Free guides on pay stubs, payroll taxes, overtime, and more — updated for 2026.
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See our guides on proving income without pay stubs, plus a free income verification packet builder.
Understand every line on your pay stub — gross pay, FICA, federal tax, state tax, deductions, and net pay explained.
YTD means year-to-date — the running total of your gross pay, taxes, and deductions. Here's what each YTD figure means and why it matters.
How many pay stubs landlords require, the 3× rent income rule, and proof-of-income alternatives for renters and the self-employed.
Original analysis: we ran every payday weekday against every year to 2040. The answer differs by weekday, and four of those years affect nobody.
Gross is before deductions, net is your take-home. How taxes and deductions turn one into the other, with a 2026 example.
A plain-English cheat sheet for YTD, FICA, OASDI, FED, SIT, 401(k) and every common pay stub code.
FICA is 7.65% of every paycheck. Here's what Social Security and Medicare taxes fund, how they're calculated, and the 2026 wage base.
2026 federal tax brackets, state rates for all 50 states, and a side-by-side comparison of living in a no-tax vs high-tax state.
Pay stubs and W-2s both relate to your earnings — but they serve very different purposes. Here's when you need each one.
Federal overtime rules, how to calculate time-and-a-half, who is exempt, and state-specific overtime laws explained.