State paycheck calculator

Maryland Paycheck Calculator (2026)

Enter your annual salary below to see your Maryland take-home pay after federal, state, FICA, and any local taxes for 2026.

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Maryland combines a progressive state income tax topping at 6.5% with a universal county-level income tax that every Maryland resident pays. At $85,000 single, the after-tax estimate including a typical MD county rate is $62,379 per year. County rates range from the low end of Talbot to the high end of Montgomery County.

Maryland is the only US state where every resident pays a county-level income tax in addition to state. The state schedule itself is progressive, topping at 6.5% for income above the highest threshold, while counties levy their own rate as a percentage of the same taxable income. Published county rates run from Talbot and Worcester at the low end through Montgomery, Prince George's, Howard, and Baltimore City at the high end, with a typical median across Maryland counties applied by default in the calculator. At $85,000, the marginal state rate is 4.75% on the top slice, and the county line adds $2,423 as Typical Maryland county income tax. Combined state-and-county burden lands among the higher state-local stacks in the country. Maryland runs no SDI program separate from the state and county structures. At $85,000 for a single filer with a typical county overlay, federal income tax lands at $9,870, state income tax at $3,826, county tax at $2,423, combined FICA at $6,503, and take-home for the year at $62,379. The effective total rate is 26.61%. Use the county selector below to pick Montgomery, Prince George's, Anne Arundel, Howard, Baltimore Co., Baltimore City, or another MD county for the exact rate.

Maryland state tax breakdown

Single-filer state income tax brackets used by the calculator for 2026.

Taxable IncomeRate
$0 - $1,0002%
$1,000 - $2,0003%
$2,000 - $3,0004%
$3,000 - $100,0004.75%
$100,000 - $125,0005%
$125,000 - $150,0005.25%
$150,000 - $250,0005.5%
$250,000 - $500,0005.75%
$500,000 - $1,000,0006.25%
$1,000,000+6.5%

Cities in Maryland

Local jurisdictions with employee payroll tax. Linked entries have a dedicated city page; others can be selected in the calculator below.

vs. baseline ($85,000 single filer)

A $85,000 salary in Maryland takes home approximately $6,200 less than the same salary in a no-income-tax state like Texas or Florida.

What this estimate includes

This calculator computes Maryland take-home pay using 2026 federal brackets after the standard deduction, FICA contributions (Social Security at the federal rate up to the annual wage base, Medicare on all wages, plus the Additional Medicare Tax above the filing-status threshold), Maryland's state income tax schedule above, and any local income tax or state-administered payroll program (SDI, PFML, FAMLI) when you select a city or county. For states with no broad-based personal income tax, the state line is zero. It excludes employer-side payroll taxes, custom W-4 elections, supplemental-wage handling for bonuses or equity vesting, and income from sources other than W-2 wages.

Maryland paycheck FAQ

What is the federal tax bill on $85,000 single in Maryland for 2026?
Federal income tax at $85,000 for a Maryland single filer is approximately $9,870, with the top slice of taxable income inside the 22% federal bracket after the standard deduction. The federal calculation works identically across all states, so a Maryland resident sees the same federal line as a Virginia or DC counterpart at this gross.
How much Maryland state tax does someone owe on $85,000?
Maryland state income tax at $85,000 for a single filer is approximately $3,826, an effective state rate of 4.5%. The marginal state rate on the top slice is 4.75% under the bracket schedule. The state line excludes the county overlay; the calculator's combined output includes both the state schedule and the typical county rate.
How does the Maryland county income tax work?
Every Maryland county and Baltimore City levies a separate income tax in the low single digits. Montgomery, Prince George's, Howard, and Baltimore City sit at the high end; Talbot and Worcester sit at the low end. The Maryland county paycheck calculator pages cover Montgomery, PG, Anne Arundel, Howard, Baltimore County, Frederick, Harford, and Charles County rates.
How much does a 401(k) contribution save at $85,000 in Maryland?
At $85,000 single in Maryland, the combined marginal rate is 26.75% (federal 22% plus state 4.75%). Traditional 401(k) and HSA contributions reduce federal and Maryland taxable income at that combined rate. The county tax stacks on the same taxable income base, so pre-tax contributions also reduce the county-level liability.
What changes for married filing jointly, head of household, or filing separately at $85,000 in Maryland?
MFJ at $85,000 in Maryland produces take-home of about $66,568, roughly $4,189 more than the single estimate. Wider federal MFJ brackets and the doubled federal standard deduction drive most of the change; Maryland's MFJ schedule shifts the upper bracket boundaries up (5% kicks in at $150,000 MFJ vs $100,000 Single), and the county rate is filing-status-neutral. Head of Household at this gross lands at about $65,301, about $2,922 more than Single, since MD Comptroller Form 502 routes HoH through the Single schedule; the HoH gap comes from federal. Combined two-return MFS take-home runs roughly $4,189 less than MFJ.
How does Maryland compare to Virginia at $85,000?
Virginia tops at a state rate similar to Maryland's but charges no county-level income tax, so a Virginia resident at $85,000 keeps roughly $2,122 more per year than a Maryland counterpart on the same gross with a typical county overlay applied. Federal tax and FICA are identical between the two.

Take-home at common salaries for Maryland

Dedicated salary-anchor pages with a federal-state-FICA breakdown, vs-baseline callouts, and a calculator pre-set to that salary and Maryland.

Reviewed

How This Page Is Reviewed

The Maryland paycheck page is reviewed against primary federal and state 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

2026-07-14