Paycheck
Gross Pay vs Net Pay: Differences and How to Calculate
Gross pay is earnings before deductions; net pay is your take-home. Formulas for hourly and salaried pay, every deduction in between and a worked gross to net example.
Category
Paycheck Guides
Paycheck articles on calculating take-home pay, pay frequency and how gross pay becomes net pay.
4 articles
Paycheck
Does Veterans Day Affect Direct Deposit? 2026 Payday Guide
Veterans Day is a bank holiday on Wednesday, November 11, 2026. When your direct deposit lands, how Social Security and military pay move and what it means for your paystub.
Paycheck
Why Was No Federal Income Tax Withheld from My Paycheck?
Common reasons include low earnings, exempt status on your W-4 and payroll errors. How to check your stub and fix the withholding.
Paycheck
Do Paychecks Expire? How Long a Paycheck Stays Valid
Banks can refuse a check older than six months, but the wages are still owed to you. How stale-dated paychecks work and how to get one reissued.
How Your Paycheck Is Calculated
Gross pay is what you earned. Net pay is what arrives. Everything between the two is withholding and deductions. That gap surprises people more than any other part of getting paid. This category explains how that gap is produced and how to check it yourself.
The guides here cover common paycheck questions, from missing withholding to checks that were never cashed. The amounts taken out each period follow the federal and state withholding rules explained in our tax guides. If you manage pay for others, our guides on how employers run payroll show the process that produces each paycheck.
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Find the guide you need, from reading your first pay stub to state withholding rules and year-end tax forms.
Paystubs
How pay stubs work, what each line means and when you need one.View articles Payroll
Running payroll, payroll taxes and records for small businesses.View articles Tax
Federal withholding, FICA and state income tax guides for all 50 states.View articles Finance
Budgeting, proof of income and making the most of your earnings.View articles Paycheck
Gross vs net pay, deductions and calculating your take-home pay.View articles W-2 Form
Reading, getting and correcting the annual wage and tax statement.View articles 1099 Forms
1099-NEC, 1099-MISC and income records for contractors.View articles Meet Our Authors
The payroll and finance specialists who write and fact-check every guide.
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