Illinois Paycheck Calculator
Reviewed Sep 29, 2026 IRS Pub 15-T 2026, Illinois DOR How we verify
Not a substitute for the advice of an attorney. General information; laws vary by state. Terms of use
Illinois paycheck calculator for tax year 2026: take-home pay and what the employer pays, per paycheck and per year. Illinois takes a flat 4.95% of each paycheck after subtracting a slice of the allowances on Form IL-W-4: $2,925 a year for each basic allowance and $1,000 a year for each additional allowance, spread evenly over the pay periods (2026 Booklet IL-700-T, Illinois Withholding Tax Tables (R-12/25)). Figures checked on September 29, 2026; the result is an estimate, not tax advice.
Take-home pay and employer cost
Example: $2,000.00 gross pay per paycheck, paid every two weeks (26 paychecks a year), single, with the default IL-W-4 entries below
Take-home pay
$1,597.42 per paycheck
$41,532.92 per year
| Line | Per paycheck | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $2,000.00 | $52,000.00 |
| Federal income tax withholding | $156.15 | $4,059.90 |
| Social Security | $124.00 | $3,224.00 |
| Medicare | $29.00 | $754.00 |
| Illinois income tax withholding | $93.43 | $2,429.18 |
| Take-home pay | $1,597.42 | $41,532.92 |
What the employer pays
$2,221.00 per paycheck
$56,419.00 per year
| Line | Per paycheck | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $2,000.00 | $52,000.00 |
| Social Security (employer match) | $124.00 | $3,224.00 |
| Medicare (employer match) | $29.00 | $754.00 |
| Federal unemployment (FUTA) | $12.00 | $42.00 |
| State unemployment (new-employer rate) | $56.00 | $399.00 |
| Total employer cost | $2,221.00 | $56,419.00 |
Sources: IRS Pub 15-T 2026 and Illinois DOR, checked September 29, 2026. Estimate for tax year 2026. Not tax advice.
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How Illinois taxes a paycheck
The calculator applies the IRS Publication 15-T percentage method and, for Illinois, the Automated payroll method, Booklet IL-700-T (R-12/25), Illinois Withholding Tax Tables, effective January 1, 2026 of the Illinois Department of Revenue, in effect for wages paid from January 1, 2026. Social Security takes 6.2% of wages up to $184,500 a year and Medicare 1.45% of all wages (plus 0.9% on wages above $200,000 a year), and the employer pays Social Security and Medicare again at the same rates (Publication 15 (2026), (Circular E), Employer's Tax Guide). The oldest Illinois document behind these figures was checked on September 29, 2026.
Illinois has one income tax rate for every earner, 4.95%, so there are no brackets and no standard deduction in the payroll math. The Department of Revenue publishes an automated payroll method: add up the yearly value of the allowances claimed, divide it by the number of paydays in the year, subtract that from the wages of the period, and multiply what is left by the flat rate. A raise changes withholding in a straight line (2026 Booklet IL-700-T, Illinois Withholding Tax Tables (R-12/25)).
Form IL-W-4 has separate allowance lines that are worth different amounts. The basic allowance line counts the employee, a spouse who can be claimed, and each dependent, each worth $2,925 a year for the current year. The additional allowance line counts allowances for older age, for legal blindness, and for extra deductions, and each of those is worth $1,000 a year. A further line adds a fixed extra amount per paycheck (2026 Booklet IL-700-T, Illinois Withholding Tax Tables (R-12/25)).
The Illinois certificate is its own form, filed with the employer next to the federal withholding certificate. When no Illinois certificate is on file, or the one on file is unsigned or altered, the employer withholds the flat rate on the whole paycheck with no allowances at all. The booklet also prints wage bracket tables for each pay frequency, which can differ from the automated method by a few cents because each row covers a small range of wages.
Illinois starts from the federal definition of wages, so pre-tax retirement plan deferrals and cafeteria plan health premiums are left out before the allowances are subtracted. The exemption allowance is lost on the annual return when federal adjusted gross income passes $250,000, or $500,000 for a joint return, yet withholding still subtracts the allowances claimed; high earners can lower their allowance count to keep withholding close to the final bill (Form IL-W-4, Employee's and other Payee's Illinois Withholding Allowance Certificate and Instructions (R-07/23)).
There is no Illinois payroll deduction for disability insurance, paid family leave or long-term care, and Illinois cities and counties do not levy a local income tax on wages. Residents of Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan and Wisconsin who work in Illinois can file a nonresidence statement so that their employer does not withhold Illinois tax, because of reciprocal agreements with those states.
The employer's side in Illinois
The employer side in Illinois is unemployment insurance, paid to the Illinois Department of Employment Security on each worker's wages up to the yearly taxable wage base, at the new employer rate until the account earns an experience rate. Illinois has no employer paid family leave, disability or training tax on top of it, so the state cost is that single unemployment contribution plus the federal payroll taxes shown above.
Every employer also owes federal unemployment tax (FUTA): 6% on the first $7,000 of each employee's wages a year. With the full 5.4% credit for state unemployment tax paid on time, the net rate is 0.6%, at most $42 per employee a year (IRS Topic no. 759, Form 940, Employer's Annual Federal Unemployment (FUTA) Tax Return).
In Illinois, a new employer pays state unemployment tax at 2.8% on the first $14,250 of each employee's wages a year (U.S. DOL, Office of Unemployment Insurance: Significant Provisions of State Unemployment Insurance Laws, effective July 2026). Later the rate follows the employer's own record, so the line in the result is the starting cost, not a fixed one.
Payday and final pay rules in Illinois
- How often wages are paid (Executive administrative professional): Illinois executive, administrative and professional employees may be paid monthly. State Payday Requirements (U.S. DOL Wage and Hour Division table, January 1, 2023), checked September 27, 2026
- How often wages are paid: Illinois employers must pay wages at least semi-monthly. State Payday Requirements (U.S. DOL Wage and Hour Division table, January 1, 2023), checked September 27, 2026
- Final pay after a firing: A separated employee must be paid final compensation in full at separation if possible, and no later than the next regularly scheduled payday. Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act, 820 ILCS 115/5 (Illinois Department of Labor FAQ), checked September 27, 2026
- Final pay after a resignation: An employee who quits must be paid final compensation in full at separation if possible, and no later than the next regularly scheduled payday. Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act, 820 ILCS 115/5 (Illinois Department of Labor FAQ), checked September 27, 2026
The full Illinois rules, with each law quoted: Illinois employment rules. The date a final paycheck is due for a given last day: final paycheck calculator.
Worked examples
Three pay levels for a single filer paid every two weeks, with the default entries of the form, computed with the same code as the calculator.
| Gross pay per paycheck | Federal income tax per paycheck | Social Security and Medicare per paycheck | Illinois deductions per paycheck | Take-home pay per paycheck | Employer cost per paycheck |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $1,200.00 | $60.15 | $91.80 | $53.83 | $994.22 | $1,332.60 |
| $2,500.00 | $216.15 | $191.25 | $118.18 | $1,974.42 | $2,776.25 |
| $5,000.00 | $766.69 | $382.50 | $241.93 | $3,608.88 | $5,552.50 |
At $2,500.00 per paycheck the employee takes home $51,334.92 per year, and the employer spends $70,413.50 per year on that job before benefits.
Full time at the Illinois minimum wage of $15.00 per hour (State Minimum Wage Laws (U.S. DOL Wage and Hour Division table, updated July 1, 2026), checked September 27, 2026), 40 hours per week, is $1,200.00 per paycheck every two weeks: $994.22 per paycheck take-home, and $1,332.60 per paycheck for the employer.
Method and sources
- Illinois income tax withholding rate for 2026: 4.95%. 2026 Booklet IL-700-T, Illinois Withholding Tax Tables (R-12/25), checked September 30, 2026. Second document: Income Tax Rates (Illinois Department of Revenue). two official documents
- Yearly exemption per basic allowance on Form IL-W-4 line one, 2026: $2,925. 2026 Booklet IL-700-T, Illinois Withholding Tax Tables (R-12/25), checked September 30, 2026. Second document: Informational Bulletin FY 2026-15, What's New for Illinois Income Taxes (December 2025). two official documents
- Yearly exemption per additional allowance on Form IL-W-4 line two: $1,000. 2026 Booklet IL-700-T, Illinois Withholding Tax Tables (R-12/25), checked September 30, 2026. Second document: What is the Illinois personal exemption allowance? (Illinois Department of Revenue). two official documents
- Automated payroll method: exemptions divided by the pay periods, subtracted from wages, times the rate. 2026 Booklet IL-700-T, Illinois Withholding Tax Tables (R-12/25), checked September 30, 2026. Also restated in a USDA National Finance Center payroll summary (secondary): Illinois State Income Tax Withholding, NFC-26-1784121339 (USDA National Finance Center, effective pay period 12, 2026). state document, restated in a federal payroll summary
- The booklet example carries the per-period exemption and the tax to the cent. 2026 Booklet IL-700-T, Illinois Withholding Tax Tables (R-12/25), checked September 30, 2026. single official source
- Illinois withholding follows federal income tax withholding, and the Illinois wages reported equal federal wages (so pre-tax retirement deferrals and pre-tax health premiums left out of federal wages are left out). Publication 130, Who is Required to Withhold Illinois Income Tax (PUB-130, R-02/26), Illinois Department of Revenue, checked September 30, 2026. Also restated in a USDA National Finance Center payroll summary (secondary): Illinois State Income Tax Withholding, NFC-26-1784121339 (USDA National Finance Center, effective pay period 12, 2026). state document, restated in a federal payroll summary
- Federal AGI above which the Illinois exemption allowance is not allowed on the return (married filing jointly): $500,000. Form IL-W-4, Employee's and other Payee's Illinois Withholding Allowance Certificate and Instructions (R-07/23), checked September 29, 2026. Second document: What is the Illinois personal exemption allowance? (Illinois Department of Revenue). two official documents
- Federal AGI above which the Illinois exemption allowance is not allowed on the return (all other returns): $250,000. Form IL-W-4, Employee's and other Payee's Illinois Withholding Allowance Certificate and Instructions (R-07/23), checked September 29, 2026. Second document: What is the Illinois personal exemption allowance? (Illinois Department of Revenue). two official documents
- Form IL-W-4 sets the allowances; without it the employer withholds on all compensation with no exemptions. Form IL-W-4, Employee's and other Payee's Illinois Withholding Allowance Certificate and Instructions (R-07/23), checked September 29, 2026. Also restated in a USDA National Finance Center payroll summary (secondary): Illinois State Income Tax Withholding, NFC-26-1784121339 (USDA National Finance Center, effective pay period 12, 2026). state document, restated in a federal payroll summary
- Residents of Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan and Wisconsin use Form IL-W-5-NR. Form IL-W-4, Employee's and other Payee's Illinois Withholding Allowance Certificate and Instructions (R-07/23), checked September 29, 2026. single official source
Federal figures used on every Pay Desk page:
- Pub 15-T edition: for use in 2026 (wages paid from January 1, 2026). Publication 15-T (2026), Federal Income Tax Withholding Methods, checked September 29, 2026. single official source
- Social Security tax rate withheld from the employee (the employer pays the same): 6.2%. Publication 15 (2026), (Circular E), Employer's Tax Guide, checked September 29, 2026. Second document: Topic no. 751, Social Security and Medicare withholding rates. two official documents
- Social Security wage base for 2026: $184,500. Publication 15 (2026), (Circular E), Employer's Tax Guide, checked September 29, 2026. Second document: Topic no. 751, Social Security and Medicare withholding rates. two official documents
- Medicare tax rate withheld from the employee (the employer pays the same): 1.45%. Publication 15 (2026), (Circular E), Employer's Tax Guide, checked September 29, 2026. Second document: Topic no. 751, Social Security and Medicare withholding rates. two official documents
- Per paycheck and per year. Per paycheck is one paycheck early in the year, before any yearly wage base is reached; per year is the full year at this pay with every wage base applied (Social Security, unemployment tax and any capped state contribution).
- Forms W-4 from before 2020. Not covered: the federal line follows Worksheet 1A for the 2020 and later form.
- Tax year 2027. When this page was checked (September 29, 2026) the IRS had not published the 2027 withholding tables (IRS page of forms and publications posted before release), so the calculator stays on tax year 2026.
- What it leaves out. Local taxes the form does not ask for, workers' compensation insurance, benefits the employer pays, and supplemental pay such as bonuses.
Questions people ask
What is the Illinois income tax withholding rate?
A flat 4.95% of wages after the allowance deduction, for every income level and filing status (2026 Booklet IL-700-T, Illinois Withholding Tax Tables (R-12/25)).
How much does one allowance on Form IL-W-4 lower my Illinois withholding?
Each basic allowance removes $2,925 a year from taxable wages, and each additional allowance removes $1,000. The yearly saving is that amount times 4.95%, spread over the paydays (2026 Booklet IL-700-T, Illinois Withholding Tax Tables (R-12/25)).
What is the difference between basic and additional allowances on the Illinois certificate?
Basic allowances cover you, your spouse and your dependents. Additional allowances cover older age, legal blindness and extra deductions, and each additional allowance is worth less than a basic allowance.
What happens if I never gave my employer an Illinois withholding certificate?
The employer withholds 4.95% on your entire paycheck without subtracting any allowance until a completed form is on file (2026 Booklet IL-700-T, Illinois Withholding Tax Tables (R-12/25)).
Do Chicago or other Illinois cities take income tax from paychecks?
No. Illinois local governments do not levy a local income tax on wages, so the state withholding is the only income tax line besides federal.
I live in Wisconsin and work in Illinois. Is Illinois tax withheld?
Residents of Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan and Wisconsin can give the employer a nonresidence statement so Illinois tax is not withheld; their home state taxes the wages instead.
General information, not legal advice. Not a substitute for the advice of an attorney. This page is for general information only and isn’t legal, financial or tax advice. Laws vary by state and change; check the official source or talk to a qualified professional about your situation. Report an error