Employee FICA: Social Security and Medicare for 2026
Understand employee Social Security, Medicare and Additional Medicare Tax for 2026, including the wage base and filing-status thresholds. US federal rules only; state and local treatment is outside scope.
On this page
- Employee Social Security rate
- 6.2%SSA, contribution and benefit base
- 2026 Social Security wage base
- $184,500SSA, contribution and benefit base
- Employee Medicare rate
- 1.45%, with no wage ceilingIRS, Social Security and Medicare withholding
- Additional Medicare rate
- 0.9%IRS, Social Security and Medicare withholding
Federal employee payroll taxes
This guide covers US federal employee FICA only. Social Security uses an annual contribution and benefit base, which SSA publishes. The employee rate is 6.2% on covered earnings up to $184,500 in 2026. State and local taxes and self-employment tax are outside this guide. SSA, contribution and benefit base (opens in a new tab).
Medicare has no wage ceiling
The employee Medicare rate is 1.45%. Medicare has no wage-base limit. Employers withhold an additional 0.9% on wages they pay above $200,000 in a calendar year, regardless of filing status. There is no employer match for Additional Medicare Tax. IRS, Social Security and Medicare withholding (opens in a new tab).
Withholding differs from liability
Additional Medicare Tax liability uses filing-status thresholds: $250,000 for married filing jointly, $125,000 for married filing separately, and $200,000 for single, head-of-household and qualifying widow(er) filers. The employer withholding trigger is separate from these liability thresholds, so withholding and the tax owed can differ. IRS, Additional Medicare Tax questions and answers (opens in a new tab).
A bounded employee example
Worked example using the money.financial calculator. For a single employee with $60,000 of annual covered wages, the money.financial calculator returns $3,720.00 Social Security, $870.00 Medicare and $0.00 Additional Medicare Tax, totalling $4,590.00. This illustration excludes the employer share, self-employment tax, federal income tax, state and local taxes, credits and final assessed liability. It is general federal information.