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. $2,270 monthly. $27,240 annual. Effective 12.7%.

Biweekly gross (80 hrs)$1200
Federal income tax($61)
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 $11,925 is taxed at 10% ($1,193). The remaining $$3,175 is taxed at 12% ($$381). Total federal income tax: $$1,574 per year, or $$61 per biweekly paycheck.

At $15/hour annualised, you stay deep inside the 12% bracket. The 22% bracket starts at $48,475 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: $$27,240. 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$2,270$27,240
FloridaNo tax$1,048$2,270$27,240
NevadaNo tax$1,048$2,270$27,240
New HampshireNo tax$1,048$2,270$27,240
North Dakota$1,048$2,270$27,240
Ohio$1,048$2,270$27,240
South DakotaNo tax$1,048$2,270$27,240
TennesseeNo tax$1,048$2,270$27,240
TexasNo tax$1,048$2,270$27,240
WyomingNo tax$1,048$2,270$27,240
New Jersey$1,035$2,241$26,897
South Carolina$1,034$2,241$26,896
West Virginia$1,033$2,239$26,867
New Mexico$1,033$2,238$26,850
WashingtonNo tax$1,031$2,234$26,807
Indiana$1,031$2,233$26,794
Pennsylvania$1,030$2,231$26,776
Missouri$1,027$2,224$26,689
Louisiana$1,026$2,223$26,679
Arizona$1,026$2,222$26,668
Iowa$1,026$2,222$26,666
Connecticut$1,025$2,221$26,654
Wisconsin$1,024$2,218$26,617
Michigan$1,023$2,216$26,598
Utah$1,022$2,213$26,560
District of Columbia$1,021$2,211$26,534
Montana$1,020$2,211$26,530
North Carolina$1,019$2,209$26,504
Nebraska$1,019$2,208$26,499
Illinois$1,019$2,208$26,492
Vermont$1,017$2,204$26,451
Idaho$1,017$2,203$26,439
Colorado$1,017$2,203$26,438
California$1,017$2,203$26,432
Massachusetts$1,013$2,195$26,341
Oklahoma$1,013$2,195$26,336
Kentucky$1,010$2,189$26,265
Minnesota$1,010$2,188$26,252
Georgia$1,009$2,187$26,243
Maine$1,008$2,184$26,208
Arkansas$1,008$2,184$26,207
Virginia$1,008$2,184$26,206
Rhode Island$1,006$2,179$26,147
Mississippi$1,003$2,174$26,084
Delaware$1,003$2,173$26,075
Hawaii$1,001$2,170$26,034
New York$1,001$2,168$26,017
Maryland$999$2,164$25,969
Alabama$995$2,156$25,870
Kansas$992$2,149$25,787
Oregon$958$2,075$24,896

$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 about $1,165, or roughly $29.13/hour annualised 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

$2,270/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-$1,574
10% bracket ($0 - $11,925)-$1,193
12% bracket ($11,925 - $48,475)-$381
Social Security (6.2%)-$1,934
Medicare (1.45%)-$452
Total FICA-$2,387
Total Tax-$3,960
Effective Tax Rate12.7%
Marginal Tax Rate12%
Annual Take-Home Pay$27,240
Monthly$2,270
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 ($1,574 after the $16,100 single standard deduction) and FICA ($2,387), federal-only annual take-home is $27,240.
What is $15 an hour monthly after taxes?+
Federal-only monthly take-home on $15/hour full-time is approximately $2,270. 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.