This biweekly paycheck calculator shows your take-home pay per biweekly check — the most common U.S. pay schedule, with 26 paychecks a year. Enter an annual salary or an hourly rate, and this biweekly take-home pay calculator estimates your net pay per check after 2026 federal income tax and FICA. Whether you are budgeting around 26 paychecks or planning for those two "extra" three-check months, the calculator gives you a clear per-check number with a full breakdown.
A biweekly schedule pays you every two weeks, which works out to 26 paychecks a year. This biweekly paycheck calculator takes your annual salary (or annualizes your hourly rate at rate × hours × 52), subtracts any pre-tax deductions, applies 2026 federal income tax and the 7.65% FICA tax, then divides the annual net by 26 to give your take-home per check. It is the simplest way to see what actually lands in your bank account every other Friday.
| Step | Calculation (2026) | On $52,000 salary (single) |
|---|---|---|
| Gross annual | Salary or rate × hrs × 52 | $52,000 |
| Federal income tax | 2026 brackets after $16,100 deduction | $4,060 |
| FICA | 7.65% | $3,978 |
| Net annual | Gross − taxes | $43,962 |
| Per biweekly check | Net ÷ 26 | $1,691 |
A single worker earning $52,000 in a no-income-tax state takes home about $1,691 per biweekly paycheck, or roughly $43,962 a year after federal tax and FICA.
There are 26 biweekly paychecks in a year because 52 weeks divided by 2 equals 26. Since 26 checks do not divide evenly into 12 months, two months each year contain three paychecks instead of two. Most people budget around two checks per month, so those two extra checks each year are a natural opportunity to save, invest, or pay down debt without disrupting the monthly budget.
| Annual salary | Net per year (single, no state tax) | Per biweekly check |
|---|---|---|
| $40,000 | ~$34,300 | ~$1,319 |
| $52,000 | ~$43,962 | ~$1,691 |
| $65,000 | ~$54,408 | ~$2,093 |
| $80,000 | ~$65,110 | ~$2,504 |
| $100,000 | ~$79,180 | ~$3,045 |
Figures are for a single filer in a no-income-tax state using the 2026 federal brackets and standard FICA. In states with income tax, your biweekly net would be lower — use a state-specific calculator to add it.
These three schedules are easy to confuse but pay differently across the year:
| Pay frequency | Paychecks per year | Check size (on $52,000 net $43,962) |
|---|---|---|
| Weekly | 52 | ~$845 |
| Biweekly | 26 | ~$1,691 |
| Semi-monthly | 24 | ~$1,832 |
| Monthly | 12 | ~$3,664 |
Biweekly (26 checks) and semi-monthly (24 checks) are the two most common salaried schedules. Semi-monthly checks are a bit larger because the same annual pay is split into fewer periods, but biweekly gives you those two bonus checks each year.
Pre-tax deductions — like 401(k) contributions, health insurance premiums, and HSA contributions — come out of your gross pay before income tax is calculated, lowering both your taxable income and your tax. The calculator includes an optional pre-tax field so you can see how, say, a $5,000 annual 401(k) contribution changes your biweekly take-home. Because the contribution reduces taxable income, your net check drops by less than the full contribution amount — one reason pre-tax retirement saving is so efficient.
For most workers, the two biggest bites out of a biweekly paycheck are federal income tax and FICA. FICA is a flat 7.65% (6.2% Social Security up to the $184,500 wage base plus 1.45% Medicare). Federal income tax is graduated, so it rises as a share of pay at higher salaries. Together they typically take 15%-25% of a middle-income paycheck before any state tax. Seeing these on a per-check basis — rather than as a vague annual number — makes budgeting far easier.
Hourly workers can switch the pay type to "Hourly" and enter their rate and weekly hours. The calculator annualizes (rate × hours × 52), applies federal tax and FICA, and divides by 26. For example, a $25/hour worker at 40 hours/week earns $52,000 a year and nets about $1,691 per biweekly check. Overtime hours would raise both gross and net for the affected check.
Federal income tax uses the 2026 brackets and the $16,100 single / $32,200 joint standard deduction. FICA is 7.65% — 6.2% Social Security up to the $184,500 wage base, plus 1.45% Medicare with no cap (and an extra 0.9% additional Medicare on wages over $200,000). High earners stop paying the 6.2% Social Security portion once they cross the wage base mid-year, which can make later-year biweekly checks slightly larger.
Switching the filing status to "Married filing jointly" applies the wider joint brackets and the $32,200 joint standard deduction, which lowers federal tax and raises your biweekly take-home compared with single status at the same salary. If both spouses work, remember that each person's withholding is set on their own W-4; the calculator estimates one earner's biweekly check, so dual-income households should run each salary separately or use a married/dual-income calculator.
Once you know your biweekly take-home, a simple budgeting method is to base your monthly bills on two checks (the amount you receive every month) and treat the two extra three-check months as a savings windfall. For example, at $1,691 per check, plan your monthly budget around $3,382 and bank the third check twice a year. This keeps your budget conservative and turns the quirk of 26 paychecks into an automatic savings habit.
For the most accurate result, enter figures straight from your own documents rather than estimates. Pull your gross salary or hourly rate from a recent pay stub, your filing status from your most recent tax return, and your annual pre-tax deductions from your benefits enrollment. Small differences in these inputs — especially filing status and pre-tax contributions — can change your per-check take-home by tens of dollars. The calculator uses verified 2026 federal brackets and the $184,500 Social Security wage base, so matching its inputs to your actual situation gives a reliable biweekly estimate. Add your state tax separately using a state-specific calculator for a complete picture.
Federal brackets, the standard deduction, and the Social Security wage base all change yearly. Using a calculator built on the correct 2026 numbers — rather than a prior-year tool — matters because the differences compound across 26 paychecks. This page reflects the 2026 federal standard deductions ($16,100 single / $32,200 joint), the 2026 bracket thresholds, and the $184,500 Social Security wage base. When the IRS announces the following year's figures, the inputs here will be updated so your estimate stays current.
There are 26 biweekly paychecks in a year (52 weeks divided by 2). Twice a year you receive three paychecks in a single month - so 10 months have two checks and 2 months have three. Biweekly is the most common U.S. pay frequency.
About $1,691 per biweekly paycheck for a single filer in a no-income-tax state in 2026, or roughly $43,962 a year after federal tax and FICA. State income tax, if any, would reduce this further. The calculator on this page shows your exact biweekly net pay.
Divide your annual salary by 26 to get gross biweekly pay. To get take-home, subtract federal income tax, FICA (7.65%), any state tax, and pre-tax deductions, then divide the annual net by 26. This calculator does that math using verified 2026 tax figures.
No. Biweekly means every two weeks - 26 paychecks a year. Semi-monthly means twice a month (for example the 15th and last day) - 24 paychecks a year. Biweekly checks are slightly smaller because they are spread across 26 rather than 24 pay periods.
Because 26 biweekly paychecks do not divide evenly into 12 months, two months each year contain three paychecks instead of two. Many workers treat those two 'extra' checks as a built-in savings or debt-payoff opportunity since their monthly budget is usually based on two checks.
This calculator estimates federal income tax and FICA, which apply nationwide. Because state income tax varies from 0% to over 13%, use one of our state-specific paycheck calculators (such as California, Texas, or New York) to add your state's tax to the biweekly figure.