Wisconsin withholding has a twist: a built-in standard deduction that shrinks as your pay rises and disappears entirely for a single filer earning about $73,630 a year. After that, four rates from 3.54% to 7.65% apply, minus $400 per exemption on your WT-4.
2026 tax year, verified Sources
Estimated take-home this week
$915.87
from $1,153.85 gross. You keep 79%.
2026 tax year, rules last verified November 12, 2026. An estimate, not tax advice. How we calculate
Each extra dollar you earn loses about 26¢ to taxes, but across all your pay the average is 21¢. A raise never lowers your take-home: only the dollars above a bracket line pay the higher rate.
| Annual pay | Effective | Marginal |
|---|---|---|
| $15,000 | 9.5% | 11.2% |
| $30,000 | 15.7% | 24.9% |
| $45,000 | 19.0% | 25.6% |
| $60,000 | 20.6% | 25.6% |
| $75,000 | 22.7% | 34.9% |
| $90,000 | 24.8% | 34.9% |
| $105,000 | 26.2% | 34.9% |
| $120,000 | 27.3% | 34.9% |
| $135,000 | 28.4% | 37.0% |
| $150,000 | 29.2% | 37.0% |
Same pay, W-4 and benefits; each state’s default withholding answers, no local taxes. Take-home per week:
Your employer multiplies this check by your number of paychecks to get an annual figure, then subtracts a standard deduction. For single filers it is the full amount below $17,780 a year, shrinks by 12 cents per dollar above that, and is zero at $73,630. For married filers it shrinks by 20 cents per dollar from $25,727 to $73,032.
Next, $400 comes off for each exemption on your WT-4. The rate schedule below is applied to what is left, and the yearly tax is divided back down to one paycheck.
These withholding rates have not changed since 2022, even though Wisconsin cut its income tax rates since then. Withholding can run a little above what you finally owe, which shows up as a refund.
Wisconsin follows federal rules for 401(k), Section 125 and HSA deductions, so they lower Wisconsin withholding too.
| Annual net wage | Rate |
|---|---|
| $0 – $12,760 | 3.54% |
| $12,760 – $25,520 | 4.65% |
| $25,520 – $280,950 | 5.3% |
| Over $280,950 | 7.65% |
Applied after the phased-out standard deduction and $400 per exemption. Source: Publication W-166 (1/26).
Single filer, standard W-4, no benefits, paid weekly, default WT-4 answers. Wisconsin takes $44.03 of this check (4.4% 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 |
| Wisconsin income tax | −$44.03 | −$2,289.56 |
| Take-home pay | $801.39 | $41,672.28 |
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 | Wisconsin | Take-home / week | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $30,000 | $576.92 | $27.31 | $44.14 | $19.06 | $486.41 | $25,293 |
| $40,000 | $769.23 | $50.38 | $58.84 | $30.33 | $629.68 | $32,743 |
| $50,000 | $961.54 | $73.46 | $73.56 | $41.75 | $772.77 | $40,184 |
| $60,000 | $1,153.85 | $96.54 | $88.27 | $53.17 | $915.87 | $47,625 |
| $75,000 | $1,442.31 | $147.50 | $110.33 | $70.12 | $1,114.36 | $57,947 |
| $100,000 | $1,923.08 | $253.27 | $147.11 | $95.60 | $1,427.10 | $74,209 |
| $150,000 | $2,884.62 | $475.65 | $220.68 | $146.56 | $2,041.73 | $106,170 |
Married filing jointly with two children on $100,000: $1,619.29 a week ($84,203 a year).
No Wisconsin city or county taxes wages. Milwaukee and Madison paychecks have the same state withholding as anywhere else in Wisconsin.
Wisconsin has no state disability, paid family leave or employee unemployment deduction. Unemployment insurance is funded by employers.
Wisconsin has reciprocal agreements with Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky and Michigan. Residents of those states working in Wisconsin file Form W-220 so only their home state is withheld. There is no agreement with Minnesota, so Minnesotans working in Wisconsin have Wisconsin tax withheld and claim a credit at home.
For a single filer with one exemption, the standard deduction is $2,595.60 a year at that pay, and Wisconsin withholds $44.03 a week.
Because the standard deduction phases out as pay rises. Each extra dollar adds tax at your bracket rate and also removes 12 cents (single) or 20 cents (married) of deduction.
Usually by adding the bonus to your regular pay for the period and withholding on the total. Employers may instead use flat rates of 3.54% to 7.65% based on your yearly salary.
No. Under reciprocity, an Illinois resident who files Form W-220 with a Wisconsin employer has only Illinois tax withheld.
Wisconsin 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.