St. Louis Paycheck Calculator 2026
1% city earnings tax on all earned income. Compare STL City vs County. Calculate your real take-home pay.
How to Use This Calculator
Tab "Take-Home Pay"
Enter your gross annual salary, pay frequency, and filing status. The calculator applies 2026 federal income tax brackets, Missouri state income tax brackets (0%–4.80%), FICA taxes (Social Security 6.2% up to $184,500, Medicare 1.45%, and the 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax above $200K), and the St. Louis City 1% earnings tax if applicable. Select whether you live or work in St. Louis City to include the earnings tax. Expand "More options" to add pre-tax 401(k) contributions and health insurance premiums. The result shows your net take-home per paycheck plus a full annual summary.
Tab "Tax Breakdown"
This tab shows a visual pie chart of where every dollar of your salary goes: federal tax, MO state tax, STL City earnings tax (if applicable), Social Security, Medicare, and take-home pay. It calculates how many cents of each dollar you actually keep and your combined effective tax rate.
Tab "City vs County"
See your take-home pay compared side-by-side for St. Louis City (with 1% earnings tax) versus St. Louis County (no earnings tax). The comparison table shows every tax line item so you can see exactly where the difference comes from. The County column is highlighted in green since it always has higher take-home pay — assuming you do not work inside city limits.
The Formulas
Taxable income = Gross salary − Pre-tax deductions − Standard deduction
Single: $15,750 · MFJ: $31,500 · HoH: $23,500
Tax = Sum of (taxable income in each bracket × bracket rate)
Brackets: 10%, 12%, 22%, 24%, 32%, 35%, 37%
Missouri State Income Tax (2026 DOR rates):
MO taxable income = Gross − Pre-tax deductions − Federal standard deduction
Missouri follows the federal standard deduction amounts
Tax = Sum of (MO taxable in each bracket × rate)
Brackets: 0% ($0–$1,207), 2% ($1,208–$2,414), 2.5% ($2,415–$3,621), 3% ($3,622–$4,828), 3.5% ($4,829–$6,035), 4% ($6,036–$7,242), 4.5% ($7,243–$8,449), 4.80% ($8,450+)
Same brackets apply to all filing statuses
FICA Taxes:
Social Security = 6.2% × min(Gross salary, $184,500)
Medicare = 1.45% × Gross salary
Additional Medicare = 0.9% × max(0, Gross − $200,000)
St. Louis City Earnings Tax:
Earnings tax = 1% × Gross salary (applies to gross wages, not taxable income)
Applies to residents AND non-residents working in St. Louis City
St. Louis County has NO earnings tax
Take-Home Pay:
Net = Gross − Federal tax − MO tax − SS − Medicare − STL City tax − Pre-tax deductions
Per paycheck = Net ÷ Number of pay periods
Example
$80,000 Salary — Single, STL City Resident
On an $80,000 salary in St. Louis City (single filer), your effective tax rate is about 23.6%. You keep roughly 76 cents of every dollar. If you lived in St. Louis County (Clayton, Kirkwood) and did not work in the city, you would save $800/year — bringing your annual take-home to approximately $61,919.