South Carolina withholding runs on allowances from your SC W-4: each one shields $5,000 a year, and claiming at least one also unlocks a standard deduction of 10% of pay, up to $7,500. The rest is withheld at 0%, 3% or 6%. A 2026 law cut the tax rates you’ll actually owe, but the withholding formula hasn’t caught up yet.
2026 tax year, verified Sources
Estimated take-home this week
$930.89
from $1,153.85 gross. You keep 81%.
2026 tax year, rules last verified November 12, 2026. An estimate, not tax advice. How we calculate
Each extra dollar you earn loses about 25¢ to taxes, but across all your pay the average is 19¢. A raise never lowers your take-home: only the dollars above a bracket line pay the higher rate.
| Annual pay | Effective | Marginal |
|---|---|---|
| $15,000 | 7.6% | 9.9% |
| $30,000 | 13.7% | 22.4% |
| $45,000 | 17.4% | 25.1% |
| $60,000 | 19.3% | 25.1% |
| $75,000 | 21.6% | 35.6% |
| $90,000 | 23.9% | 35.6% |
| $105,000 | 25.6% | 35.6% |
| $120,000 | 26.9% | 35.6% |
| $135,000 | 28.0% | 37.6% |
| $150,000 | 29.0% | 37.6% |
Same pay, W-4 and benefits; each state’s default withholding answers, no local taxes. Take-home per week:
South Carolina uses an annualized formula (Form WH-1603F). Your employer multiplies this paycheck by the number of paychecks in the year, subtracts $5,000 for each allowance, and, if you claimed at least one, subtracts 10% of your annual wages up to $7,500.
Taxable income up to $3,640 is withheld at 0%, from $3,640 to $18,230 at 3%, and above $18,230 at 6%. The yearly amount is divided back into paychecks.
Claiming zero allowances is a big jump: it removes both the allowance amounts and the standard deduction.
There’s no flat bonus rate. A bonus paid with regular wages is added to that paycheck and run through the same formula.
| Annual taxable income | Withholding |
|---|---|
| Under $3,640 | 0% |
| $3,640 – $18,230 | 3% of the amount over $3,640 |
| $18,230 and up | $437.70 plus 6% of the amount over $18,230 |
| Each allowance | $5,000 |
| Standard deduction (1+ allowances) | 10% of wages, up to $7,500 |
Single filer, standard W-4, no benefits, paid weekly, default SC W-4 answers. South Carolina takes $29.84 of this check (3.0% of gross).
| Line | Per week | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $1,000.00 | $52,000.00 |
| Federal income tax | −$78.08 | −$4,060.16 |
| Social Security | −$62.00 | −$3,224.00 |
| Medicare | −$14.50 | −$754.00 |
| South Carolina income tax | −$29.84 | −$1,551.68 |
| Take-home pay | $815.58 | $42,410.16 |
Single filer, standard W-4, no benefits, no local tax. Per-week amounts; annual totals account for the Social Security wage cap.
| Salary | Gross / week | Federal | FICA | South Carolina | Take-home / week | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $30,000 | $576.92 | $27.31 | $44.14 | $7.71 | $497.76 | $25,884 |
| $40,000 | $769.23 | $50.38 | $58.84 | $17.38 | $642.63 | $33,417 |
| $50,000 | $961.54 | $73.46 | $73.56 | $27.77 | $786.75 | $40,911 |
| $60,000 | $1,153.85 | $96.54 | $88.27 | $38.15 | $930.89 | $48,406 |
| $75,000 | $1,442.31 | $147.50 | $110.33 | $53.73 | $1,130.75 | $58,799 |
| $100,000 | $1,923.08 | $253.27 | $147.11 | $82.58 | $1,440.12 | $74,886 |
| $150,000 | $2,884.62 | $475.65 | $220.68 | $140.27 | $2,048.02 | $106,497 |
Married filing jointly with two children on $100,000: $1,648.40 a week ($85,717 a year).
None. No South Carolina city or county taxes wages.
None. South Carolina has no state disability, paid family leave or employee unemployment deduction. State unemployment tax is paid by employers.
With 2 allowances (single, one job), $29.84 a week.
$750 a week with 3 allowances: $39,000 − $15,000 − $3,900 = $20,100. 6% of that minus $656.10 is $549.90 a year, or $10.58 a week.
Zero allowances also turns off the standard deduction, so you lose up to $7,500 plus $5,000 per allowance of protected income at once.
Not yet. The new lower rates apply when you file your 2026 return, but the withholding formula hasn’t been updated, so the savings show up as a bigger refund.
South Carolina rules for the 2026 tax year, last verified November 12, 2026. Federal sources are on the methodology page.
Every state page has its own withholding formula, local taxes, payroll programs and worked examples. Compare all states.