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NC Paycheck Calculator

NC Hourly Paycheck Calculator 2026: Take-Home Pay With Overtime

Turn your hourly rate and weekly hours into a 2026 North Carolina paycheck, with overtime, federal and state income tax, Social Security and Medicare.

A pay stub for $20 an hour, 40 hours a week, paid every two weeks in North Carolina: gross pay $1,600.00, federal income tax $108.15, Social Security $99.20, Medicare $23.20, NC income tax $45.00, take-home pay $1,324.45
$20 an hour for 40 hours a week, paid every two weeks, single: $1,600.00 gross, $1,324.45 take-home pay.
How you are paid
That amount is
Filing status on your W-4
Federal Form W-4: the other steps dependents, two jobs, extra

Step 3 is $2,200 for each child under 17 and $500 for each other dependent, if your income is $200,000 or less ($400,000 married filing jointly).

Which Form W-4 is your employer using?

Each takes $4,300 a year off the pay that is taxed (Publication 15-T). Steps 2, 3, 4(a) and 4(b) above are not used; the extra withholding is (line 6 of the old form).

North Carolina Form NC-4 allowances, extra
Filing status on your NC-4

Each allowance takes $2,500 a year off the pay NC withholding is worked on (Form NC-30).

Deductions from your pay 401(k), health insurance

An HSA paid by plain payroll deduction, outside a cafeteria plan, is taxed like pay: put it under after-tax deductions.

A Roth 401(k), union dues, a wage garnishment: anything taken after tax.

Pay so far this year for high earners

On a pay stub, the year-to-date Social Security or Medicare wages: your gross pay so far less any health insurance or HSA taken before tax. It matters only above $184,500, where Social Security stops, and above $200,000, where 0.9% more Medicare starts. It changes this paycheck only; the year column counts a year of these paychecks from January.

The answer changes as you type.

Earnings statement

Paid every two weeks · 2026

Your paycheck: this check and the whole year
ItemThis checkYear
Gross pay$1,600.00$41,600.00
Federal income taxForm W-4$108.15$2,811.90
Social Security6.2% up to $184,500$99.20$2,579.20
Medicare1.45%, and 0.9% more above $200,000$23.20$603.20
North Carolina income taxForm NC-4, withheld at 4.09%$45.00$1,170.00

Take-home pay

$1,324.45

One thousand three hundred twenty-four and 45/100 dollars

For the year: $34,435.70. Taxes take 17.2% of your gross pay.

Where each dollar of this check goes

  • Take-home pay (82.8%)$1,324.45
  • Federal income tax (6.8%)$108.15
  • Social Security (6.2%)$99.20
  • Medicare (1.5%)$23.20
  • NC income tax (2.8%)$45.00
How this was worked out, line by line

Federal income tax: IRS Publication 15-T, Worksheet 1A

  1. 1a. Pay on this check that federal income tax is worked on: $1,600.00
  2. 1b. Pay periods a year: 26
  3. 1c. 1a × 1b: $41,600.00
  4. 1d. Other income a year (W-4 Step 4(a)): $0.00
  5. 1e. 1c + 1d: $41,600.00
  6. 1f. Deductions a year (W-4 Step 4(b)): $0.00
  7. 1g. Step 2 box not checked: $8,600.00
  8. 1h. 1f + 1g: $8,600.00
  9. 1i. Adjusted Annual Wage Amount (1e − 1h): $33,000.00
  10. 2b–2d. The row of the annual table it falls in: from $19,900.00, $1,240.00 plus 12% of the rest
  11. 2e. The rest: $33,000.00 − $19,900.00 = $13,100.00
  12. 2f. 12% of 2e: $1,572.00
  13. 2g. 2c + 2f: $2,812.00
  14. 2h. 2g ÷ 26: $108.15
  15. 3a. Credits for dependents (W-4 Step 3): $0.00
  16. 3b. 3a ÷ 26: $0.00
  17. 3c. 2h − 3b (not below zero): $108.15
  18. 4a. Extra withholding (W-4 Step 4(c)): $0.00
  19. 4b. Federal income tax on this check (3c + 4a): $108.15

North Carolina income tax: Form NC-30, annualized method

  1. 1. Pay on this check that NC income tax is worked on: $1,600.00
  2. 2. Pay periods a year: 26
  3. 3. Annualized pay (1 × 2): $41,600.00
  4. 4. N.C. standard deduction in NC-30: $12,750.00
  5. 5. NC-4 allowances: 0 × $2,500.00 = $0.00
  6. 6. 4 + 5: $12,750.00
  7. 7. Net annualized pay (3 − 6, not below zero): $28,850.00
  8. 8. 4.09% of 7 (the 3.99% tax rate plus 0.1%): $1,179.97
  9. 10. 8 ÷ 26, to the nearest whole dollar: $45.00

Social Security and Medicare

  1. Social Security: 6.2% of $1,600.00 = $99.20
  2. Medicare: 1.45% of $1,600.00 = $23.20

Sources: Publication 15-T (2026), Federal Income Tax Withholding Methods, IRS; Form W-4 (2026), Employee's Withholding Certificate, IRS; Publication 15 (2026), (Circular E), Employer's Tax Guide, IRS; Form NC-30, Income Tax Withholding Tables and Instructions for Employers (2026), NCDOR; Form NC-4, Employee's Withholding Allowance Certificate, NCDOR. Checked October 29, 2026.

Take-home pay $1,324.45 every two weeks from $1,600.00 gross: federal income tax $108.15, Social Security $99.20, Medicare $23.20, North Carolina income tax $45.00.

This NC hourly paycheck calculator turns your hourly rate and the hours you work each week into one 2026 paycheck: the gross pay, the four taxes taken out of it and the take-home pay that is left.

How the NC hourly paycheck calculator turns hours into a paycheck

It multiplies your rate by the hours you work in a normal week. With the overtime box ticked, hours over 40 in a week are paid at one and a half times your rate, as North Carolina law (G.S. 95-25.4) and the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (U.S. Department of Labor Fact Sheet #23) require unless a job is exempt. At $20 an hour and 45 hours, that is 40 hours at $20 plus 5 hours at $30: $950 for the week. Untick the box if you are not paid overtime; the overtime guide explains who is exempt.

It then shares a 52-week year across your paychecks: 52 checks if you are paid weekly, 26 every two weeks, 24 twice a month and 12 monthly, as in IRS Publication 15-T. Weekly and every-two-weeks checks hold whole weeks, so they show what those weeks earn. For twice-a-month and monthly pay the calculator shows the average check.

The four taxes on an hourly paycheck in North Carolina

Four taxes come out of an hourly paycheck in North Carolina: federal income tax, Social Security, Medicare and North Carolina income tax. The calculator works out each as payroll does; the paycheck calculator page shows the method line by line and how the calculators work lists the sources.

  • Federal income tax follows your Form W-4, the federal withholding form, and Worksheet 1A of IRS Publication 15-T, which multiplies one check by your paychecks in a year, finds the tax on that yearly pay and divides it back by your paychecks.
  • Social Security is 6.2% of your pay until your pay for the year reaches $184,500 (IRS Publication 15).
  • Medicare is 1.45% of all your pay, plus 0.9% on pay above $200,000 in the year (Publication 15).
  • North Carolina income tax follows Form NC-30: yearly pay, less $12,750 ($19,125 for head of household) and $2,500 for each allowance on your Form NC-4, the state withholding form, times 4.09% (the 3.99% tax rate plus 0.1%), divided by your paychecks and rounded to the whole dollar.

What to put in the W-4 and NC-4 boxes

Copy the W-4 and NC-4 you gave your employer. If you gave none, leave the boxes as they are. A new employee with no W-4 is treated as single with no other entries (Publication 15-T), and one with no NC-4 as single with no allowances (Form NC-30).

  • Filing status: the box you checked in Step 1(c) of your 2026 Form W-4.
  • Step 2: tick it only if you checked Step 2(c) for two jobs at once, or for married filing jointly with a working spouse. The form then cuts “the standard deduction and tax brackets” in half for each job.
  • Step 3: children under 17 ($2,200 each) and other dependents ($500 each), if your income is $200,000 or less ($400,000 married filing jointly) (Form W-4).
  • Step 4: other income, deductions and extra withholding, as on your form. For an older W-4 with allowances, pick that option.
  • NC-4: your filing status, the allowances on line 1 (each takes $2,500 a year off the pay North Carolina tax is worked out on) and any extra amount on line 2 of your Form NC-4. The NC-4 guide helps you count allowances.

Pre-tax deductions: which taxes they lower

A 401(k) lowers only the two income taxes, while health insurance through a cafeteria plan lowers all four (Publication 15; Publication 15-B). North Carolina uses the federal meaning of wages (Form NC-30), so a deduction that lowers the pay federal income tax is worked out on lowers North Carolina’s too.

  • A 401(k), 403(b) or 457(b) lowers the two income taxes only. The 2026 limit is $24,500, more from age 50 (IRS Notice 2025-67).
  • Health, dental and vision insurance through a cafeteria plan (the employer plan that lets you pay for benefits before tax), and a flexible spending account (FSA) or health savings account (HSA) paid through it, lower all four taxes (Publication 15-B).
  • An HSA paid by plain payroll deduction, outside a cafeteria plan, lowers none of them on the paycheck (Publication 15): enter it as an after-tax deduction.
  • After-tax deductions, such as union dues, change no tax.

$15, $20 and $25 an hour after taxes in NC

Each line below is worked out by the calculator’s own rules, for 40 hours a week, paid every two weeks, single on the W-4 and NC-4, with nothing else entered.

Example: $15.00 an hour for 40 hours a week, paid every two weeks, single on the W-4 and NC-4, no other entries. Each check: gross pay $1,200.00, federal income tax $60.15, Social Security $74.40, Medicare $17.40, North Carolina income tax $29.00. Take-home pay: $1,019.05 (84.9% of gross), $26,495.30 for the year.

Example: $20.00 an hour for 40 hours a week, paid every two weeks, single on the W-4 and NC-4, no other entries. Each check: gross pay $1,600.00, federal income tax $108.15, Social Security $99.20, Medicare $23.20, North Carolina income tax $45.00. Take-home pay: $1,324.45 (82.8% of gross), $34,435.70 for the year.

Example: $25.00 an hour for 40 hours a week, paid every two weeks, single on the W-4 and NC-4, no other entries. Each check: gross pay $2,000.00, federal income tax $156.15, Social Security $124.00, Medicare $29.00, North Carolina income tax $62.00. Take-home pay: $1,628.85 (81.4% of gross), $42,350.10 for the year.

At $15 an hour, Social Security and Medicare together take more than federal income tax. The IRS tables take nothing from the first $16,100 of a single person’s yearly pay, the 2026 standard deduction (Revenue Procedure 2025-32), while Social Security and Medicare take 7.65% from the first dollar. Between $15 and $25 an hour, each extra dollar earned has about 24 cents withheld: 12% federal, 7.65% for Social Security and Medicare, and 4.09% for North Carolina (Publication 15-T; NC-30).

North Carolina’s minimum wage is $7.25 an hour, the same as the federal rate (G.S. 95-25.3); the minimum wage guide has the details.

Why an overtime week’s check can look heavily taxed

An overtime check looks heavily taxed because payroll treats it as if you earned that much every pay period, so the extra pay is withheld at your top rate; overtime itself has no special tax rate (Publication 15). Line 1c of Worksheet 1A multiplies each check by your number of paychecks a year (Publication 15-T). And when overtime is paid apart from regular pay, the employer may treat it as supplemental wages, like a bonus, and withhold a flat 22% federal tax (Publication 15). Compare this 50-hour week with the 40-hour example above:

Example: $20.00 an hour for 50 hours a week, paid every two weeks, single on the W-4 and NC-4, no other entries. Each check: gross pay $2,200.00, federal income tax $180.15, Social Security $136.40, Medicare $31.90, North Carolina income tax $70.00. Take-home pay: $1,781.55 (81% of gross), $46,320.30 for the year.

Your tax return settles the real tax on the year’s total, and anything withheld above it counts toward your refund. For 2025 to 2028 federal law also allows a deduction for the “half” part of the time-and-a-half pay that the federal Fair Labor Standards Act requires, up to $12,500 a year ($25,000 married filing jointly), shrinking by $100 for each $1,000 of income over $150,000 ($300,000 jointly) (Public Law 119-21). Overtime owed only under North Carolina’s own law does not count, and the deduction lowers withholding only if you give your employer a new W-4 with it in Step 4(b) (IRS Fact Sheet FS-2026-13). It does not lower North Carolina taxable income, the NC Department of Revenue says in its answer for 2025 returns (NCDOR). The overtime guide has the details.

The calculator uses the 2026 rules: Publication 15-T and the 2026 Form W-4 for federal income tax, Social Security up to $184,500 (Social Security Administration), and North Carolina withholding at 4.09% (Form NC-30). Figures checked October 29, 2026. Each answer is an estimate of what payroll withholds, not tax or legal advice.

Questions people ask

How much is $20 an hour after taxes in NC?

At $20 an hour for 40 hours a week you earn $800 a week, or $41,600 a year, before tax; a single person paid weekly, with nothing else on the W-4 or NC-4, takes home the amount in this example, worked out by the calculator’s rules:

Example: $20.00 an hour for 40 hours a week, paid every week, single on the W-4 and NC-4, no other entries. Each check: gross pay $800.00, federal income tax $54.08, Social Security $49.60, Medicare $11.60, North Carolina income tax $23.00. Take-home pay: $661.72 (82.7% of gross), $34,409.44 for the year.

The same pay every two weeks is in the examples above. A 401(k), health insurance or children on your W-4 change the answer, so enter your own details in the calculator.

Is overtime taxed more than regular pay?

No. Overtime is taxed at the same rates as the rest of your pay; a check with overtime only looks more heavily taxed because payroll treats it as if you were paid that much every pay period, so the extra is withheld at your top rate (Publication 15-T).

Your return settles the tax on the year’s real total. Some employers withhold a flat 22% federal tax on overtime paid apart from regular pay, which the IRS allows (Publication 15). The overtime guide covers who is owed overtime and the federal overtime deduction.

How many hours a week should I enter?

Enter the hours you work in a normal week, overtime hours included; the calculator starts at 40 because overtime begins after 40 hours in a week under North Carolina law (G.S. 95-25.4). Part-time hours such as 25 or 32.5 work the same way.

What if my hours change from week to week?

Overtime is counted week by week, so a 30-hour week and a 50-hour week on one check still earn 10 hours of overtime; the two weeks are not averaged (NC Department of Labor). The calculator assumes the same hours every week.

To check one paycheck whose weeks differ, choose Salary, set the amount to “Each paycheck” and type the gross pay from your pay stub. For a rough yearly figure, enter your average weekly hours.

I have two jobs. What should I enter?

Work out each job on its own, with what you put on that job’s W-4. If you checked Step 2(c) on both W-4s, tick the Step 2 box for both; the IRS says that choice is generally more accurate when the lower-paying job pays more than half as much as the other. Enter children and deductions for one job only (Form W-4).

For North Carolina, the NC-4 says withholding is usually most accurate with all your allowances claimed for the higher-paying job and none for the other, plus any extra amount from its Multiple Jobs Table (Form NC-4).

Updated

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