Virginia Paycheck Calculator
Estimate your take-home pay in Virginia, where four tax brackets run from 2% to 5.75%, but the top bracket starts at just $17,000 of taxable income, so most full-time workers land close to the top rate on the bulk of their pay.
This calculator provides estimates for informational purposes only. Actual paycheck amounts may vary based on your employer, benefits, local taxes, filing status, and tax elections.
Your estimate will appear here
Enter your pay details and click calculate to see your estimated take-home pay, tax breakdown, and annual income.
Quick Answer
Virginia's state income tax has four brackets from 2% to 5.75%, with the top rate applying to nearly all income above $17,000. This calculator estimates your take-home pay using a simplified 5.5% flat state rate, along with federal income tax, Social Security (6.2%), and Medicare (1.45%). It doesn't add local income tax, since no Virginia county or city charges one.
How It Works: Formula & Variables
Net Pay = Gross Pay − Federal Tax − State Tax (≈5.5%) − Social Security − Medicare − Other Deductions
- Gross Pay
- Your total earnings before any deductions, hourly rate times hours, or annual salary divided by pay periods.
- Federal Tax
- Calculated using progressive tax brackets based on your filing status and taxable income.
- State Tax
- Estimated at an approximate 5.5% flat rate, close to Virginia's 5.75% top bracket, which applies to most income above $17,000.
- Social Security
- 6.2% of gross pay, up to the annual wage base limit.
- Medicare
- 1.45% of gross pay, with no wage limit (plus 0.9% surtax above certain thresholds).
Worked Examples
Example 1: Hourly worker in Richmond
Morgan works 40 hours a week at $22 an hour. Gross weekly pay is $880. After federal income tax (around $88), Virginia state tax (≈5.5%, or $48.40), Social Security (6.2%, or $54.56), and Medicare (1.45%, or $12.76), estimated take-home pay lands at about $676.28 a week, roughly 77% of gross pay.
Example 2: Salaried employee in Virginia Beach
Alex earns $70,000 a year, paid biweekly ($2,692.31 gross per paycheck), filing as Single. After federal tax, Virginia's approximate 5.5% state tax, Social Security, and Medicare, estimated take-home pay comes out to roughly $2,020 per paycheck.
Example 3: Married couple in Arlington
Jamie and Drew file Married Filing Jointly with a combined salary of $135,000 a year, paid biweekly ($5,192.31 gross per paycheck), commuting into the DC area for work. After federal tax, Virginia's state tax, Social Security, and Medicare, estimated take-home pay comes out to roughly $3,890 per paycheck, about 75% of gross pay. Arlington doesn't add a local income tax, though the higher cost of living in Northern Virginia affects the budget more than the tax line does.
Key Concepts
Brackets that mostly don't matter in practice: Virginia's four-bracket system looks progressive on paper, but since the top 5.75% bracket starts at only $17,000 of taxable income, nearly every full-time worker's income above that low threshold gets taxed at the top rate. Functionally, it behaves a lot like a near-flat tax for most earners.
Old thresholds, unchanged for years: The $3,000, $5,000, and $17,000 bracket cutoffs have stayed the same for a long stretch without inflation adjustments, which is part of why the top bracket now captures so much ordinary income.
No local income tax, unlike Maryland next door: Virginia counties and cities, including Arlington and Fairfax in the DC suburbs, don't layer a local income tax on top of the state rate. Maryland, just across the Potomac, requires every county to collect one.
Cost of living varies a lot within the state: A given Virginia salary stretches very differently in Northern Virginia's DC suburbs than in Richmond or the Shenandoah Valley, even though the state tax rate is the same everywhere.
Useful for comparing job offers: If you're weighing a Virginia offer against one in Maryland or DC, run both through a paycheck calculator, since local tax rules differ even though all three sit in the same metro area.
Common Mistakes
Assuming the lower brackets meaningfully reduce your tax bill: Because the top bracket starts so low, most of a typical salary gets taxed at 5.75%, not at the lower introductory rates. Don't expect the blended rate to land much below the top bracket.
Adding a local income tax that doesn't exist: Virginia doesn't have county or city income taxes, unlike Maryland or Ohio.
Comparing gross salaries across states: A $75,000 offer in Virginia and a $75,000 offer in Maryland don't translate to the same take-home pay once local tax rules are factored in. Always compare net pay, not gross.
Ignoring pre-tax deductions: 401(k) contributions and health insurance premiums lower your taxable income before both federal and state tax apply, so leaving them out understates your real take-home pay.
Frequently Asked Questions
Virginia uses four tax brackets: 2% on the first $3,000 of taxable income, 3% on the next $2,000, 5% up to $17,000, and 5.75% on everything above $17,000. Because that top bracket kicks in at such a low income level, most full-time workers end up paying close to 5.75% on the bulk of their earnings. This calculator applies a simplified 5.5% flat estimate rather than modeling all four brackets separately.
Progressive, at least in name. Virginia has four brackets from 2% to 5.75%, but the top bracket starts at just $17,000 of taxable income, well below the annual salary of most full-time workers. In practice, that means the brackets matter much less than they would in a state like California, where the top rate only applies to high six-figure incomes.
No. Northern Virginia counties like Arlington and Fairfax, along with every other Virginia locality, don't add a separate income tax on top of the state rate. Local governments there rely on property tax instead, which tends to run higher in Northern Virginia given regional home values.
Federal income tax, Virginia's state income tax (2% to 5.75% across four brackets), Social Security (6.2% up to the annual wage base), and Medicare (1.45%, plus 0.9% more for high earners).
Virginia's bracket thresholds haven't been adjusted for inflation in decades, so a $17,000 cutoff that may have meant something different when it was set now applies to nearly every full-time salary. Lawmakers have discussed updating the brackets, but as of the 2024 and 2025 tax years, the same thresholds remain in place.
Yes, switch between the Hourly and Salary tabs and enter your wage or annual salary along with your pay frequency. The state is already set to Virginia.
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