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Philadelphia Paycheck Calculator (2026)

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

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Quick answer

Yes. Philadelphia levies a city wage tax that operates outside Pennsylvania's standard Earned Income Tax framework. Residents pay 3.79% on wages, withheld at the source by employers. At $85,000 single, a Philadelphia resident takes home about $62,797 after federal tax, FICA, Pennsylvania's 3.07% flat state tax, and the Philadelphia wage tax line.

Philadelphia is the only Pennsylvania city where the city-level income tax falls outside the statewide Earned Income Tax (EIT) framework. Most other PA municipalities layer an EIT (typically a low single-digit rate) on top of Pennsylvania's 3.07% flat state tax; Philadelphia uses its own separate city wage tax instead. Residents pay 3.79% on all wage income, while non-residents who commute into Philadelphia for work pay a slightly lower rate set by city ordinance. Both rates are withheld at the source by employers and reported on the W-2 in the local-tax box. Pennsylvania has no State Disability Insurance program funded by employee payroll, so the line items on a Philadelphia pay stub are limited to federal tax, FICA, the state flat tax, and the wage tax. Single-filer math at $85,000 works out to $9,870 federal income tax, $2,610 Pennsylvania state tax, $6,503 in FICA, and $3,222 in city wage tax, for take-home of $62,797. Use the calculator to explore 401(k) deferrals or shift the filing-status profile.

$85,000 single filer take-home comparison

Philadelphia

$62,800

Pennsylvania (no city tax)

$66,000

Texas (no income tax)

$68,600

Philadelphia take-home is -$3,200 vs the state-only figure and -$5,800 vs the no-income-tax baseline.

Philadelphia local tax breakdown

Local bracket schedule applied by the calculator for 2026.

Taxable IncomeRate
$0+3.79%

What this estimate includes

This calculator computes Philadelphia take-home pay using 2026 federal brackets after the standard deduction, FICA contributions (Social Security up to the annual wage base, Medicare on all wages, plus the Additional Medicare Tax above the filing-status threshold), Pennsylvania's state income tax schedule, the Philadelphia local income tax. 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. Per-city resident and non-resident rules are described in the prose above where they differ.

Philadelphia paycheck FAQ

How does the Philadelphia wage tax work?
The Philadelphia wage tax is a flat-rate city tax on earned income, separate from Pennsylvania's standard Earned Income Tax (EIT) framework. Residents pay 3.79%, withheld by the employer on each paycheck. No bracket schedule applies, and there is no exemption threshold. Self-employed Philadelphia residents owe a parallel Net Profits Tax on business earnings.
What is the difference between the resident and non-resident Philadelphia wage tax rates?
Residents pay 3.79% on all wage income, regardless of where the work is performed. Non-residents who commute into Philadelphia for work pay a slightly lower rate, also set by city ordinance, applied only to wages earned within city limits. Employers determine the rate at the source from your home and work addresses.
How does Philadelphia stack with Pennsylvania's flat state tax?
Pennsylvania levies a 3.07% flat state income tax on wage earnings, with no bracket schedule. Philadelphia residents pay the state rate plus the city wage tax, so combined state-and-local income tax at $85,000 comes to $2,610 state plus $3,222 city. Other PA municipalities layer a local EIT in place of a separate wage tax.
How does Philadelphia's wage tax compare to Pittsburgh and other PA cities?
Pittsburgh stacks a city wage tax with a school district earned income tax for a combined rate below Philadelphia's 3.79%. Most Pennsylvania municipalities use the EIT framework at a lower single-digit rate, paired with the state flat tax. Philadelphia's structure is the outlier, both in the separate-wage-tax mechanism and in the headline rate.
How does the Philadelphia wage tax show up on my W-2 and pay stub?
Pay stubs include a 'Phila Wage Tax' line item beside the Pennsylvania state withholding. The W-2 reports the city wage tax in box 19 as the local income tax amount, with 'Philadelphia' identified in box 20. Filings for the wage tax flow through the Philadelphia Department of Revenue, which receives the deposits directly from employers.
Does a 401(k) contribution lower Philadelphia wage tax?
No. Pennsylvania uses its own definition of taxable wages for state and local income tax, and pre-tax 401(k) contributions do not reduce that base. Federal taxable wages drop, but the Philadelphia wage tax line stays the same. HSA contributions also do not lower the wage tax. Pre-tax 401(k) still cuts your federal tax meaningfully at $85,000.
What changes for married filing jointly, head of household, or filing separately at $85,000 in Philadelphia?
Philadelphia's 3.79% resident wage tax is flat and applies uniformly across all four filing statuses. Pennsylvania's constitutional flat 3.07% state rate also holds steady across statuses. Filing-status math at $85,000 therefore lives entirely on the federal line: MFJ take-home is about $66,827 ($4,030 more than single); HoH about $65,719.

See also

Run the full Pennsylvania paycheck calculatorCompare to Pittsburgh paycheck calculatorCompare to Scranton paycheck calculatorCompare to Erie, Pennsylvania paycheck calculatorCompare to Allentown paycheck calculatorCompare to Reading, Pennsylvania paycheck calculatorCompare to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania paycheck calculatorCompare to Harrisburg paycheck calculatorCompare to Wilkes-Barre paycheck calculatorBrowse all city paycheck calculatorsBrowse paycheck calculators by statePaycheck and tax glossaryHow we calculate paycheck taxes

Reviewed

How This Page Is Reviewed

The Philadelphia 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

2026-06-25