Take-home percentage.
In plain English
This one number answers "where did my money go?" For most W-2 workers it lands between 65% and 85%, depending on your state, your benefits elections, and how much you put into retirement. Knowing yours turns every salary conversation into a real-dollars conversation.
01Why it matters
It's the single number that translates a salary offer into the money you can actually spend, and it makes every raise or benefit change concrete.
02The math, step by step
$60,000 gross in Texas, with typical federal withholding, FICA, and a modest benefits package, nets roughly $48,500 to $50,500. That's a take-home percentage around 81% to 84%. The same salary in a high-tax state can run several points lower. To estimate your own, the IRS Tax Withholding Estimator is the tool to use.
Illustrative example. The amounts here are hypothetical, chosen to show how the math works, not real quoted rates or figures.
03What this is NOT
A low take-home percentage is not automatically bad. If 401(k) contributions are driving it down, that money is still yours. It's just parked, not gone.
Plain-English answers from our glossary. Receipts included. Never advice.
Educational tool. Answers come only from ClearMoneySchool's published glossary and are not advice. Why we never give advice