West Virginia Paycheck Calculator
Figure basis: Official West Virginia Tax DivisionThis West Virginia paycheck calculator estimates your take-home pay after the taxes withheld from a typical wage. Enter your gross pay, choose how often you are paid (weekly, every two weeks, twice a month or monthly) and select your filing status to see a full breakdown of every deduction and your net pay. The estimate combines four withholdings: federal income tax, calculated with the 2026 Internal Revenue Service annualised percentage method; Social Security at 6.2% up to the 2026 wage base of $184,500.00; Medicare at 1.45% on all wages; and West Virginia state income tax withholding, applied with the brackets published by the West Virginia Tax Division for tax year 2026. Results update as you type and the page link captures your inputs so you can save or share a calculation. This estimate covers federal withholding, FICA and state income tax only; State Disability Insurance where a state levies it, and any city or county local income tax, are not included and are noted separately. Use it to check a payslip, compare an offer, or plan a pre-tax contribution.
A $5,000 biweekly paycheck (single filer) in West Virginia is about $3,652.49 take-home, after federal income tax $766.69, Social Security $310.00, Medicare $72.50 and West Virginia income tax $198.32.
How the West Virginia paycheck calculation works
annual gross = gross per period x pay periods per year
federal withholding = IRS Pub 15-T annualised percentage method, de-annualised
Social Security = min(annual gross, $184,500.00) x 6.2% / periods
Medicare = annual gross x 1.45% / periods
state withholding = West Virginia income tax on annual gross / periods
take-home = gross per period - federal - Social Security - Medicare - state
Worked example
A single filer paid $5,000.00 every two weeks (26 pay periods a year) in West Virginia, for 2026:
- Annual gross = $5,000.00 x 26 = $130,000.00
- Federal income tax withheld this period = $766.69
- Social Security = $310.00; Medicare = $72.50
- West Virginia income tax withheld = $198.32
- Take-home = $5,000.00 - $766.69 - $310.00 - $72.50 - $198.32 = $3,652.49
Why West Virginia withholding is a moving target in 2026
West Virginia withholds state income tax on top of federal tax and FICA, across five brackets that for 2026 run 2.11 percent, 2.81 percent, 3.16 percent, 4.22 percent and 4.58 percent. Single, joint and head-of-household filers share the same thresholds at $10,000, $25,000, $40,000 and $60,000, with the top 4.58 percent rate applying above $60,000; married taxpayers filing separately use exactly half of each cutoff. Those odd decimals are the residue of rapid tax cuts: a 21.25 percent reduction under HB 2526 in 2023, then a further 5 percent across-the-board cut under Senate Bill 392, signed March 31, 2026 and retroactive to January 1, 2026.
That retroactivity is the practical catch for anyone reading a 2026 pay stub. Because the cut landed mid-year, employer withholding tables early in 2026 may still reflect the older, higher rates, so your checks could be slightly over-withheld until the tables catch up, with the difference squared away when you file.
West Virginia also has no standard deduction at all. Instead it grants a $2,000 personal exemption for you, your spouse and each dependent, claimed on Form WV/IT-104, the state withholding certificate. With lawmakers signaling further reductions, West Virginia's paycheck math is likely to keep shifting downward, so it is worth re-checking the current rate rather than trusting a figure from an earlier year.
West Virginia paycheck calculator: frequently asked questions
How much is take-home pay on a $5,000 biweekly paycheck in West Virginia?
A single filer earning $5,000 every two weeks in West Virginia keeps about $3,652.49 after federal income tax withholding ($766.69), Social Security ($310.00), Medicare ($72.50) and West Virginia state income tax withholding ($198.32). Enter your own gross pay, pay frequency and filing status above for your figure.
Does West Virginia have a state income tax withheld from paychecks?
Yes. West Virginia income tax is withheld from wages in addition to federal income tax and FICA. This calculator applies the West Virginia brackets published by the West Virginia Tax Division (tax year 2026) using the annualised method.
What FICA taxes are withheld from a West Virginia paycheck?
Social Security is withheld at 6.2% on wages up to the 2026 wage base of $184,500.00, and Medicare at 1.45% on all wages, with an additional 0.9% Medicare tax on wages above the filing-status threshold. These are federal taxes that apply to wages in every state.
Does this West Virginia paycheck estimate include SDI or local taxes?
No. This estimate covers federal income tax withholding, Social Security, Medicare and West Virginia state income tax withholding. State Disability Insurance (SDI), where a state levies it, and any city or county local income taxes are not included; check your state and local authorities for those.
Official sources
- Federal income tax withholding and standard deduction (tax year 2026): US Internal Revenue Service, as at Jun 12, 2026.
- Social Security wage base and FICA rates (2026): US Social Security Administration and IRS Topic 751, as at Jun 12, 2026.
- West Virginia income tax brackets (tax year 2026): West Virginia Tax Division, as at Jul 16, 2026.
Reviewed by the CalculatorHub team, edited by James Graham, 25 June 2026. See our methodology. General information, not financial or tax advice. State Disability Insurance and local income taxes are not included.