Arizona Paycheck Calculator

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Arizona Paycheck Quick Facts Arizona income tax rate: 2.59% - 4.54% Median household income: $53,510 (U.S. Census Bureau) Number of cities that have local income taxes: 0

How Your Arizona Paycheck Works

Like every other state, employers in Arizona will withhold federal income and FICA taxes from your paychecks. That money goes to the IRS, who then divvies it up into Social Security, Medicare and, of course, your annual income taxes. Based on the information you provide on your W-4 form (which you need to fill out every time your filing status changes or you get a new job), your employer will withhold a certain amount of taxes.

Because President Trump signed a new tax plan into law in December 2017, you may have noticed a change in your paycheck calculations between 2017 and 2018. There shouldn’t be any new changes for 2019 but if you didn’t check your W-4 in 2018, you may want to do so in early 2019 to ensure that the information is all up to date.

Making pre- and post-tax deductions will also impact how much is withheld from your paycheck. For example, if your employer has a 401(k) plan and you contribute to it, your contributions will come right out of your paycheck. The money you contribute to a 401(k) plan will be deducted before taxes are taken out. This lowers your taxable income and could be a good way for you to save on your taxes. You could also put money in a health savings account or flexible spending account. Again, this money will be deducted pre-tax.

Filing as a single person in Arizona, you will get taxed at a rate of 2.59% on your first $10,346 of taxable income; 2.88% up to $25,861; 3.36% up to 51,721; 4.24% up to $155,159 and 4.54% on income beyond $155,159. Note that these are marginal tax rates, so the rate in question only applies to the income that falls in that bracket. If you decide to file jointly or you’re the head of household (as in you’re the only one in your casa who is earning taxable income), the income brackets are roughly doubled and the tax rates are the same.

If you work in certain industries, your employer might not have to withhold Arizona taxes. If you have a spouse in the Armed Forces who is in Arizona on military orders, then you might be exempt. You will need to prove that you’re in the state solely to join your spouse and that you and your spouse maintain a domicile in another state. Other industries that are exempt from withholding include seasonal agricultural workers, motion picture production employees or non-residents who are in Arizona temporarily to help with disaster recovery.

How You Can Affect Your Arizona Paycheck

The simplest way to change the amount of your paycheck is to adjust the allowances on your W-4. Updating your allowances is also a good idea if you have experienced a big life change. For example, maybe you just got married, had a child or purchased a home. (If you are considering purchasing a new property with a home loan, or refinancing a current home loan, take a look at our guide to Arizona mortgage rates.) Play around with the paycheck calculator and add or subtract personal allowances for a more accurate estimate.

If you want to further tweak your paycheck, you can ask your employer to withhold a certain dollar amount, on top of your allowances. This is useful if you’ve changed your allowances and find that you’re still getting a big refund.

If you think you might owe a lot of taxes come tax season, you can get more withheld from each paycheck throughout the year. All you have to do is ask your employer to do so on the appropriate line of the W-4. You can specify a dollar amount to be withheld. Yes, you’ll be getting a smaller paycheck, but you might thank yourself later when you end up avoiding paying a huge lump sum in April.

If you work overtime, keep in mind that you may actually be taking home a smaller paycheck than you expect if your extra income pushes you into a higher tax bracket. Do some quick calculations to see if the extra hours are worth it to you.

As mentioned above, modifying your pre-tax contributions will also affect the amount of taxes withheld. Think about saving more in your retirement accounts or medical accounts.