Unlike federal income tax, which can vary based on your income, filing status, deductions, and other factors, FICA taxes are primarily based on wages that are subject to Social Security and Medicare taxes. Employees generally see their share withheld directly from their paychecks, while employers generally pay a matching share.
Understanding FICA tax can help you read your paycheck, estimate your payroll deductions, and understand why your take-home pay is lower than your gross wages.
FICA stands for Federal Insurance Contributions Act.
FICA taxes are made up of two main payroll taxes:
The IRS explains that the Social Security portion supports old-age, survivors, and disability insurance, while the Medicare portion supports hospital insurance.
Together, these taxes are commonly referred to as FICA taxes.
For most employees, FICA is automatically withheld from wages by the employer. The employer also generally contributes an employer share.
FICA tax is a federal payroll tax imposed on covered wages to help finance Social Security and Medicare.
For 2026, the employee portion generally consists of:
That means the standard employee FICA rate is 7.65% before considering any Additional Medicare Tax.
Employers generally pay the same 6.2% Social Security tax and 1.45% Medicare tax on covered wages. This makes the combined employee-and-employer rates 12.4% for Social Security and 2.9% for Medicare.
FICA has two primary components: Social Security and Medicare.
Social Security tax helps fund federal Social Security programs, including benefits associated with retirement, survivors, and disability.
For 2026, the Social Security tax rate is 6.2% for employees and 6.2% for employers. However, Social Security tax is subject to an annual wage base limit.
For 2026, the Social Security wage base is $184,500. Wages above that amount are generally not subject to the 6.2% Social Security tax for that year.
This means that someone earning substantially more than $184,500 does not continue paying the employee Social Security tax on every dollar of wages throughout the year.
The wage base applies specifically to Social Security tax. It does not apply to Medicare tax.
Medicare tax helps fund the federal Medicare program.
For 2026, the standard Medicare tax rate is 1.45% for the employee and 1.45% for the employer. Unlike Social Security tax, Medicare tax does not have an annual wage base limit. Covered wages remain subject to Medicare tax regardless of how high the employee's wages become.
For example, if an employee earns $250,000 in covered wages, the standard 1.45% Medicare tax generally continues to apply to those wages even after the Social Security wage base has been reached.
For 2026, the standard employee FICA rates are:
| FICA Tax | Employee Rate | Employer Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Social Security | 6.2% | 6.2% |
| Medicare | 1.45% | 1.45% |
| Standard Total | 7.65% | 7.65% |
The combined standard rate for both employee and employer is 15.3%, consisting of 12.4% Social Security and 2.9% Medicare.
However, high-income employees may also be subject to the Additional Medicare Tax.
The Additional Medicare Tax is an extra 0.9% Medicare tax that applies to certain wages above a statutory threshold.
Employers generally begin withholding the Additional Medicare Tax when an employee's wages exceed $200,000 during the calendar year, regardless of the employee's filing status. The employer does not match this additional 0.9% tax.
The employee's actual Additional Medicare Tax liability is determined based on the applicable threshold for their filing status.
This creates an important distinction:
Therefore, certain high-income employees can have an effective employee Medicare rate of 2.35% on wages subject to the Additional Medicare Tax.
For a basic employee calculation, FICA can be estimated by multiplying covered wages by the applicable Social Security and Medicare rates.
Because $60,000 is below the 2026 Social Security wage base of $184,500, the full amount is within the Social Security wage base in this simplified example.
Yes. The employee portion of FICA is generally withheld from your wages, which means it reduces the amount you receive as take-home pay.
For example, if your gross pay is $2,000 for a paycheck and all of it is subject to the standard employee FICA rate, the basic FICA withholding would be approximately:
Your remaining pay would then be reduced by other applicable deductions, such as federal income tax, state or local taxes, health insurance, retirement contributions, or other payroll deductions.
FICA is therefore one component of the difference between gross pay and net pay.
No.
FICA tax and federal income tax are separate taxes.
FICA tax primarily consists of Social Security and Medicare taxes.
Federal income tax is a separate federal tax that is generally withheld based on factors such as wages, filing information, deductions, credits, and the employee's Form W-4 information.
FICA taxes are generally calculated using specific payroll tax rates, while federal income tax withholding can vary considerably between employees.
This is why your paycheck may show separate lines for:
The IRS also notes that Social Security and Medicare taxes, known as FICA, are separate from the federal income-tax withholding process.
Both employees and employers generally contribute to the standard FICA taxes.
For a typical employee:
The employer's contribution generally does not come out of the employee's stated gross wages. Instead, it represents an additional employment tax cost for the employer.
Self-employed individuals have different rules and may be responsible for both the employer and employee portions through the self-employment tax system.
FICA is a type of federal payroll tax, but the terms are not always interchangeable.
Payroll taxes can refer broadly to taxes associated with employment and payroll, while FICA specifically refers to Social Security and Medicare taxes imposed under the Federal Insurance Contributions Act.
Depending on the context, payroll taxes may also include federal unemployment taxes and state employment taxes.
Therefore:
Social Security tax does, but Medicare tax generally does not.
For 2026, the Social Security wage base is $184,500. Once an employee reaches that amount of Social Security wages during the year, additional wages are generally no longer subject to the 6.2% Social Security employee tax for that year.
Medicare tax has no wage base limit.
This distinction becomes particularly important for high-income employees.
For example, a worker earning $300,000 in 2026 may stop paying the standard employee Social Security tax after reaching the annual wage base, but Medicare tax continues to apply to covered wages.
FICA taxes are withheld because federal law generally requires employers to collect the employee's share of Social Security and Medicare taxes from covered wages.
The employer then reports and deposits the applicable employment taxes.
You may see separate entries on your pay stub for:
The Social Security and Medicare amounts are the employee's FICA contributions.
Seeing these deductions on a paycheck does not necessarily mean that something is wrong with your payroll. For most covered employees, these deductions are a normal part of payroll withholding.
When comparing your gross salary with your take-home salary, FICA is one of the deductions to consider.
Suppose your annual gross salary is $75,000.
A simplified calculation using the standard 7.65% employee FICA rate would be:
This does not mean your total tax bill is $5,737.50. Federal income tax, state and local taxes, retirement contributions, insurance, and other deductions may also affect your final take-home pay.
FICA is simply one part of the overall payroll deduction calculation.
Self-employed individuals generally do not have an employer withholding the employee portion of Social Security and Medicare taxes from each paycheck.
Instead, self-employment tax rules generally account for both the employee and employer portions of Social Security and Medicare taxes, subject to applicable adjustments and limits.
Because self-employment tax can be more complicated than ordinary employee FICA withholding, self-employed taxpayers should consider the specific rules applicable to their business income.
You can start with your wages that are subject to Social Security and Medicare taxes.
For a basic 2026 estimate:
For a more complete paycheck calculation, you also need to account for federal income tax and other deductions.
A FICA tax calculator can help estimate the Social Security and Medicare portions of payroll taxes, while a broader paycheck or income-tax calculator can provide a more complete estimate of take-home pay.
FICA tax is the broader term.
Social Security tax is one component of FICA.
The other primary component is Medicare tax.
So:
Social Security has a wage base limit, while Medicare generally does not.
Medicare tax is also a component of FICA.
For 2026, the standard Medicare rate is 1.45% for employees and 1.45% for employers. Covered Medicare wages are not subject to an annual wage base limit.
Some higher-income workers may also have Additional Medicare Tax withheld.
FICA stands for the Federal Insurance Contributions Act. It is the federal law associated with Social Security and Medicare payroll taxes.
The standard employee FICA rate is 7.65%: 6.2% for Social Security and 1.45% for Medicare. The employer generally pays a matching 7.65%.
For most employees whose wages are subject to Social Security and Medicare taxes, FICA withholding is generally required.
No. FICA and federal income tax are separate payroll deductions.
Yes. For 2026, the Social Security wage base is $184,500. Medicare does not have a comparable wage base limit.
It is an additional 0.9% Medicare tax that applies to certain wages above applicable thresholds. Employers generally begin withholding it after an employee's wages exceed $200,000 in a calendar year.
Generally, yes. Employers generally pay a matching 6.2% Social Security tax and 1.45% Medicare tax on covered employee wages.
FICA deductions represent your employee Social Security and Medicare tax contributions. Your employer generally withholds these amounts from covered wages and sends them to the appropriate federal authorities.
FICA tax is an important part of the U.S. payroll system. It primarily consists of Social Security and Medicare taxes, and most employees see these deductions directly on their paychecks.
For 2026, the standard employee rates are 6.2% for Social Security and 1.45% for Medicare. Social Security is subject to a $184,500 wage base, while Medicare has no wage base limit. Higher-income employees may also be subject to the Additional Medicare Tax.
Understanding FICA can make it easier to read your paycheck and understand the difference between gross wages and take-home pay. However, FICA is only one part of your overall tax and payroll picture. Your actual take-home pay can also depend on federal income tax withholding, state and local taxes, retirement contributions, insurance premiums, and other deductions.
For the most accurate information about current FICA rules, rates, and wage limits, refer to the latest guidance published by the IRS.