Employer Payroll Tax Calculator
Free employer payroll tax calculator: estimate Social Security, Medicare, FUTA, and state unemployment costs on top of any salary - in seconds, free.
Your state-assigned rate. New employers commonly start near 2–3%.
The wages your state taxes per employee per year - varies from ~$7,000 to over $60,000 by state.
Results
Social Security (employer 6.2%)
$5,270
Applies up to the $176,100 wage base (2025).
- Medicare (employer 1.45%)No wage cap on the employer share.
- $1,232.50
- FUTA (0.6% after credit)On the first $7,000 of wages, assuming the full state credit.
- $42
- State unemployment (SUTA)2.7% on the first $9,000 - rates and wage bases vary widely by state.
- $243
- Estimated employer payroll taxesAbout 7.99% on top of salary. Estimate only.
- $6,787.50
- Salary + estimated payroll taxesExcludes benefits, workers’ comp, and local taxes.
- $91,787.50
A salary of $85,000 carries roughly $6,788 of employer payroll taxes (about 7.99%), bringing the pre-benefits cost of employment to $91,788. Treat this as an estimate - state rates and annual wage bases change.
Free and instant - nothing is stored or sent. Estimates for planning purposes, not accounting, tax, or investment advice.
The salary you offer is not what the employee costs. On top of gross pay, employers owe their own share of Social Security and Medicare, federal unemployment tax (FUTA), and state unemployment insurance (SUTA) - typically adding roughly 8–12% before benefits even enter the picture.
This calculator estimates the employer-side taxes on any annual salary using 2025 federal rates and your state unemployment rate. Treat every number as an estimate: rates, wage bases, and state rules change annually, and your actual SUTA rate is assigned by your state based on your claims history.
The four employer-side taxes
Social Security: employers pay 6.2% of wages up to the annual wage base - $176,100 for 2025. Wages above the base are not taxed for Social Security.
Medicare: employers pay 1.45% on all wages with no cap. (The 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax on high earners is withheld from the employee only - employers do not match it.)
FUTA: the federal unemployment rate is 6.0% on the first $7,000 of wages, but employers in most states receive a 5.4% credit for paying state unemployment on time, netting to 0.6% - a maximum of $42 per employee per year. SUTA: each state assigns your rate (experience-rated) and sets its own wage base, which ranges from about $7,000 to over $60,000.
Worked example with the defaults
On an $85,000 salary with a 2.7% SUTA rate and a $9,000 state wage base: Social Security is $5,270 (6.2% of $85,000, under the cap), Medicare is $1,232.50 (1.45%), FUTA is $42 (0.6% of $7,000), and SUTA is $243 (2.7% of $9,000).
Total estimated employer payroll taxes: $6,787.50 - about 8% on top of salary - bringing the pre-benefits cost of employment to $91,787.50. Health insurance, retirement matches, workers’ compensation, and any local employer taxes come on top of that.
Why these are estimates - and what changes them
The Social Security wage base changes every year, state unemployment rates are individually assigned and re-rated based on your layoff history, and a handful of states add employer taxes this tool does not model (state disability insurance, paid family leave, local payroll taxes).
Employers in "credit reduction" states can also owe more than 0.6% FUTA when their state has outstanding federal unemployment loans. For budgeting, this estimate is solid; for filing, use your payroll provider’s figures or a CPA.
Frequently asked questions
How much does an employer pay in payroll taxes?
Federally: 6.2% Social Security (up to the $176,100 wage base for 2025), 1.45% Medicare (no cap), and effectively 0.6% FUTA on the first $7,000. Add state unemployment - commonly 1–5% on a state-set wage base - and most employers land around 8–11% on top of salary, before benefits.
Do employers match the employee’s full payroll tax withholding?
Employers match Social Security (6.2%) and regular Medicare (1.45%), but not federal or state income tax withholding, and not the 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax on wages above $200,000 - that one is employee-only. FUTA and SUTA are employer-only taxes the employee never sees.
What is the Social Security wage base?
The annual wage ceiling on which Social Security tax applies - $176,100 for 2025. Once an employee’s year-to-date wages pass it, both the employee and employer stop paying the 6.2% for the rest of the year. It is adjusted annually for wage growth, so re-check each January.
What is the true total cost of an employee beyond salary?
Payroll taxes (roughly 8–11%), plus benefits (health insurance, retirement match), workers’ compensation insurance, and equipment and software. Fully loaded cost is commonly estimated at 1.25–1.4× base salary for most SMB roles, and this calculator covers only the payroll-tax slice of that.
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