PaycheckCalc

City paycheck calculator

Owensboro Paycheck Calculator (2026)

Last reviewed: April 20, 2026

Owensboro is the county seat of Daviess County in western Kentucky on the Ohio River. It levies a 1.78% occupational license tax on wages earned within city limits, applied to residents and non-residents alike. Combined with Kentucky's 4% flat state tax, an Owensboro wage earner pays about 5.78% in state plus local income tax. Kentucky has no State Disability Insurance program funded by employee payroll. This calculator estimates 2026 take-home pay for an Owensboro wage earner after federal tax, FICA, Kentucky state tax, and the Owensboro occupational license rate. It supports pre-tax 401(k) and HSA deductions.

$85,000 single filer take-home comparison

Owensboro

$63,700

Kentucky (no city tax)

$65,200

Texas (no income tax)

$68,600

Owensboro take-home is -$1,500 vs the state-only figure and -$4,900 vs the no-income-tax baseline.

Owensboro local tax breakdown

Local bracket schedule applied by the calculator for 2026.

Taxable IncomeRate
$0+1.78%

Enter your salary to begin

Type above or pick a quick salary to see your 2026 take-home pay instantly.

Owensboro paycheck FAQ

How does Owensboro compare to Louisville or Lexington?
Owensboro's 1.78% rate is below both Louisville's 2.28% and Lexington's 2.25%. The smaller Kentucky metros tend to charge lower occupational rates than the state's two largest urban areas.
Does Daviess County levy a separate occupational tax?
Some Kentucky counties layer a county occupational tax on top of the city rate. Daviess County's structure may add to the Owensboro city portion for workers outside city limits. The 1.78% figure here covers the Owensboro city share modeled by the calculator.
If I work in Owensboro but live across the river in Indiana, what applies?
An Indiana resident working in Owensboro owes Kentucky state tax (4%) plus the Owensboro occupational tax (1.78%) on Kentucky-earned wages. Indiana credits taxes paid to other states against the Indiana state liability, and Indiana's county income tax still applies based on the worker's home county.

See also

Run the full Kentucky paycheck calculatorCompare to Louisville paycheck calculatorCompare to Lexington, Kentucky paycheck calculatorCompare to Bowling Green, Kentucky paycheck calculatorCompare to Covington, Kentucky paycheck calculatorCompare to Florence, Kentucky paycheck calculatorCompare to Henderson County, Kentucky paycheck calculatorCompare to Hopkinsville paycheck calculatorCompare to Frankfort, Kentucky paycheck calculatorCompare to Elizabethtown, Kentucky paycheck calculatorBrowse all city paycheck calculatorsBrowse paycheck calculators by statePaycheck and tax glossaryHow we calculate paycheck taxes

Reviewed

How This Page Is Reviewed

The Owensboro paycheck page is reviewed against primary federal, state, and city sources before each major tax-year update. Source links below are the references used to validate brackets, wage bases, and supported local taxes.

Reviewed by

PaycheckCalc Research Desk

Last reviewed

2026-04-20