2026 rates · Figures computed from our tax engine
Every explanation of FICA gives you the same number: 7.65%. It is correct for most people and it is the least interesting thing about the tax. The part worth understanding is that the rate you actually pay depends on how much you earn — and it goes down as income rises, which is the opposite of how income tax behaves.
FICA is the payroll tax that funds two programmes. It comes out of gross pay before you see it, and it is split into two lines your pay stub usually shows separately:
Social Security · 6.2%
Often labelled OASDI or FICA-SS. Funds retirement, disability, and survivor benefits. Applies only to the first $184,500 of wages in 2026.
Medicare · 1.45%
Often labelled FICA-MED. Funds hospital insurance for people 65+ and some disabled people. No wage cap, plus an extra 0.9% on wages above $200,000.
Your employer pays a matching 6.2% and 1.45% on top of your wages. That employer half never appears on your pay stub, but it is part of what you cost — our employee cost calculator shows the full picture from the employer side.
Because Social Security stops at $184,500 and Medicare does not, the combined percentage you pay is flat up to the cap and then falls steadily. We ran the calculation across the income range:
| Annual wages | Social Security | Medicare | Total FICA | Effective rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $30,000 | $1,860 | $435 | $2,295 | 7.65% |
| $60,000 | $3,720 | $870 | $4,590 | 7.65% |
| $100,000 | $6,200 | $1,450 | $7,650 | 7.65% |
| $150,000 | $9,300 | $2,175 | $11,475 | 7.65% |
| $184,500 ← cap | $11,439 | $2,675 | $14,114 | 7.65% |
| $200,000 | $11,439 | $2,900 | $14,339 | 7.17% |
| $250,000 | $11,439 | $4,075 | $15,514 | 6.21% |
| $400,000 | $11,439 | $7,600 | $19,039 | 4.76% |
| $1,000,000 | $11,439 | $21,700 | $33,139 | 3.31% |
Read the last column. It holds at exactly 7.65% all the way to the cap, then drops — a worker on $60,000 pays 7.65% of their wages to FICA, while someone on $1,000,000 pays 3.31%. In dollar terms the high earner pays far more; as a share of income they pay less than half the rate.
This is not a loophole or an error. Social Security benefits are also capped, so the contribution is capped to match — you stop paying in because you stop accruing. Whether that is the right design is a live policy argument, but the mechanic is deliberate and it is worth knowing it exists before you compare your pay stub to someone else's.
Check your own FICA lines
Enter the numbers off your pay stub and we will tell you whether Social Security and Medicare were withheld at the right rate — including the cap and the surtax.
Open Paycheck Checker →There is no employer to pay the other half, so you pay both: 15.3% self-employment tax, made up of 12.4% Social Security and 2.9% Medicare, charged on 92.35% of net earnings. The same $184,500 cap applies to the Social Security portion, and half of the total is deductible against your income tax. Our self-employment tax calculator works this out including quarterly payments, and the 1099 vs W-2 calculator shows how much extra you need to charge to absorb it.
What is FICA tax?
FICA (Federal Insurance Contributions Act) is the payroll tax that funds Social Security and Medicare. Employees pay 6.2% for Social Security and 1.45% for Medicare — 7.65% combined — and the employer pays the same again on top.
Is FICA the same percentage for everyone?
No, and this surprises people. Social Security only applies to the first $184,500 of wages in 2026, so above that the combined rate falls. A worker on $60,000 pays an effective 7.65%; someone on $1,000,000 pays about 3.31% — less than half the rate, because most of their pay is above the Social Security cap.
What is the 2026 Social Security wage base?
$184,500. Once your year-to-date wages pass it, Social Security withholding stops for the rest of the calendar year and your take-home rises. Medicare has no cap and continues on every dollar.
Why did my paycheck get bigger late in the year?
If you earn more than $184,500, you hit the Social Security cap partway through the year. From that paycheck on, the 6.2% line disappears and your net pay rises by roughly that amount until January, when it resets.
Do self-employed people pay FICA?
Effectively yes, as self-employment tax: 15.3% (12.4% Social Security + 2.9% Medicare) on 92.35% of net earnings, because you are paying both the employee and employer halves. Half of it is deductible against income tax, which softens the blow.
Can I get out of paying FICA?
Almost never as an employee. Narrow exemptions exist — certain student workers at their own school, some religious objectors, and some non-resident visa holders — but for the overwhelming majority of US workers FICA is not optional and there is no election to reduce it. Unlike income tax, your W-4 does not change it.
Social Security is 6.2% of wages up to $184,500; Medicare is 1.45% of all wages plus 0.9% on the portion above $200,000. The table is generated by the same function our calculators call, so it cannot disagree with them. It assumes a single employer and wages only — other income, and the employer's matching half, are outside it. Full detail and sources are on our methodology page.
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