California employer payroll tax calculator, 2026.

Federal

Social Security is 6.2% each for employer and employee on wages up to $184,500 in 2026; Medicare is 1.45% each with no limit, and the employee alone pays the 0.9% additional Medicare tax above $200,000. FUTA is 6.0% on the first $7,000 less a 5.4% credit for state unemployment tax paid, so 0.6% in most states. California has carried a federal unemployment loan since 2020, so the credit is reduced: employers paid 1.2% extra for 2025 and face 1.5% for 2026, or 5.3% if the benefit-cost-rate add-on is not waived, with the answer known after November 10, 2026 and paid on the 2026 Form 940.

EDD

Unemployment insurance is employer-paid on the first $7,000 of each employee’s wages at the rate on the DE 2088 notice; 2026 uses Schedule F+, from 1.5% to 6.2%, and new employers pay 3.4% for two to three years. The employment training tax is 0.1% on the same $7,000. State disability insurance is withheld from the employee at 1.3% for 2026 on all wages, since SB 951 removed the wage ceiling in 2024; the employer only remits it. Personal income tax withholding is likewise the employee’s money.

Pay floors

The state minimum wage is $16.90 from January 1, 2026, and the exempt executive, administrative and professional salary must be at least twice that for full-time work, $70,304, paid as a salary. Local ordinances in sixteen cities and counties set higher hourly floors for work inside their limits but do not change the exempt salary. Computer software professionals are exempt only above $58.85 an hour or $122,573.13 a year in 2026; physicians above $107.17 an hour; fast food restaurant employees under AB 1228 earn at least $20; covered health care workers follow the SB 525 schedule with its July 1, 2026 step.

Rates

1. EDD, Contribution Rates, Withholding Schedules, and Meals and Lodging Values: 2026 UI Schedule F+ from 1.5% to 6.2% on $7,000, new employers 3.4% for two to three years, ETT 0.1% on $7,000, SDI 1.3% on all wages. Read October 27, 2026.
2. IRS Publication 15 (2026): Social Security 6.2% on $184,500, Medicare 1.45%, FUTA 6.0% on $7,000 with the 5.4% credit. SSA contribution and benefit base.
3. U.S. Department of Labor, FUTA credit reductions: California 1.2% for 2025 with add-on relief (table dated December 9, 2025); potential 2026 reduction 1.5% plus a 3.8% benefit-cost-rate add-on, 5.3% in all, unless the advance is repaid by November 10, 2026 (table dated January 15, 2026).
4. DIR, Minimum wage FAQ ($16.90 from January 1, 2026), release 2026-66 ($17.40 and $72,384 for 2027), Labor Code 515 (exempt salary at two times the state minimum for 40 hours), computer software exemption ($58.85, $10,214.44, $122,573.13 for 2026; $61.03, $10,592.37, $127,108.34 for 2027), physician exemption ($107.17 for 2026), fast food FAQ ($20.00), health care worker FAQ (schedule).
5. Local rates: each city’s or county’s own minimum wage page, read October 27, 2026, with the UC Berkeley Labor Center inventory for Pasadena’s dollar figures and the January 2026 archive table. Links in the table above.
6. Paid sick leave: DIR, 40 hours or five days a year from 2024 (local ordinances go higher). CalSavers: every employer with one or more eligible California employees and no retirement plan must register; no employer contribution.

Simplifications

• One employee, employed the full year, with wages spread evenly, so the $7,000 and $184,500 bases are reached in the ordinary way. No overtime, bonuses, tips, meals or lodging values.
• Workers’ compensation is the rate you enter per $100 of payroll; actual premiums depend on class code, experience modification and carrier.
• The FUTA credit reduction is a scenario until the Department of Labor announces the 2026 figure in November 2026.
• Pay floor checks compare annual pay or the hourly rate with the published rates; they do not decide whether the duties test for an exemption is met, whether a worker is covered by a local ordinance, or whether a facility falls under SB 525.
• This is a planning estimate, not a payroll computation or legal advice.