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South Carolina Paycheck Calculator 2026

Updated 2026-08-21 · 2026 federal brackets and wage base

Take-home pay (every 2 weeks)

$1,874.13

$48,727 per year · effective tax rate 18.8%

  • Take home · 81%
  • Federal · 8%
  • FICA · 8%
  • State · 3%
Gross pay
$2,307.69
Federal income tax
−$193.08
Social Security
−$143.08
Medicare
−$33.46
South Carolina income tax
−$63.95
Take home
$1,874.13

South Carolina tax rates for 2026

The rules this calculator uses. Every figure comes from the sources listed at the bottom of this page.

State standard deduction Up to $15,000 single, then shrinks as you earn more
Social Security 6.2% on the first $184,500 you earn
Medicare 1.45%, plus 0.9% on pay above $200,000
South Carolina tax bands, single filer, 2026
Taxable income Rate
$0 to $30,000 1.99%
$30,000 and above 5.21%

How the math works on a $60,000 salary in South Carolina

Here is every step, in order, for a single filer paid every two weeks with no 401(k) or HSA money going in. Change any input in the calculator above and these numbers change with it.

  1. 1

    Start with your gross pay: $60,000 a year

    That is your salary before anything is taken out.

  2. 2

    Take off the federal standard deduction: $16,100

    That leaves $43,900. This is the part the federal government taxes. Everyone filing as single gets this deduction in 2026.

  3. 3

    Federal income tax: $5,020

    The 2026 federal rates are applied in bands. Your first dollars are taxed at 10%, and only the dollars above each line are taxed at the higher rate.

  4. 4

    Social Security and Medicare: $4,590

    Social Security takes $3,720 and Medicare takes $870. Together these are called FICA. They come out of your full pay, not the reduced amount.

  5. 5

    South Carolina state income tax: $1,663

    South Carolina works out your state taxable income using its own rules, then applies the rates in the table above.

  6. 6

    What you keep: $48,727 a year

    That works out to $1,874 in each paycheck if you are paid every two weeks. Your total tax rate is 18.8% of your pay.

South Carolina take-home pay table 2026

Single filer, paid biweekly, no pre-tax deductions. Computed with the same engine as the calculator.

Salary Federal tax FICA State tax Take-home / year Per paycheck Eff. rate
$40,000 $2,620 $3,060 $498 $33,823 $1,301 15.4%
$50,000 $3,820 $3,825 $1,000 $41,355 $1,591 17.3%
$60,000 $5,020 $4,590 $1,663 $48,727 $1,874 18.8%
$75,000 $7,670 $5,738 $2,657 $58,935 $2,267 21.4%
$100,000 $13,170 $7,650 $4,244 $74,936 $2,882 25.1%
$125,000 $18,734 $9,563 $5,547 $91,157 $3,506 27.1%
$150,000 $24,734 $11,475 $6,849 $106,942 $4,113 28.7%
$200,000 $36,734 $14,339 $9,454 $139,473 $5,364 30.3%

This free South Carolina paycheck calculator shows your 2026 take-home pay. South Carolina rewrote its income tax this year. A new law, H.4216, was signed on 30 March 2026 as Act 110. The old three-rate system is gone. The calculator above already uses the new rules.

Two things changed at once, and both matter for your pay stub. There are now two rates instead of three. There is also a brand new deduction that shrinks as you earn more. The second section explains that shrinking deduction, and it is the most important thing on this page.

South Carolina rewrote its income tax for 2026

The new schedule has two bands. You pay 1.99% on your first $30,000 of South Carolina taxable income. You pay 5.21% on every dollar above $30,000. That is the whole rate table. The old system with its extra middle rate no longer applies.

The same schedule applies to every filing status. Single, married filing jointly and head of household all use the same two bands. There is no wider bracket for couples here. That is unusual, and it means a two-earner couple can reach the 5.21% band sooner than they expect.

South Carolina also changed its starting number. It used to begin with your federal taxable income. From 2026 it begins with your federal adjusted gross income, or AGI. Your AGI is your total income before the federal standard deduction is taken off. So the state now works from a bigger starting figure, then applies its own deduction.

The new deduction that shrinks as you earn

The new law gives a South Carolina deduction to replace the old starting point. It is $15,000 for a single filer, $22,500 for head of household and $30,000 for a married couple filing jointly. You subtract it from your federal AGI. What is left is your South Carolina taxable income, and the two bands are applied to that.

Here is the part to watch. The deduction gets smaller as your income rises. It does not stay at $15,000 all the way up. It shrinks step by step and then disappears completely. A single filer loses the last of it at $95,000 of income. Head of household loses it at $142,500, and a joint filer at $190,000.

That phase-out is why your effective rate climbs faster than the two bands alone suggest. As you earn more, you are taxed on more of what you earn. Above the cut-off point, all of your AGI is South Carolina taxable income. So a pay rise near those thresholds is worth less than it first looks. The calculator applies the shrinking deduction for you.

What this means for your paycheck

Because the law is new, other tax websites may still show the old South Carolina rates. If a page lists three rates, or a top rate above 5.21%, it is out of date. The South Carolina Department of Revenue page about H.4216 is linked below. Check it before you trust a number you found elsewhere.

Your employer may also need time to catch up. Withholding tables change when a law like this passes. If too much or too little came out early in the year, it evens up when you file. Compare a real pay stub against the result above and ask payroll if the gap looks large.

Pre-tax savings still help you here. A traditional 401(k) lowers your federal AGI, and South Carolina starts from that number. So it cuts your state tax as well as your federal tax. Payroll HSA money does the same, and it also cuts Social Security and Medicare. A 401(k) does not cut those two. No city or county in South Carolina charges an income tax.

South Carolina paycheck FAQ

How much is $60,000 after taxes in South Carolina?
Take a single filer with no pre-tax deductions. That worker keeps about $48,727 a year, $1,874 per biweekly paycheck, 18.8% total tax rate. That covers federal income tax, the new South Carolina bands, Social Security and Medicare. It uses the 2026 rules from Act 110.
How much is $100,000 after taxes in South Carolina?
Take a single filer with no pre-tax deductions. That worker keeps about $74,936 a year, $2,882 per biweekly paycheck, 25.1% total tax rate. At $100,000 a single filer has lost the whole South Carolina deduction. That is why the rate jumps so much from the $60,000 figure.
What is the South Carolina income tax rate in 2026?
There are two rates. You pay 1.99% on your first $30,000 of South Carolina taxable income and 5.21% above that. The same schedule applies to every filing status. This came from H.4216, signed on 30 March 2026 as Act 110.
What is the new South Carolina deduction?
It is $15,000 for a single filer, $22,500 for head of household and $30,000 for a married couple filing jointly. You subtract it from your federal adjusted gross income. The two rate bands then apply to what is left.
Why does my South Carolina deduction shrink?
The new law phases it out as your income rises. It gets smaller step by step and then reaches zero. A single filer loses all of it at $95,000. Head of household loses it at $142,500 and a joint filer at $190,000. Above those points, your whole AGI is taxed.
Why do other websites show different South Carolina rates?
Because the law changed in March 2026 and some pages have not been updated. The old system had three rates. If a page shows three rates or a top rate above 5.21%, it is out of date. Use the SC Department of Revenue link below to check.
Does South Carolina have a local income tax?
No. No city or county in South Carolina charges an income tax. Columbia, Charleston and Greenville take nothing extra from your wages. The two state bands are the only state-side income tax on your pay.

Sources

All sources accessed and figures verified August 2026.

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