable withholding percentage instead of hard-coding tables that Congress and inflation adjust every year. If you want the precise official arithmetic for the current year, Publication 15-T is the source the payroll industry itself uses.
FICA: the Two Lines That Always Appear
Below the federal line sit two flat deductions that behave nothing like income tax. Social Security takes 6.2% of wages up to the Social Security Administration's annual wage base, a cap it resets every year. Medicare takes 1.45% of all wages with no cap, plus an additional 0.9% on earnings above $200,000 for single filers ($250,000 joint) — those thresholds are set in statute, not adjusted annually. Your employer matches the 6.2% and the 1.45% dollar for dollar; the additional 0.9% is employee-only.
On the $85,000 example: Social Security is $85,000 x 0.062 = $5,270, comfortably below any recent wage-base cap, and Medicare is $85,000 x 0.0145 = $1,232.50. Together with federal withholding that is the entire deduction stack on a Georgia stub. There is no third line, which is exactly the point of the next section.
What Georgia Does Differently
Georgia is mid-transition: it scrapped six progressive brackets for a flat tax in 2024 and has cut the rate every year since — 5.39% to 5.19% to 4.99% for 2026 (House Bill 463), with further 0.125-point annual cuts scheduled toward 3.99% if revenue targets hold. The 2026 package also raised the standard deduction to $15,000 single / $30,000 joint, so the 4.99% skips the first $15,000 entirely. Withholding uses Form G-4 (not the federal W-4) and Department of Revenue tables — note employers withheld at 5.19% until the HB 463 signing on May 11, 2026, so early-2026 stubs may show the old rate. There is no local income tax in Georgia.
Overtime and Pay-Frequency Math
Georgia follows the federal Fair Labor Standards Act: non-exempt employees earn 1.5x their regular rate for hours over 40 in a week, with no stricter state daily-overtime rule on top. At $30/hour and a 45-hour week: 40 x $30 = $1,200 straight time, 5 x $45 = $225 overtime, $1,425 gross for the week. Salaried exempt employees are outside this rule under the duties-and-salary-basis test, so a $85,000 salary means $85,000 of gross regardless of hours.
Pay frequency then decides the per-check number without changing the annual total. On $85,000: weekly (52) = $1,634.62; biweekly (26) = $3,269.23; semi-monthly (24) = $3,541.67; monthly (12) = $7,083.33. The existing $85,000 example uses biweekly, the most common Georgia schedule. Note that overtime and bonuses can push individual checks into higher withholding on that check alone; withholding per check annualizes the amount, so a spike check withholds as though you earned at that pace all year, with the balance settling at filing time.
New to Georgia Paychecks: Reading Your First Stub
A first Georgia pay stub surprises newcomers in two ways: there is no state line at all, and the federal and FICA lines look larger than expected because nothing else shares the load. Read it top to bottom. Gross is what you earned. Pre-tax items come off next. FITW (federal income tax withheld) follows your W-4. Then the two FICA lines. The remainder is net. The year-to-date column repeats the same stack cumulatively, which is how you spot a drift early — if YTD federal withholding looks high relative to gross in March, file a new W-4 rather than waiting until filing season. Anyone arriving mid-year should set the W-4 for the new situation on day one: settings calibrated to a previous state system will systematically over- or under-withhold here. Our US paycheck calculator lets you model the stub before the first one prints.
Tipped, Hourly, and Third-Paycheck Months
Georgia hospitality runs on tipped wages, and the federal rules are specific. Employers may pay a cash wage as low as $2.13 per hour provided tips bring total hourly earnings to at least the $7.25 federal minimum; if they do not, the employer makes up the difference. Overtime for tipped and hourly staff alike is 1.5 times the regular rate past 40 hours a week. Separately, biweekly earners get two third-paycheck months every year: 26 paychecks cannot divide evenly into 12 months, so two months contain three paydays. The annual total is unchanged, but budgeting monthly on two checks and treating the third as surplus is the standard move. Monthly billers should note the mirror image: semi-monthly schedules never produce a third check, so compare offers on annual gross, not per-check size.
Self-Employed in Georgia: What Changes
Without an employer there is no withholding at all, so the full stack lands on you four times a year. Self-employment tax replaces both halves of FICA: 12.4% for Social Security up to the annual wage base plus 2.9% for Medicare, with the additional 0.9% over the statutory thresholds exactly as for employees — 15.3% combined before income tax. Half of that combined amount is deductible when computing income tax, which softens it but does not remove it. Federal estimated payments fall on the fixed calendar: January 15, April 15, June 15 and September 15, shifting to the next business day when the date lands on a weekend. Georgia adds nothing on top: no state estimates, no state return, no state-level equivalent to argue about. Miss a federal quarter and interest accrues from the due date, so new freelancers should set calendar reminders before the first April deadline surprises them. Keep 25 to 30 percent of each client payment in a separate account and the quarters stop hurting.
Bonuses, Commissions, and Supplemental Pay
Not everything on a Georgia stub follows the salary rules. Bonuses, commissions, severance, and back pay are supplemental wages, and employers may withhold federal tax on them at a flat 22% up to $1 million in a year (37% above that), instead of running them through the W-4 percentage method. That is why a $5,000 bonus can arrive as $3,900 before FICA even though your salary withholding implies a lower rate: $5,000 x 0.22 = $1,100 held back, plus 6.2% Social Security and 1.45% Medicare on top. Georgia adds nothing either way, so a Georgia bonus beats the same bonus in California by the state slice alone. The flat rate is only withholding, not the final tax — the actual liability settles at filing time against your real marginal rate, which is why bonus-heavy earners in Georgia often see meaningful refunds. Overtime already covered above counts as regular wages, not supplemental pay, so the two rules never stack on the same dollar.
The Honest Footnote: Total Burden Matters
Georgia's trajectory matters more than its current rate: if the scheduled cuts hold, the state approaches a 3.99% flat tax within a few years — among the cheapest in the Southeast. But the rate cuts are conditional on revenue, not guaranteed. Remote workers generally owe tax where they physically live. Anyone relocating mid-2026 should check that withholding switched to 4.99% after May.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Georgia's 2026 income tax rate?
A flat 4.99% on Georgia taxable income (House Bill 463, retroactive to January 1, 2026). Further annual cuts toward 3.99% are scheduled but conditional on state revenue.
How much will I take home in Georgia on $85,000?
Roughly $65,130 per year (≈$2,505 biweekly) for a single filer — about $135 less per paycheck than the same salary in Georgia.
What is Georgia's standard deduction for 2026?
$15,000 for single filers ($30,000 joint) — raised by the 2026 package. The 4.99% applies only to income above it.
How is overtime calculated on a Georgia paycheck?
Georgia follows the federal FLSA: 1.5 times the regular rate for hours over 40 per week. At $30/hour, a 45-hour week grosses $1,425 (40 x $30 plus 5 x $45). Salaried exempt employees are outside the overtime rule.
Where do the federal tax tables come from?
IRS Publication 15-T, which sets out the percentage method employers use. Brackets, the standard deduction and the wage base move most years, so our calculator uses an editable withholding percentage and this page explains mechanics rather than printing tables that expire.
What is Form G-4?
Georgia's Employee's Withholding Allowance Certificate — the state equivalent of the federal W-4. Your employer uses it with Department of Revenue tables to set state withholding each pay period.
Do I pay Georgia tax if I just moved here?
Georgia taxes income earned while you are a Georgia resident. The move splits the year; file Form G-4 with your new employer on arrival week.
What is a third-paycheck month?
On a biweekly schedule (26 pays a year), two calendar months contain three paydays instead of two. Annual gross is identical; only the timing shifts. Per-check withholding can look high in a three-pay month because each check is annualized independently, with the difference settling at filing time.
Why was my Georgia bonus taxed so much?
It was withheld, not taxed, at the 22% flat federal supplemental rate (plus FICA), and Georgia withholds 4.99% on the bonus as well. Your actual liability settles at filing time, which is why bonus-heavy earners often see refunds.
How do I compare two Georgia job offers?
Compare annual gross first, subtract 4.99% of income above $15,000, then price benefits. With no local income tax, the math stays simple — but remember the rate is scheduled to keep falling, so a multi-year view favors Georgia more each year.
Do Georgia freelancers pay quarterly taxes?
Federal estimated tax, yes: January 15, April 15, June 15 and September 15. Georgia estimated payments (Form 500-ES) follow the same quarterly calendar. Budget around 30 percent of each payment for the combined bill.
Should I update my W-4 when I move to Georgia?
Yes — the federal W-4 and Georgia Form G-4, on arrival week. If you arrived before May 2026, verify your withholding switched from 5.19% to 4.99% after the HB 463 signing.
Sources: GA Department of Revenue (dor.georgia.gov); 2026 Employer's Tax Guide (Sept 2026): 4.99% flat (HB 463), $15,000 single standard deduction. Federal figures: IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32, SSA.gov. Accessed 2026-11-01.
Disclaimer: Estimates only — not tax advice. Confirm with the IRS or a tax professional.