United States · Iowa · Updated for 2026
Iowa paycheck calculator 2026
On Iowa’s median pay of $48,540 in 2026, a single filer in Iowa takes home $39,989.17 a year ($1,538.04 every two weeks), after $3,644.80 federal income tax, $3,713.31 Social Security and Medicare, and $1,192.72 of Iowa tax.
Change the pay, schedule, filing status or deductions below to see your own paycheck. It works as a Iowa salary calculator too: type a yearly salary or an hourly rate.
Take-home pay, 2026 · Iowa · single · paid every two weeks
$1,538.04 a paycheck
$39,989.17 a year · $3,332.43 a month · $19.23 an hour
| Per paycheck | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Pay before tax | $1,866.92 | $48,540.00 |
| Federal income tax | −$140.18 | −$3,644.80 |
| Social Security | −$115.75 | −$3,009.48 |
| Medicare | −$27.07 | −$703.83 |
| Iowa income tax | −$45.87 | −$1,192.72 |
| Take-home pay | $1,538.04 | $39,989.17 |
An estimate of the year’s tax divided evenly across your 26 paychecks, not your employer’s exact withholding table. An hour assumes 40 hours a week for 52 weeks.
Estimate your 2026 tax refund on this pay, with the new deductions for tips and overtime.
Local tax not included
Most Iowa school districts add an income surtax, a percentage of your Iowa income tax that differs by district, paid on your state return; this calculator leaves it out.
Federal income tax
Taxable income: $48,540 of pay after pre-tax deductions, less the $16,100 standard deduction for single = $32,440.
| Income in bracket | Tax | |
|---|---|---|
| 10% bracket | $12,400 | $1,240.00 |
| 12% bracket | $20,040 | $2,404.80 |
| Federal income tax for the year | $3,644.80 |
Social Security and Medicare
- Social Security: 6.2% = $3,009.48 a year.
- Medicare: 1.45% of all pay = $703.83 a year.
Iowa tax
Iowa taxes $48,540 of your pay, less the $16,100 federal standard deduction: $32,440 of taxable income.
Less the personal exemption credit of $40.00.
Iowa income tax: $1,192.72 a year.
Your tax rates
- Effective rate: 17.6%. That share of your pay goes in federal, state and payroll taxes.
- Marginal rate: 23.5%. Of your next dollar of pay, about 23 cents goes in tax, so you keep about 77 cents.
What are Iowa’s income tax rates for 2026?
Iowa has one rate, 3.8%, on your federal taxable income: your pay after the federal standard deduction of $16,100 single, $32,200 married filing jointly or $24,150 head of household. There are no brackets.
Iowa then takes a personal exemption credit off the tax: $40 for a single filer, $80 for a married couple filing jointly and $80 for a head of household.
How much tax do I pay on $48,540 in Iowa?
$48,540 is the median yearly pay for all jobs in Iowa (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025). A single filer paid every two weeks, with nothing taken before tax:
| Year | Per paycheck | |
|---|---|---|
| Pay before tax | $48,540.00 | $1,866.92 |
| Federal income tax | $3,644.80 | $140.18 |
| Social Security | $3,009.48 | $115.75 |
| Medicare | $703.83 | $27.07 |
| Iowa income tax | $1,192.72 | $45.87 |
| Take-home pay | $39,989.17 | $1,538.04 |
Effective rate: 17.6% of pay in tax. Of the next dollar, about 23 cents goes in tax. Open this example in the paycheck calculator.
What is different about paychecks in Iowa?
Iowa now has one rate for all income, 3.8%, after a 2024 law replaced its brackets. On $60,000 of pay, a single filer owes $1,628.20 a year.
Most Iowa school districts add a school district surtax: a percentage of your Iowa income tax, set by each district and paid on your state return. It is not in this estimate, because it depends on where you live.
A head of household gets two personal credits, $80, the same as a married couple.
Iowa does not tax active-duty military pay, including reserve and National Guard members on active duty.
How does Iowa compare with Illinois and Minnesota?
The same $48,540 salary, single, paid every two weeks:
| State tax and contributions a year | Take-home a year | Per paycheck | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iowa | $1,192.72 | $39,989.17 | $1,538.04 |
| Illinois | $2,257.94 | $38,923.95 | $1,497.07 |
| Minnesota | $1,991.92 | $39,189.97 | $1,507.31 |
You take home $1,065.22 a year more in Iowa than in Illinois.
You take home $799.20 a year more in Iowa than in Minnesota.
What does this calculator leave out in Iowa?
- The school district surtax, and Appanoose County’s emergency medical services surtax.
- The credits for dependents and for people who are 65 or older or blind, and the Iowa earned income credit.
- Iowa’s retirement income exclusion, child care credits and other credits.
- Dependents, and credits such as the child tax credit.
- One job for the whole calendar year, with the same pay every paycheck, no bonus and no overtime.
- A married couple filing jointly is one earner: the whole household income is this pay.
- The year’s tax is divided evenly across your paychecks. Your employer withholds from each paycheck using your W-4 and the IRS tables, so a paycheck can differ a little.
The full list is on the sources page, and the method on how we calculate.
Which other states can I check?
- Alabama state income tax
- Alaska no income tax
- Arizona state income tax
- Arkansas state income tax
- California state income tax
- Colorado state income tax
- Connecticut state income tax
- Delaware state income tax
- District of Columbia state income tax
- Florida no income tax
- Georgia state income tax
- Hawaii state income tax
- Idaho state income tax
- Illinois state income tax
- Indiana state income tax
- Kansas state income tax
- Kentucky state income tax
- Louisiana state income tax
- Maine state income tax
- Maryland state income tax
- Massachusetts state income tax
- Michigan state income tax
- Minnesota state income tax
- Mississippi state income tax
- Missouri state income tax
- Montana state income tax
- Nebraska state income tax
- Nevada no income tax
- New Hampshire no income tax
- New Jersey state income tax
- New Mexico state income tax
- New York state income tax
- North Carolina state income tax
- North Dakota state income tax
- Ohio state income tax
- Oklahoma state income tax
- Oregon state income tax
- Pennsylvania state income tax
- Rhode Island state income tax
- South Carolina state income tax
- South Dakota no income tax
- Tennessee no income tax
- Texas no income tax
- Utah state income tax
- Vermont state income tax
- Virginia state income tax
- Washington no income tax
- West Virginia state income tax
- Wisconsin state income tax
- Wyoming no income tax
Every state on one page: the US paycheck calculator. How the taxes work: US paycheck guides.
Pay by job: the highest paying jobs in Iowa after tax, and 830 jobs with their pay in every state. Your federal refund for 2026, with the new deductions: the tax refund calculator.
On an hourly wage? The Iowa minimum wage, with full-time pay and take-home pay.
Questions about paychecks in Iowa
How much is taken out of a paycheck in Iowa?
On $48,540 a year, single, paid every two weeks: $140.18 federal income tax, $142.82 Social Security and Medicare and $45.87 for Iowa (income tax) a paycheck, leaving $1,538.04.
What is the take-home pay on $100,000 in Iowa?
$76,031.80 a year, or $2,924.30 every two weeks, for a single filer with nothing taken before tax.
Is Iowa state tax taken out of every paycheck?
Yes. Employers in Iowa withhold state income tax from each paycheck along with federal tax. This calculator spreads the year’s tax evenly across your paychecks, so a single paycheck can differ a little.
What is Iowa’s income tax rate in 2026?
3.8%, one rate for everyone, on federal taxable income, less a personal exemption credit of $40 ($80 for a joint return).
Does Iowa have a standard deduction?
Iowa uses the federal one. It starts from your federal taxable income, so the federal standard deduction ($16,100 for a single filer in 2026) is already taken off.
What is the Iowa school district surtax?
An extra tax most Iowa school districts charge on top of state income tax, worked out as a percentage of your Iowa tax and paid on your state return. Your district’s rate is in the state’s yearly surtax list.