2026 federal tax, single, full-time

$15 an hour biweekly,
after taxes in 2026

The Fight-for-$15 baseline. $15/hour at 40 hours/week is $1,200 gross every two weeks. Federal-only biweekly take-home: $1,048. Below: every state, the math, and what $15/hour actually covers.

Federal-only biweekly, single, 2026

$1,048

biweekly take-home, no state tax

$1200 biweekly gross. $2,271 monthly. $27,249 annual. Effective 12.7%.

Biweekly gross (80 hrs)$1200
Federal income tax($60)
Social Security 6.2%($74)
Medicare 1.45%($17)
Biweekly take-home$1,048
Tax estimate, not tax advice

Walk-through

How $15/hour becomes $1,048 biweekly

Step 1: Annualise to $31,200

$15/hour times 40 hours per week times 52 weeks per year is $31,200 gross. The 2,080-hour annualisation is what every IRS withholding table assumes. If you work less than full time, scale proportionally: 35 hours per week is $27,300 annual, 30 hours per week is $23,400 annual.

Step 2: Standard deduction and federal brackets

The 2026 single standard deduction is $16,100. Subtracting from $$31,200 leaves $$15,100 of taxable income. The first $12,400 is taxed at 10% ($1,240). The remaining $$2,700 is taxed at 12% ($$324). Total federal income tax: $$1,564 per year, or $$60 per biweekly paycheck.

At $15/hour annualised, you stay deep inside the 12% bracket. The 22% bracket starts at $50,400 of taxable income, far above your $$15,100. Source: IRS Publication 15-T (2026).

Step 3: FICA on gross

Social Security 6.2% on $31,200 is $$1,934. Medicare 1.45% on $31,200 is $$452. Total FICA: $$2,387 annually, $$92 biweekly. The Social Security wage base ($184,500 in 2026, per the SSA COLA notice) is far above your annual earnings, so the full 6.2% applies.

Step 4: Annual net divided by 26 paychecks

Annual federal-only net: $$27,249. Divided by 26 biweekly pay periods: $1,048 per paycheck. This is your direct deposit before any state tax or pre-tax payroll deductions (health insurance, 401(k), HSA, transit). Many $15/hour jobs do not include benefits, so this federal-only figure is often close to your real take-home.

By state

$15/hour biweekly take-home, ranked by state

Single filer, 40 hours/week, 2026.

StateBiweeklyMonthlyAnnual
AlaskaNo tax$1,048$2,271$27,249
FloridaNo tax$1,048$2,271$27,249
NevadaNo tax$1,048$2,271$27,249
New HampshireNo tax$1,048$2,271$27,249
North Dakota$1,048$2,271$27,249
Ohio$1,048$2,271$27,249
South DakotaNo tax$1,048$2,271$27,249
TennesseeNo tax$1,048$2,271$27,249
TexasNo tax$1,048$2,271$27,249
WyomingNo tax$1,048$2,271$27,249
New Jersey$1,035$2,242$26,907
South Carolina$1,035$2,242$26,905
West Virginia$1,034$2,240$26,876
New Mexico$1,033$2,238$26,860
WashingtonNo tax$1,031$2,235$26,816
Indiana$1,031$2,234$26,804
Pennsylvania$1,030$2,232$26,786
Missouri$1,027$2,225$26,699
Louisiana$1,026$2,224$26,688
Arizona$1,026$2,223$26,678
Iowa$1,026$2,223$26,675
Connecticut$1,026$2,222$26,664
Wisconsin$1,024$2,219$26,627
Michigan$1,023$2,217$26,607
Utah$1,022$2,214$26,570
District of Columbia$1,021$2,212$26,543
Montana$1,021$2,212$26,540
North Carolina$1,020$2,209$26,513
Nebraska$1,020$2,209$26,508
Illinois$1,019$2,208$26,502
Vermont$1,018$2,205$26,460
Idaho$1,017$2,204$26,449
Colorado$1,017$2,204$26,448
California$1,017$2,203$26,441
Massachusetts$1,013$2,196$26,351
Oklahoma$1,013$2,195$26,346
Kentucky$1,011$2,190$26,275
Minnesota$1,010$2,188$26,261
Georgia$1,010$2,188$26,253
Maine$1,008$2,185$26,217
Arkansas$1,008$2,185$26,216
Virginia$1,008$2,185$26,216
Rhode Island$1,006$2,180$26,156
Mississippi$1,004$2,174$26,093
Delaware$1,003$2,174$26,084
Hawaii$1,002$2,170$26,044
New York$1,001$2,169$26,027
Maryland$999$2,165$25,979
Alabama$995$2,157$25,879
Kansas$992$2,150$25,797
Oregon$958$2,075$24,906

$15/hour in context

The Fight for $15 and where the floor stands now

The Fight for $15 movement began in 2012 with a fast-food worker strike in New York City. At the time, the federal minimum wage was (and still is) $7.25/hour. Twelve years later, $15/hour has become the legal floor in 12+ states plus DC and the de facto floor for most large national employers (Amazon, Target, Costco, Walmart in many regions, Starbucks). The federal minimum has not moved.

$15/hour annualised is $31,200. The federal poverty line for a single adult in 2026 is approximately $15,650, so $15/hour clears the single-adult poverty line by about $15,500. For a household of two (single parent, one child), the poverty line is $21,150. For a household of three, $26,650. $15/hour clears poverty for households up to four, but with little margin for healthcare, childcare, or savings.

Per the BLS, the median weekly earnings for full-time wage and salary workers in early 2026 were $1,235, or roughly $30.88/hour at 40 hours/week. So $15/hour is about half of the US median wage. Median earnings vary widely by occupation: cashiers, food prep workers, and home health aides are commonly paid in the $13-$18/hour band; nurses, teachers, electricians earn $30-$45/hour. Source: BLS Usual Weekly Earnings, Q1 2026.

Customise

Try a different rate or state

$

Detected as hourly rate. Annual equivalent: $31,200

Your Take-Home Pay

$2,271/mo

Take Home87.3%
Federal Tax5.0%
Social Security6.2%
Medicare1.5%
Gross Annual Salary$31,200
Standard Deduction (Single)-$16,100
Taxable Income$15,100
Federal Income Tax-$1,564
10% bracket ($0 - $12,400)-$1,240
12% bracket ($12,400 - $50,400)-$324
Social Security (6.2%)-$1,934
Medicare (1.45%)-$452
Total FICA-$2,387
Total Tax-$3,951
Effective Tax Rate12.7%
Marginal Tax Rate12%
Annual Take-Home Pay$27,249
Monthly$2,271
Biweekly (26 paychecks)$1,048
Weekly$524

Sources

Where the 2026 numbers come from

Related

Other hourly rates and biweekly views

$13/hr biweekly

Federal min-wage premium, sub-state-min territory in many states.

$20/hr biweekly

$41,600 annualised. Closer to the median wage band.

$25/hr biweekly

$52,000 annualised. Near US median wage for full-time workers.

Biweekly calculator

The 26-vs-27-paycheck quirk and full biweekly net by salary.

$15/hr full reference

All frequencies, all states, in one place.

Salary calculator

Try any rate, salary, state, and filing status.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much is $15 an hour biweekly after taxes?+
$15/hour at 40 hours/week is $1,200 gross every two weeks (80 hours x $15). After federal income tax and FICA only, biweekly take-home is approximately $1,048 for a single filer in 2026. State tax further reduces this in most states. In a no-tax state (TX, FL, NV, WA, etc.), your biweekly deposit equals the federal-only $1,048 figure. In California, expect about $1,017 biweekly after state tax.
Is $15/hour the new minimum wage?+
$15/hour is the de facto floor for many large US employers and is the legal minimum wage in 12 states plus DC as of 2026: California ($16+), Washington ($16+), Massachusetts ($15), Connecticut ($15+), Maryland ($15), New York ($15-$17 by region), New Jersey ($15+), Illinois ($15), Maine ($14+), Arizona ($14+), Colorado ($14+), and others approaching $15. The federal minimum wage remains $7.25/hour, unchanged since 2009. The 'Fight for $15' campaign from 2012 onwards pushed the $15 figure into mainstream policy and major retailers (Amazon, Target, Costco) adopted $15+ minimums voluntarily.
What is $15 an hour annually?+
$15/hour at full-time hours (2,080/year) is $31,200 per year gross. After federal income tax ($1,564 after the $16,100 single standard deduction) and FICA ($2,387), federal-only annual take-home is $27,249.
What is $15 an hour monthly after taxes?+
Federal-only monthly take-home on $15/hour full-time is approximately $2,271. State tax in most states reduces this by $0 to $80 per month at this income.
Can a family live on $15/hour?+
Borderline in low-cost areas, very difficult in metro areas. $15/hour annualises to $31,200 gross. The federal poverty line for a household of 3 (single parent, two kids) in 2026 is around $26,650. So $15/hour clears the poverty line for a family of three but leaves no margin. The MIT Living Wage Calculator estimates a single adult with one child needs $26-$35/hour in most US counties to cover basic needs (childcare alone is $10-$15K/year in most metros). $15/hour with a co-parent, family help, or housing subsidy is workable in low-cost areas; on its own with kids it is very tight.
How much is $15/hour with two part-time jobs (50 hours total)?+
At 50 hours per week split across two jobs, biweekly gross is $15 x 100 = $1,500. Annual gross would be $39,000. Each job withholds independently as if it were the only income, often producing too little federal withholding (since each job assumes it gets the full standard deduction). Filers with multiple jobs should use the 'Multiple Jobs Worksheet' on Form W-4 or check the 'two jobs' box on Step 2(c) of the W-4 to fix the under-withholding. Otherwise expect a small federal tax bill at filing time.
Is overtime taxed at a higher rate?+
No. Overtime (1.5x your hourly rate for hours beyond 40 per week, federal FLSA rule) is taxed at your regular marginal rate. There is no special 'overtime tax bracket.' What can happen: the extra income from a heavy overtime week pushes that paycheck into a higher tax bracket on the IRS withholding tables, so a one-off heavy paycheck is over-withheld. The over-withholding is reconciled at filing time via your refund. The total tax owed on $15/hr regular plus overtime pay is identical to the tax on the same total income earned all in regular pay.