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Paycheck Gross-Up Calculator

Find the gross bonus or award to pay so the employee takes home an exact amount after 2026 federal, Social Security, Medicare and state withholding.

Level: Grade 7

  • Common Core standard 7.EE.B.4.aSolve word problems leading to equations of the form px + q = r and p(x + q) = r, where p, q, and r are specific rational numbers. Solve equations of these forms fluently. Compare an algebraic solution to an arithmetic solution, identifying the sequence of the operations used in each approach.
  • Common Core standard 7.RP.A.3Use proportional relationships to solve multistep ratio and percent problems. Examples: simple interest, tax, markups and markdowns, gratuities and commissions, fees, percent increase and decrease, percent error.
Printable worksheet

Paycheck Gross-Up Calculator

Know the answer you need? Pick an input to work backward.

Inputs

The take-home amount you want to land in their account after withholding.

All wages paid before this payment. Matters near the $184,500 Social Security wage base or the $200,000 Medicare threshold.

Supplemental pay over $1 million in a year must be withheld at 37%.

Many states set a flat rate for bonuses. Leave blank for none.

Result

Gross payment needed

$1,421.46

To hand over $1,000.00 after 2026 withholding, pay $1,421.46 gross. About $421.46 is withheld. Payroll rounds each tax to the cent, so the net can differ by a cent or two. This is an estimate, not tax advice.

Federal income tax withheld
$312.72
Social Security
$88.13
Medicare
$20.61
State withholding
$0.00
Total withheld
$421.46
Net check (should equal your target)
$1,000.00
Withholding as a share of the gross
29.65%
Where the gross payment goes
  • Net to the employee$1,000.0070.4%
  • Federal income tax$312.7222%
  • Social Security and Medicare$108.747.6%

See the step-by-step solution ↓

Step-by-step solution

  1. Add up what is withheld from each dollar: 22% federal, 6.2% Social Security, 1.45% Medicare

    22%+6.2%+1.45%=29.65%

  2. So each gross dollar leaves this share for the employee

    100%−29.65%=70.35%

  3. Divide the net amount by that share to find the gross payment

    $1,000.0070.35%=$1,421.46

  4. Federal income tax at the supplemental rate of 22%

    federal=$312.72

  5. Social Security and Medicare on the payment

    $88.13+$20.61=$108.74

  6. Check: subtract all the withholding from the gross. It comes back to the net amount you wanted

    $1,421.46−$421.46=$1,000.00

Test yourself

20 quick questions built from this calculator's formula: work out results, predict what happens when an input changes, and work backward from an answer. Every answer comes with the working.

Please note: Results are estimates for planning and comparison. Lenders, banks, and tax authorities may round differently or include fees not modeled here, so confirm figures with your provider before deciding.

What this calculator does

Find out how much to pay so that someone receives an exact amount after taxes. Say you want an employee to take home a $1,000 bonus. Withholding comes out first, so you need to pay more than $1,000. Working out how much more is called a gross-up.

The calculator solves it exactly for 2026. It uses the 22% federal rate for bonuses and other extra pay, or 37% on the part over $1 million for the year. It adds Social Security, Medicare and an optional state rate. Then it checks that the net comes back to your target. The result is an estimate, not tax advice.

Where it's used

Why this math matters outside the classroom:

  • Bonus planning. A manager who wants a $1,000 net bonus pays $1,000 ÷ 0.7035, or $1,421.46, with no state tax.
  • Gift cards and awards. Payroll grosses up a $250 award at 70.35% kept, paying $355.37 so the employee gets the full $250.
  • Relocation payments. An employer covering a $5,000 moving cost grosses it up so the new hire isn't out of pocket after withholding.
  • Algebra classes. Students solve G − 0.2965G = 1,000 by writing 0.7035G = 1,000 and dividing both sides by 0.7035.

Grade level and standards: Grade 7; Common Core State Standards for Mathematics 7.EE.B.4.a, 7.RP.A.3. © Copyright 2010. National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved.

How to use it

  1. Enter the net amount the employee should receive.
  2. If the employee has high pay this year, enter the wages and bonuses already paid. This tells the calculator whether Social Security has stopped or extra Medicare applies.
  3. Add your state's withholding rate for bonuses, if it has one.
  4. Read the gross payment, the withholding on each line and the net check at the bottom.

What the inputs mean

Amount the employee should receive (net)
The amount you want to land in the employee's bank account. Pre-tax deductions, such as 401(k) contributions, aren't taken from it here.
Wages already paid this year (optional)
All wages paid so far this year, before this payment. Social Security stops once the year's wages reach $184,500 in 2026. Employers start the extra 0.9% Medicare once wages pass $200,000. Leave it blank if the employee is well below both.
Bonuses and other supplemental pay already paid this year (optional)
Bonuses, commissions and other extra pay already paid this year. Once the year's extra pay passes $1 million, federal withholding on the part above is 37%, and the employer must use it.
State withholding rate on bonuses (optional)
Many states publish a flat rate for withholding on bonuses. Enter it here. States without income tax use 0.

Formula and method

combined rate = 22% federal + 6.2% Social Security + 1.45% Medicare + state rate
gross = net ÷ (100% − combined rate)
when a rate changes partway (at the wage base, at $200,000 or at $1 million):
gross = a + (net − net from the first a dollars) ÷ (100% − new combined rate)
check: gross − all withholding = net

Each extra dollar of gross pay loses the same share to withholding, as long as no rate changes. So the net is a fixed share of the gross. Dividing the net by that share gives the gross.

In the second formula, a is the point in the payment where a rate changes. For example, Social Security stops when the year's wages reach the $184,500 wage base. Past that point, each dollar keeps more. The calculator finds the stretch where your target falls and solves that piece exactly.

Withholding on extra pay uses the IRS flat rate for supplemental wages: 22%, or 37% on the part of the year's extra pay over $1 million. Social Security is 6.2% and Medicare is 1.45%. Medicare adds 0.9% on wages over $200,000 for the year.

Amounts aren't rounded until they're shown. Payroll rounds each tax to the cent, so a real check can differ by a cent or two.

Worked example

You want an employee to take home $1,000. They've earned well under $184,500 this year, and there's no state tax.

  1. Combined rate: 22% + 6.2% + 1.45% = 29.65%.
  2. Share kept from each dollar: 100% − 29.65% = 70.35%.
  3. Gross: $1,000 ÷ 70.35% = $1,421.46.
  4. Withholding: federal $312.72, Social Security $88.13 and Medicare $20.61, for $421.46 in all.
  5. Check: $1,421.46 − $421.46 = $1,000.00.

Result: Pay a gross bonus of $1,421.46 so the employee receives $1,000.00.

Understanding the result

The gross is what goes on the paycheck and in payroll records. The employer also pays its own matching 6.2% Social Security and 1.45% Medicare on top, which isn't shown here.

The net check proves the math. It should match your target exactly, apart from rounding to the cent.

Withholding isn't the employee's final tax. Their real tax is settled on their return, so they may get some back or owe a little more.

Assumptions and limitations

  • The payment is supplemental pay, such as a bonus or award, withheld at the IRS flat rate. It uses 2026 figures: a 22% flat rate, 37% over $1 million, a $184,500 wage base and a $200,000 Medicare trigger.
  • State tax is one flat rate on the whole payment. No local taxes or pre-tax deductions come out.
  • This is an estimate, not tax or payroll advice. Check your payroll provider's figures before you pay.
  • It doesn't cover the aggregate method, where the bonus is added to a regular paycheck. Use the bonus tax calculator to compare that.
  • It doesn't handle non-cash awards, tips or pay that's exempt from Social Security, such as some church or government jobs.

Frequently asked questions

Why isn't the gross-up just 29.65% more than the net?

Because withholding is taken from the gross, not the net. Adding 29.65% to $1,000 gives $1,296.50, and 29.65% of that is $384.41. That leaves only $912.09. Dividing by 70.35% gets it right.

Does the gross-up itself get taxed?

Yes. The extra amount you add is pay too, so it's withheld at the same rates. That's why the formula divides by the share kept instead of adding the tax once.

Is the 22% rate required for bonuses?

Not below $1 million. Employers may use the 22% flat rate or add the bonus to a regular paycheck and withhold as usual. Above $1 million of extra pay in a year, 37% is required on the part over.

What if the employee has already passed the Social Security wage base?

Enter the wages already paid. Once wages reach $184,500 in 2026, Social Security stops. Each gross dollar then keeps more, so the gross-up is smaller.

How this calculator is checked

Method: Exact piecewise-linear solve of net = gross − withholding, with 2026 supplemental withholding (IRS Pub. 15), Social Security wage base and Medicare rates (IRS Topic 751) from src/lib/finance/tax-2026.ts; tests check hand-derived values on each segment. The calculation is covered by automated tests with known reference values and edge cases. Last updated 2026-10-26. Found a problem? Tell us.

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