How to read your pay stub, line by line

Gross pay, hours and rates

Gross pay is what you earned before anything is taken out. Above it, the stub usually lists each kind of pay with its hours and its rate: regular hours at your regular rate, overtime hours at the overtime rate, and other pay such as tips or bonuses. Check that the hours match your own record of the period.

Under federal law your employer must keep, for each nonexempt worker, the hours worked each day and each workweek, the regular hourly rate, the straight-time and overtime earnings, every addition to or deduction from the wages, and the total wages of each pay period.

In California, semimonthly or each time you are paid, you must get a statement with your gross wages, total hours worked (unless you are a salaried exempt employee), every hourly rate in effect and the hours at each rate, all deductions, net wages, the dates of the pay period, your name with only the last four digits of your Social Security number or an employee ID, and the name and address of the employer.

Sources: U.S. Department of Labor, Fact Sheet #21: Recordkeeping Requirements under the FLSA; California Labor Commissioner (DLSE), Paydays, pay periods and final wages FAQ

The overtime line

Under the FLSA, a covered nonexempt employee is owed at least one and a half times the regular rate for every hour over 40 in the workweek. On the stub, the overtime rate should be at least 1.5 times the regular rate: $33 for a $22 regular rate.

The overtime hours are counted per workweek, so a two-week pay period can have overtime in one week and none in the other. California also pays overtime by the day; the California guide covers it.

Sources: U.S. Department of Labor, Fact Sheet #23: Overtime Pay Requirements of the FLSA

Pre-tax and after-tax deductions

Some deductions come out before taxes are figured, and they lower the wages that are taxed. A pre-tax 401(k) deferral is not subject to federal income tax withholding, but it is still subject to Social Security and Medicare taxes. A Roth 401(k) deferral is subject to both.

Health coverage you pay for through your employer’s cafeteria plan (section 125) is, in most cases, exempt from federal income tax withholding and from Social Security and Medicare taxes.

That is why a stub can show two different taxable wage figures: one for federal income tax and one for Social Security and Medicare. After-tax deductions, such as a Roth deferral, come out of pay that was already taxed.

Sources: IRS, are retirement plan contributions subject to withholding for FICA, Medicare or federal income tax?; IRS, Publication 15-B (2026), Employer's Tax Guide to Fringe Benefits

Federal income tax withholding

The federal income tax line is set by the Form W-4 you gave your employer and the withholding tables of IRS Publication 15-T. If you did not give a valid W-4, the employer must withhold as if you were single or married filing separately with no other entries.

When you hand in a new W-4, the employer has to apply it no later than the first payroll period ending on or after the 30th day after receiving it. The IRS Tax Withholding Estimator helps you fill it in.

A state income tax line follows the rules of your state; this guide covers the federal lines.

Sources: IRS, Topic no. 753, Form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Certificate; IRS, Publication 15 (2026), Employer's Tax Guide

Social Security and Medicare (FICA)

The Social Security tax is 6.2% for the employee and 6.2% for the employer. For 2026, it applies only to the first $184,500 of wages; the wage base limit is the maximum wage subject to the tax for that year.

The Medicare tax is 1.45% for the employee and 1.45% for the employer, with no wage base limit. Your employer must also withhold an Additional Medicare Tax of 0.9% on your wages paid over $200,000 in a calendar year, with no employer match.

On the stub, the two lines are your share: 6.2% and 1.45% of the wages they apply to. The employer pays its matching share on top.

Sources: IRS, Topic no. 751, Social Security and Medicare withholding rates; IRS, Publication 15 (2026), Employer's Tax Guide

Net pay and year to date (YTD)

Net pay is what reaches you: gross pay minus every tax and deduction on the stub. If your net pay looks wrong, start from the gross pay and the hours, then check each deduction.

The year-to-date column adds up each line since the start of the calendar year. It is the quickest way to see how much has been withheld so far and, for a high earner, when the year’s Social Security wages reach the $184,500 limit and that line stops.

Sources: California Labor Commissioner (DLSE), Paydays, pay periods and final wages FAQ; IRS, Topic no. 751, Social Security and Medicare withholding rates

A sample stub, worked out

A made-up example, not a real employer’s stub: the time card’s default week (49.5 hours at $22), a $40 health premium through a cafeteria plan and a 5% pre-tax 401(k) deferral.

Each amount is rounded to the cent. Federal and state income tax withholding are left out: they depend on your W-4 and your state, so the last total is net pay before income tax withholding.