Bonus & Overtime Calculator
This bonus and overtime calculator answers two paycheck questions with 2026 rules. For a bonus, it applies the IRS supplemental-wage withholding — a flat 22% federal rate, jumping to 37% on the part above $1,000,000 of supplemental wages from one employer in a year — plus Social Security and Medicare, so a $5,000 bonus shows its real net before state tax. For overtime, it prices straight time, time-and-a-half, and double time separately, isolates the FLSA premium (the 0.5x half), and estimates the federal tax saving from the 2025–2028 no-tax-on-overtime deduction, capped at $12,500 single or $25,000 joint.
Each mode asks only for the inputs it needs.
The bonus before any withholding.
Bonuses, commissions, and other supplemental wages from the SAME employer this calendar year. Only the part of this bonus above $1,000,000 total withholds at 37%.
All wages from this employer so far this year, before this bonus. Sets how much Social Security room and Additional Medicare room is left.
Sets the Additional Medicare threshold for bonuses ($200,000 single / $250,000 joint) and the overtime deduction cap ($12,500 / $25,000).
Net bonus after withholding
3,517.5
- Federal withholdingFlat 22% supplemental-wage withholding on $5000.00 (IRS Publication 15, Section 7).
- 1,100
- Social Security tax6.2% on $5000.00 of remaining wage-base room.
- 310
- Medicare tax1.45% on the full $5000.00.
- 72.5
- Additional Medicare tax0.9% applies only above $200,000 of yearly wages — not reached here.
- 0
- Total withheld
- 1,482.5
- Net bonusBefore state income-tax withholding, which varies by state and is not included.
- 3,517.5
- Total withheld (%)Total withholding as a share of the gross bonus, before state tax.
- 29.65%
How it was calculated
- Federal: $5000.00 at 22% = $1100.00.
- Social Security: 6.2% on $5000.00 of remaining wage-base room = $310.00. Medicare: 1.45% on $5000.00 = $72.50; no Additional Medicare Tax at this income.
- Net: $5000.00 − $1482.50 withheld = $3517.50 (29.65% withheld, before state tax).
How it works
Bonus withholding uses the IRS supplemental-wage rules from Publication 15, Section 7: a bonus paid separately from regular pay withholds federal income tax at a flat 22%, and any part above $1,000,000 of supplemental wages from the same employer in a calendar year withholds at a mandatory 37%. That 22% is withholding, not a special bonus tax rate — the bonus joins your other income on your return and is taxed at your normal brackets, so the withholding can over- or under-shoot.
FICA stacks on top of the federal line at full rates: Social Security at 6.2% only until your yearly wages reach the $184,500 wage base, Medicare at 1.45% on every dollar, plus 0.9% Additional Medicare on wages over $200,000 single or $250,000 joint. That is why a $5,000 bonus with no prior wages loses $1,100 federal + $382.50 FICA = $1,482.50, or 29.65%, before any state tax.
Overtime pay starts from the FLSA floor: nonexempt employees earn at least 1.5x the regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek. California adds daily rules — 1.5x over 8 hours in a day and 2x over 12 hours, plus 1.5x for the first 8 hours of a 7th consecutive day and 2x after that. This calculator prices straight time, 1.5x hours, and 2x hours as separate lines so each multiplier is visible.
The 2025–2028 no-tax-on-overtime deduction (One Big Beautiful Bill Act, P.L. 119-21) is a return-level deduction, not a paycheck exemption: you deduct qualified overtime compensation — only the FLSA-required premium, the 0.5x half of time-and-a-half — up to $12,500 single or $25,000 joint per year, phasing out above $150,000 or $300,000 of modified AGI. Double-time premium from state law does not qualify, withholding and FICA still apply to the whole wage, and the deduction ends after tax year 2028 unless Congress extends it.
State tax on a bonus is deliberately left out: states withhold on supplemental wages at their own rates (some flat, some by formula), so a single national number would be wrong. Enter your state rate separately, or check your pay stub: the federal + FICA net here is the ceiling before state tax.
Worked examples
How much tax on a $5,000 bonus?
With no prior supplemental wages or year-to-date wages: federal withholding is 22% × $5,000 = $1,100. Social Security is 6.2% × $5,000 = $310 and Medicare is 1.45% × $5,000 = $72.50, so FICA is $382.50. Total withheld $1,482.50 (29.65%), leaving a net bonus of $3,517.50 — before state tax, which is not included. If you are in a low bracket, part of that $1,100 federal withholding comes back when you file.
10 overtime hours at $25 an hour
Straight time is 40 × $25 = $1,000 and overtime is 10 × $37.50 = $375, for $1,375 gross that week. The FLSA premium is the 0.5x half: 10 × $12.50 = $125 — that $125, not the full $375, is the qualified overtime amount. At a 22% marginal rate it saves about $27.50 of federal tax when claimed on the return, within the $12,500 single / $25,000 joint annual cap for tax years 2025–2028.
How to measure
- Enter year-to-date wages honestly for a bonus: the Social Security line drops to $0 once you pass $184,500, and the 37% line only bites after $1,000,000 of supplemental wages from the same employer — both switches are invisible if you leave those fields at $0.
- Compare the bonus net here with your actual pay stub: the gap is almost always state withholding plus any pre-tax deductions (401(k), health premiums) taken from the bonus, which this calculator does not model.
- For overtime, count hours by workweek, not by pay period: the FLSA 40-hour trigger resets each workweek, so two 50-hour weeks are not the same as one 60-hour week and one 40-hour week.
- Track your qualified premium across the year, not per week: the $12,500 / $25,000 cap is annual, so a big overtime year can exhaust it months before December — enter what you have already earned in the year-to-date field.
- Do not count double-time hours toward the deduction: only the FLSA 0.5x premium qualifies. A California worker with 2x hours still gets paid 2x, but the extra premium above 1.5x is state-law pay and stays fully taxable.
- If your bonus is paid together with regular pay instead of separately, your employer may use the aggregate method (bonus added to the paycheck, withholding from W-4 tables) rather than the flat 22% — ask payroll which method they use before comparing numbers.
Assumptions & limitations
Planning estimate
- Tax year 2026 throughout: bonus withholding from IRS Publication 15 (2026) Section 7, FICA from the 2026 SSA wage base, overtime deduction caps from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act for tax years 2025–2028. Figures for other years will differ, and the overtime deduction ends after 2028 unless extended.
- Bonus mode shows federal withholding + FICA only. State income-tax withholding on bonuses varies by state and is not included, so the net is a ceiling, not the deposit you will see.
- The flat 22% / 37% method assumes the bonus is paid separately or separately identified as supplemental wages and that income tax was withheld from regular wages this year or last. The aggregate method (bonus combined with regular pay, W-4 tables) can give a different withholding figure.
- Overtime mode assumes nonexempt, hourly-paid work. Exempt salaried employees are outside FLSA overtime, and the deduction requires FLSA-required overtime: employer-policy overtime (holidays, weekends, scheduled days off) and state-law double time do not qualify.
- The deduction estimate uses the marginal rate you pick and ignores the $150,000 / $300,000 modified-AGI phaseout — if your income is above those thresholds, your real saving is smaller, possibly $0. It also ignores state tax: most states still tax the full overtime wage.
- This is a planning estimate, not tax advice. Confirm a real bonus check or overtime claim with your payroll department or a tax professional.
Frequently asked questions
Before state tax: $1,100 federal withholding at the flat 22% supplemental rate, plus $310 Social Security and $72.50 Medicare, for $1,482.50 total (29.65%) and a net of $3,517.50 — assuming no prior wages this year. Once your yearly wages pass $184,500, the Social Security line drops to $0 and the same bonus nets $3,827.50 before state tax. State withholding, which varies by state, comes out on top of these figures.
No. The 22% is only the withholding method employers may use for supplemental wages paid separately (IRS Publication 15, Section 7). At filing time the bonus joins your other income and is taxed at your normal marginal brackets — so if your bracket is 12%, part of the withholding comes back as a refund, and if it is 32%, you may owe more. The only exception is the mandatory 37% withholding on supplemental wages above $1,000,000 from one employer in a year.
Multiply your regular hourly rate by 1.5 for each overtime hour and add it to straight time. At $25 an hour with 10 overtime hours: 40 × $25 = $1,000 straight time, plus 10 × $37.50 = $375 overtime, for $1,375 gross that week. Under the FLSA the trigger is hours over 40 in a workweek; California also pays 1.5x over 8 hours in a day and 2x over 12 hours in a day.
Double time is twice your regular rate. Under California law it applies to hours over 12 in a single workday and to hours over 8 on a 7th consecutive day in a workweek. Federal law has no double-time rule — the FLSA floor is time-and-a-half only. Many employers also pay double time by policy (for example holidays), but policy double time is not a legal requirement and does not create a federal deduction.
Not tax-free — it is a limited deduction. For tax years 2025–2028 you may deduct qualified overtime compensation (only the FLSA-required 0.5x premium, not the whole overtime wage) up to $12,500 single or $25,000 joint, phasing out above $150,000 / $300,000 of modified AGI. Your paycheck still withholds federal tax and FICA on the full wage; the saving lands when you file. At a 22% marginal rate, $125 of weekly premium saves about $27.50.
Almost always state withholding: this calculator deliberately excludes it because every state withholds on bonuses differently. Other causes are pre-tax deductions taken from the bonus (401(k), health premiums, HSA) and the aggregate withholding method, where the bonus is combined with regular pay and run through W-4 tables instead of the flat 22%. Check the state line and the deduction lines on your pay stub against the federal + FICA figures here.