Pay stubs, explained
What each line on a pay stub means, how the numbers fit together, and how to make one from your payroll record.
What is a pay stub?A pay stub shows earnings, deductions and net pay for one pay period. What’s on one, and whether US employers must give one.
Gross pay vs net payGross pay is what you earn before anything is taken out; net pay is what you receive. How to get from one to the other, with a worked example.
How to make a pay stubHow to make a pay stub from your payroll record: the information to gather, the order to put it in, and the checks to make before you hand it over.
How to read a pay stubHow to read a pay stub from top to bottom: where to find gross pay, what each deduction is, how net pay is reached and what the year-to-date column means.
What is an earnings statement?An earnings statement is another name for a pay stub: pay, taxes and deductions for one period. What it shows, and how it differs from a W-2.
Pay stub abbreviations explainedWhat the abbreviations on a pay stub mean: YTD, FIT, FITW, SIT, SS, OASDI, MED, FICA, SDI, GTL and more, in one plain-English table.
What is OASDI on a pay stub?OASDI on a pay stub is the Social Security tax withheld from your pay. What the letters mean, and how it relates to FICA and Medicare.
What is FITW on a pay stub?FITW means federal income tax withheld. How it’s worked out from your Form W-4, why it changes between paychecks, and how to change it.
What is GTL on a pay stub?GTL on a pay stub is the taxable value of group-term life insurance above $50,000 of cover. Why it’s added to your wages but not paid to you.
What does YTD mean on a pay stub?YTD on a pay stub means year to date: the running total since January 1 for each earning, tax and deduction. How to read and check it.
Pay stub deductions explainedPay stub deductions fall into three groups: taxes, pre-tax and after-tax deductions. What each one is, and how it affects take-home pay.
What is FICA tax?FICA is social security and Medicare tax. The 2026 rates, the $184,500 wage base, the Additional Medicare Tax and what employers pay, with examples.
How to calculate payroll taxesHow employers calculate federal payroll taxes in 2026: income tax withholding, FICA, the employer share and FUTA, with a worked paycheck example.
How to do payroll for a small businessA step-by-step federal payroll checklist for small businesses: EIN, W-4 and I-9, pay schedule, withholding, deposits, Forms 941 and 940, and pay stubs.
Medicare tax on a paycheckHow much Medicare tax comes out of a paycheck in 2026: 1.45% on all wages, the 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax over $200,000, and the employer match.
Pre-tax deductions on a pay stubWhich pre-tax deductions lower which taxes: 401(k) versus cafeteria-plan (section 125) benefits and HSAs, with a worked 2026 paycheck.
Nanny Tax: Schedule H Guide for Household EmployersLearn when nanny tax applies, how Schedule H works, which forms you file and what to give your nanny each payday. A plain 2026 guide from PayDocs.
States Without Income Tax: What Your Paycheck ShowsLearn which US states don't tax wages in 2026, what still comes out of a paycheck there, and how to show it on a pay stub. A plain guide from PayDocs.
Pay stub requirements by stateWhich states require employers to give pay stubs and what they must show: a 50-state table checked against each state's own law, with citations.
Imputed income on a pay stub: what it is and how it's taxed (2026)Imputed income is the taxable value of a non-cash benefit, such as life cover over $50,000. Why it shows on a pay stub, how it's taxed, and an example.
Retro pay: how to calculate it and show it on a pay stubRetro pay is the difference between what an employee was paid and what they should have been paid. How to work it out, overtime included, and tax it.
Shift differential: how it's paid, how it changes overtime and how it shows on a pay stubShift differential is extra pay for evening, night or weekend shifts. How it's set, why it raises the overtime rate, a worked example and the stub line.
Wage garnishment on a pay stub: federal limits and how to show the deductionHow much of a paycheck can be garnished under federal law: disposable earnings, the 25% limit, child support, tax levies and the pay stub line.
Form W-4 for employers: what to collect and how it sets withholding (2026)An employer's guide to Form W-4 for 2026: what to collect from new hires, what to do without one, invalid and exempt forms, and how it sets withholding.
Need one word defined, not a whole guide?
Open the US payroll glossaryFrom the blog, by topic:
Payroll taxes and forms Household employers Payroll software and services Paying employees Small business payroll
Ready to make one?
Open the pay stub generator