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West Virginia Paycheck Calculator (2026)

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

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West Virginia City Service Fees (small fixed amounts in Charleston, Huntington, Morgantown, Wheeling, and other municipalities) are not modeled by the calculator.

Quick answer

West Virginia applies a progressive state income tax topping at 4.58% following a phased rate-reduction program over recent legislative sessions. At $85,000 single, the after-tax estimate is $65,532 per year. No West Virginia city levies a percentage-based wage tax, and the state runs no payroll-funded disability insurance program.

Five brackets structure West Virginia's progressive state income tax, climbing to a top marginal rate of 4.58% on income above the highest threshold. The rate moved down under a phased reduction program, with further cuts on the legislative agenda. Coal mining dominated the southern counties for a century and remains culturally central, but employment has declined sharply over recent decades; Marcellus Shale natural-gas extraction in the eastern half has picked up part of the slack. Charleston, the capital, anchors the chemical industry (DuPont legacy, Dow, Chemours, Bayer/Covestro) and state government. Huntington carries Marshall University and a regional medical complex. Morgantown centers on West Virginia University, research, and Mylan/Viatris pharmaceuticals. New River Gorge, designated as the newest US national park in 2020, anchors a growing outdoor-tourism economy. West Virginia runs no SDI program and no city or county percentage-based wage tax in Charleston, Huntington, Morgantown, or Wheeling. At $85,000 for a single filer, federal income tax lands at $9,870, state income tax at $3,096, combined FICA at $6,503, and take-home for the year at $65,532. The effective total rate is 22.9%. Use the calculator below to compare West Virginia against neighboring Kentucky or Virginia.

West Virginia state tax breakdown

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

Taxable IncomeRate
$0 - $10,0002.11%
$10,000 - $25,0002.81%
$25,000 - $40,0003.16%
$40,000 - $60,0004.22%
$60,000+4.58%

vs. baseline ($85,000 single filer)

A $85,000 salary in West Virginia takes home approximately $3,100 less than the same salary in a no-income-tax state like Texas or Florida.

What this estimate includes

This calculator computes West Virginia 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), West Virginia'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.

West Virginia paycheck FAQ

What is the federal tax bill on $85,000 single in West Virginia for 2026?
A $85,000 single filer in West Virginia owes approximately $9,870 in federal income tax, with the top slice of taxable income inside the 22% federal bracket after the standard deduction. The federal calculation runs identically across all states, so a West Virginia resident sees the same federal line as a Kentucky or Virginia counterpart at this gross.
How much West Virginia state tax does someone owe on $85,000?
West Virginia state income tax at $85,000 for a single filer is approximately $3,096, an effective state rate of 3.64%. The marginal rate on the top slice is 4.58% under the five-bracket schedule. Rates moved down under the phased reduction program, and further cuts remain on the legislative agenda contingent on revenue triggers.
Do Charleston, Huntington, or any other West Virginia city tax wages?
Cities and counties in West Virginia do not levy a percentage-based income tax on wages. Charleston, Huntington, Morgantown, Wheeling, and several smaller municipalities charge a small fixed City Service Fee per pay period (a flat dollar amount, not a percentage of wages), which the calculator does not subtract by default. Check your municipality's posted fee if applicable.
How much does a 401(k) contribution save at $85,000 in West Virginia?
At $85,000 single in West Virginia, the combined marginal rate is 26.58% (federal 22% plus state 4.58%). Traditional 401(k) and HSA contributions reduce both federal and West Virginia taxable income at that combined rate. The five-bracket schedule means contributions that drop AGI across a WV bracket boundary shift the per-dollar saving to the lower-bracket rate.
What changes for married filing jointly, head of household, or filing separately at $85,000 in West Virginia?
Joint filers at $85,000 in West Virginia take home about $69,562, roughly $4,030 more than the single estimate. Wider federal MFJ brackets and the doubled federal standard deduction drive most of the change; WV Form IT-140 applies the same bracket schedule to joint filers, so the state line moves only because federal-side AGI shifts. Head of Household at this income clears about $68,454, around $2,922 more than Single, driven entirely by wider federal HoH brackets. Combined Married Filing Separately take-home runs roughly $4,429 less than MFJ.
How does West Virginia compare to Virginia at $85,000?
Virginia tops at a state rate above West Virginia's 4.58% but adds no local income-tax layer, while West Virginia sits at a lower top rate plus the small fixed City Service Fees in several municipalities. The take-home difference between West Virginia and Virginia at $85,000 single is roughly $1,031 per year. Federal tax and FICA are identical.

Take-home at common salaries for West Virginia

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

$50,000 after taxesin West Virginia$75,000 after taxesin West Virginia$100,000 after taxesin West Virginia$150,000 after taxesin West Virginia$200,000 after taxesin West Virginia$250,000 after taxesin West Virginia

See also

Open the national paycheck calculatorRun the same numbers against MarylandHow the same salary lands in OhioHow the same salary lands in PennsylvaniaKentucky take-home, for comparisonRun the same numbers against VirginiaPaid hourly in West Virginia? Check the per-check numberSet dependents and multiple jobs on a West Virginia W-4Estimate quarterly self-employment tax in West VirginiaSee how two locations compare on take-homeWhat the terms on your pay stub meanHow we calculate paycheck taxes

Reviewed

How This Page Is Reviewed

The West Virginia 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

2026-07-11