Mississippi Paycheck Calculator
Estimate your Mississippi take-home pay. Mississippi completed its multi-year phase-down to a flat 4.0% income tax for TY2026 (down from 4.4% in 2025, per HB 531 enacted 2022). The first $10,000 of taxable income is exempt for single filers — $20,000 for married filing jointly — combining what used to be a personal exemption, standard deduction, and zero-bracket into a single threshold. There is no local income tax anywhere in Mississippi.
How to use this calculator
- Type your gross pay per paycheck — what you earn before any tax or deduction comes out.
- Pick your pay frequency (biweekly is the default — it's the most common).
- Set your federal filing status (Single or Married Filing Jointly).
- If you contribute to a traditional 401(k), enter the percentage. Add any pre-tax health or HSA deductions per paycheck.
- The result updates as you go. Use Share link to send your numbers to someone else without retyping them.
A real example: a $60,000 salary in Jackson
Say you take a $60,000-a-year job in Jackson, paid every two weeks, single, no 401(k). That's $2,307.69 gross per paycheck. The math goes like this for the year:
| Line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Gross pay | $60,000.00 |
| Federal income tax (after the $16,100 federal standard deduction) | −$5,020.00 |
| Social Security (6.2% up to $184,500) | −$3,720.00 |
| Medicare (1.45%) | −$870.00 |
| Mississippi tax (4.0% × ($60,000 − $10,000 exempt)) | −$2,000.00 |
| Take-home for the year | $48,390.00 |
| Take-home per biweekly check | $1,861.15 |
About 19% of your gross goes to federal, FICA, and MS state tax combined. Mississippi's effective rate is lower than the headline 4.0% suggests because of the first-$10,000 exemption — at $60k single, your effective state rate is only 3.33%. At higher incomes that ratio narrows: at $150k, the effective state rate is 3.73%. Mississippi is also one of the few states with NO local income tax — no city or county income tax in Jackson, Gulfport, Hattiesburg, or anywhere else.
Now add a 5% traditional 401(k) and $200/month in pre-tax health premiums on a $120,000 salary, married, paid monthly: gross $10,000/mo, $500 to the 401(k), $200 to health. Mississippi follows federal — both pre-tax items reduce MS taxable income. The MFJ exemption is $20,000 (double the single $10k). State tax for the year runs about $3,704, and your monthly take-home lands around $7,517.
How a Mississippi paycheck is calculated
Mississippi uses a flat tax for 2026. The formula is:
A few Mississippi-specific details worth knowing:
- 4.0% is the destination — the phase-down is complete. Mississippi HB 531 (2022) laid out a multi-year reduction: 4.7% (2024) → 4.4% (2025) → 4.0% (2026). The 2026 rate is the legislated endpoint. Further reductions could occur via future legislation, but nothing is on the statute books yet.
- First $10,000 exempt — the simplest exemption structure in the country. Most states layer exemptions, standard deductions, and zero-brackets. Mississippi (per the official MS DOR) simplified this for the new flat-tax era: a single combined $10,000 exemption for individuals, $20,000 for married couples filing jointly. No additional state SD.
- No local income tax anywhere. Jackson, Gulfport, Hattiesburg, Tupelo, Biloxi, Meridian — none of them charge income tax. The 4.0% state rate is your total income tax in Mississippi.
- 401(k) and pre-tax both reduce MS tax. Mississippi follows federal treatment for traditional 401(k) and Section 125 items.
- Social Security AND most retirement income are fully exempt in Mississippi. This makes Mississippi one of the most retirement-friendly states for tax purposes — qualifying pension income, 401(k) distributions, and IRA withdrawals are all exempt from MS state tax (subject to federal rules on what qualifies as retirement income).
- Dependent exemption $1,500 each. Each dependent adds another $1,500 to your exemption, on top of the $10,000/$20,000 base. Not modeled in this calculator (default is zero dependents).
What Mississippi paychecks look like at common salaries (single, no 401k)
| Annual salary | Federal tax | FICA | MS tax (4.0%) | Net per year | Net per biweekly check |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $40,000 | $2,620.00 | $3,060.00 | $1,200.00 | $33,120.00 | $1,273.85 |
| $50,000 | $3,820.00 | $3,825.00 | $1,600.00 | $40,755.00 | $1,567.50 |
| $60,000 | $5,020.00 | $4,590.00 | $2,000.00 | $48,390.00 | $1,861.15 |
| $75,000 | $7,670.00 | $5,737.50 | $2,600.00 | $58,992.50 | $2,268.94 |
| $100,000 | $13,170.00 | $7,650.00 | $3,600.00 | $75,580.00 | $2,906.92 |
| $150,000 | $24,734.00 | $11,475.00 | $5,600.00 | $108,191.00 | $4,161.19 |
Numbers above are estimates with the 2026 standard deduction, single filer, no 401(k) or pre-tax deductions. Your actual withholding will differ based on your W-4.
Tips to take home more
- Max out pre-tax benefits first. Health insurance, HSA, and FSA dollars reduce both your federal tax and FICA — that's a roughly 22–28% discount on those expenses for most people.
- A 401(k) is real money, not a deduction. A 5% contribution on $60k is $3,000 the IRS doesn't see right now. You're not losing it — you're moving it.
- Check your W-4 if your refund or bill is large. A big refund means you overpaid all year; a big bill means you underpaid. Either way, the IRS withholding estimator at irs.gov/W4App helps fix it.
- Track the Social Security cap. If you'll cross $184,500 this year, your last few checks will be noticeably bigger — useful to know if you're planning big purchases.
Frequently asked questions
What is Mississippi's state income tax rate in 2026?
Mississippi has a flat 4.0% state income tax for TY2026, the endpoint of HB 531's (2022) multi-year phase-down from 5.0%. The rate dropped from 4.7% (2024) to 4.4% (2025) and now 4.0% (2026). The first $10,000 of taxable income is exempt for single filers ($20,000 for married filing jointly).
How much of a $60,000 salary do you take home in Mississippi?
A single filer earning $60,000 in Mississippi with no pre-tax deductions takes home roughly $48,390 a year, or about $1,861 every two weeks. That's $5,020 federal, $4,590 FICA, and $2,000 MS state tax (4.0% on $50,000 after the $10,000 exemption). There's no local income tax anywhere in the state.
Does Mississippi have a standard deduction?
Mississippi technically has a separate standard deduction ($2,300 single / $4,600 MFJ) AND a personal exemption ($6,000 single / $12,000 MFJ), but for simplicity (and to match the official MS DOR description), this calculator treats the combined exemption + SD as a single $10,000 single / $20,000 MFJ threshold. The effect on your tax is the same. The first $10,000/$20,000 of taxable income is exempt; the 4.0% rate applies above that.
Does Jackson, Gulfport, or any Mississippi city have a local income tax?
No. Mississippi does NOT allow cities or counties to levy income taxes on wages. Jackson, Gulfport, Hattiesburg, Tupelo, Biloxi, and every other Mississippi city collect zero income tax. The 4.0% state rate is your total income tax — making Mississippi simpler than Ohio or Pennsylvania, which have hundreds of local tax jurisdictions.
Is retirement income taxed in Mississippi?
Social Security is fully exempt at all ages and income levels. Most other retirement income — including pension income, 401(k) distributions, and IRA withdrawals — is also fully exempt from Mississippi state tax (subject to federal rules on what qualifies as retirement income). This makes Mississippi one of the most retirement-friendly states for tax purposes.