FICA Tax in 2026: Rates, the Wage Base and How Much You'll Pay

FICA is the line on your pay stub that takes the same bite from almost everyone: 7.65% of wages, split between Social Security and Medicare. It's named after the Federal Insurance Contributions Act of 1935, the law that created the payroll tax to fund Social Security. Medicare was added in 1965. Today the two taxes raise more than a third of all federal revenue, and for most workers earning under about $80,000 a year, FICA is a bigger tax than federal income tax.

This guide covers the 2026 rates, the Social Security wage base and how it has grown, the Additional Medicare tax for high earners, self-employment tax, what does and doesn't reduce FICA wages, how to get back excess Social Security withholding when you have two jobs, and who is exempt. If you only need your number: at $75,000 of wages, FICA in 2026 is $5,737.50, made up of $4,650.00 of Social Security and $1,087.50 of Medicare.

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FICA rates for 2026

Social Security, officially Old-Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance (OASDI), is 6.2% of wages for the employee and 6.2% for the employer, on wages up to $184,500 in 2026. Medicare, officially Hospital Insurance (HI), is 1.45% for the employee and 1.45% for the employer, on all wages with no cap. Employees pay 7.65% and employers match it, for a total of 15.3% of each worker's pay up to the wage base.

On top of that, the Additional Medicare tax adds 0.9% on wages above $200,000 for single and head-of-household filers, $250,000 for married couples filing jointly, and $125,000 for married filing separately. Employers don't match the Additional Medicare tax. These thresholds are fixed in law and aren't adjusted for inflation, so each year more workers cross them.

The rates themselves have been stable for decades. The combined 15.3% rate was set in 1990, and the only change since was a temporary employee Social Security cut to 4.2% in 2011 and 2012. What changes every year is the wage base, which rises with the national average wage.

How much FICA you'll pay at different incomes

Because Social Security stops at $184,500, FICA is a flat 7.65% for most workers and then falls as a share of pay. At $184,500 of wages, Social Security reaches its 2026 maximum of $11,439. Above that, only Medicare continues, at 1.45% and then 2.35% once Additional Medicare applies. A single worker earning $400,000 pays about 4.8% of wages in FICA, about half the rate of a worker earning $50,000.

That's why FICA is often described as regressive: the cap means higher earners pay a smaller share of total income. It's partly balanced by the benefit formula, which replaces a larger share of past earnings for lower earners, and by the fact that Social Security benefits are based only on earnings up to the wage base. The table shows employee FICA for a single filer at several wage levels.

The Social Security wage base

The wage base, also called the taxable maximum or contribution and benefit base, is the most earnings that are taxed for Social Security, and the most that count toward your future benefit. It's set each October by the Social Security Administration and rises with the national average wage index. For 2026 it's $184,500, up from $176,100 in 2025.

The wage base applies to each employer separately for withholding. Each employer stops withholding Social Security once your wages with that employer reach the base, regardless of what you earned elsewhere. That rule is the source of the excess-withholding refund covered below. The table shows how the wage base and the maximum employee Social Security tax have grown since 2020.

About 6% of workers earn more than the wage base in a given year, according to Social Security Administration estimates. Proposals to raise or remove the cap come up regularly in debates over Social Security's long-term funding, but none has been enacted, so plan around the current law: 6.2% up to the base and nothing above it.

Additional Medicare tax

Employers start withholding the 0.9% Additional Medicare tax when an employee's wages with them pass $200,000 in a calendar year, whatever the employee's filing status. The tax you actually owe is worked out on Form 8959 with your return, using the threshold for your filing status and your combined wages and self-employment income.

That creates gaps in both directions. Two spouses who each earn $150,000 have nothing withheld, but their combined $300,000 is $50,000 over the $250,000 joint threshold, so they owe $450 when they file. A single filer with two jobs paying $120,000 and $100,000 has nothing withheld at either job, but owes 0.9% on the $20,000 over $200,000, or $180. If you're in either situation, add extra withholding on your W-4 or include it in estimated payments to avoid an underpayment penalty.

The Additional Medicare tax also applies to self-employment income above the same thresholds. A separate 3.8% Net Investment Income Tax applies to investment income for households above the same $200,000 and $250,000 thresholds. That tax isn't part of FICA, but it was created by the same 2010 law and is often confused with it.

Self-employment tax

Self-employed people pay both halves of FICA through self-employment tax: 12.4% for Social Security and 2.9% for Medicare, or 15.3% in total, on 92.35% of net profit. The 92.35% factor stands in for the deduction an employer would get for its half. On $80,000 of net profit, $73,880 is subject to the tax, and self-employment tax is $11,303.64.

Half of self-employment tax, $5,651.82 in that example, is deducted from income before income tax is calculated. It appears as an adjustment to income on Schedule 1, so you get it whether or not you itemize. Self-employment tax is figured on Schedule SE and paid through quarterly estimated payments, due in April, June, September and January. If you also have a W-2 job, your W-2 wages count first toward the Social Security wage base, so a high-earning employee with a side business may owe only the 2.9% Medicare part on the side income.

No self-employment tax is due if net earnings from self-employment are under $400 for the year. Above that, every dollar counts, including income from gig apps, freelance work and small side businesses.

Calculate self-employment tax on $80,000 →

What counts as FICA wages

FICA applies to wages, salaries, bonuses, commissions, overtime, reported tips, vacation and sick pay, and most taxable fringe benefits. It also applies to traditional 401(k), 403(b) and 457 contributions, which are excluded from income tax but not from FICA. That's why box 3 and box 5 on a W-2, Social Security and Medicare wages, are often higher than box 1, federal taxable wages.

Section 125 cafeteria-plan deductions are excluded from FICA wages: employee health, dental and vision premiums, payroll HSA contributions, and health and dependent care FSA contributions. So are qualified transit and parking benefits. Every dollar in these accounts saves 7.65% of FICA on top of income tax. Investment income, rental income, pensions, Social Security benefits and IRA distributions are not subject to FICA at all.

The 2025–2028 federal deductions for tips and overtime don't change FICA. Tips and overtime premiums remain fully subject to Social Security and Medicare; the deductions reduce federal income tax only.

Two jobs: getting excess Social Security back

Because each employer withholds Social Security up to the wage base separately, people with more than one job in a year can have too much withheld. A worker earning $120,000 at one job and $100,000 at another has $13,640 of Social Security withheld in total, $2,201 more than the 2026 maximum of $11,439. The same thing happens when you change jobs mid-year after earning a lot at the first job.

The excess comes back as a credit on your federal tax return, on Schedule 3, and it's refundable, so you get it even if you owe no income tax. You don't need to do anything with your employers. If a single employer withholds more than the maximum, that's an error; ask the employer to correct and refund it, since the IRS credit only covers excess from multiple employers.

Medicare has no wage base, so there's never excess Medicare withholding from having two jobs, though you may owe Additional Medicare tax as described above.

FICA on your pay stub and W-2

Pay stubs label FICA in several ways. Social Security may appear as OASDI, SS, SOC SEC or FICA-SS. Medicare may appear as MED, MEDI, HI or FICA-MED. Some employers combine them into a single FICA line. The Additional Medicare tax is usually included in the Medicare line once it starts, so a Medicare amount that jumps late in the year is normal for high earners.

On your W-2, box 3 shows Social Security wages and box 4 the Social Security tax withheld, which should be 6.2% of box 3. Box 5 shows Medicare wages and box 6 Medicare tax withheld, 1.45% of box 5 plus 0.9% of any amount over $200,000. A quick way to check your W-2 is to multiply box 3 by 0.062 and compare it with box 4. If box 3 is capped at the wage base while box 5 is higher, that's expected for high earners.

FICA on tips

Tips are wages for FICA purposes. Tips you report to your employer are added to your Social Security and Medicare wages, and your employer withholds FICA on them from your regular pay. If your paycheck isn't large enough to cover the tax on your tips, the uncollected amount appears in box 12 of your W-2 with codes A and B, and you pay it with your return.

Tips you didn't report to your employer are still subject to FICA. You report them on Form 4137 with your return and pay the employee share then. Employers pay their 7.65% share on reported tips, and restaurant employers can claim a federal income tax credit for part of the FICA they pay on tips above the minimum wage.

Who doesn't pay FICA

A few groups are exempt from some or all FICA. Students working for the school, college or university they attend, at least half-time, are generally exempt on that job. Many nonresident aliens on F-1, J-1, M-1 and Q visas are exempt during their first years in the US. Children under 18 working for a parent's sole proprietorship or partnership owned only by the parents are exempt from FICA, and those under 21 doing household work for a parent are too.

Some state and local government employees covered by a public pension system instead of Social Security don't pay the Social Security part, though most pay Medicare. Members of certain religious groups that are conscientiously opposed to insurance can apply for an exemption with Form 4029. Household employees, such as nannies and housekeepers, are exempt if their pay from one household is below an annual threshold ($3,000 in 2026), and the family that employs them pays FICA if it's above.

What your FICA pays for

Social Security tax funds retirement, survivor and disability benefits. Paying it earns credits toward eligibility: in 2026 you get one credit for each $1,890 of earnings, up to four a year, and most people need 40 credits, about ten years of work, to qualify for retirement benefits. Your benefit is based on your highest 35 years of earnings up to the wage base, indexed for wage growth.

Medicare tax funds Medicare Part A, which covers hospital stays, skilled nursing and hospice care. Workers with 40 quarters of Medicare-covered work get Part A without a premium at 65. Part B (doctors and outpatient care) and Part D (prescription drugs) are paid for by monthly premiums and general revenue, not by payroll tax.

Your employer's matching share isn't credited to you separately, but it is part of the cost of employing you. When comparing a W-2 job with contract work, remember that a contractor pays the employer's 7.65% too, so a contract rate has to be higher just to break even.

Planning around FICA

For employees, the main lever is Section 125 benefits. Choosing a payroll HSA over contributing on your own saves 7.65% of every dollar, and electing an FSA for predictable medical or child care costs does the same. Retirement contributions don't save FICA, so the choice between a 401(k) and an IRA doesn't affect it.

For high earners, expect take-home pay to rise once wages pass the wage base in the year, and remember it resets in January. For couples, check combined wages against the $250,000 Additional Medicare threshold. For the self-employed, set aside money for self-employment tax and income tax from every payment, roughly 25% to 30% of net profit for many people, and make quarterly estimated payments.