$16 an Hour Biweekly Paycheck: How Much After Taxes? (2026)

At $16/hour working a standard 40-hour week, your biweekly paycheck calculation starts clean:

$16 × 80 hours = $1,280 gross

Then taxes arrive.

Use our Paycheck Calculator to get your exact take-home.

All Time Periods at $16/Hour

Period	Gross Amount
Per hour	$16.00
Per day (8 hrs)	$128.00
Per week (40 hrs)	$640.00
Per biweekly paycheck	$1,280.00
Per month	$2,773.33
Per year	$33,280.00

After-Tax Biweekly Pay by State (2026)

Single filer, standard deduction, no additional deductions.

State	Gross Biweekly	Federal Tax	FICA	State Tax	Net Biweekly
Texas	$1,280	−$82	−$98	$0	~$1,101
Florida	$1,280	−$82	−$98	$0	~$1,101
Washington	$1,280	−$82	−$98	$0	~$1,101
Georgia	$1,280	−$82	−$98	−$54	~$1,047
California	$1,280	−$82	−$98	−$116	~$985
New York	$1,280	−$82	−$98	−$60	~$1,041
Illinois	$1,280	−$82	−$98	−$59	~$1,042

Federal Tax Breakdown for $33,280

Taxable income: $33,280 − $15,000 standard deduction = $18,280

Bracket	Rate	Tax
First $11,925	10%	$1,192.50
$11,925 → $18,280	12%	$762.60
Annual federal tax		$1,955

Per biweekly paycheck: ~$75

Effective federal rate: 5.9%

FICA Deduction

Tax	Rate	Annual	Biweekly
Social Security	6.20%	$2,063	$79
Medicare	1.45%	$483	$19
Total FICA	7.65%	$2,546	$98

How Many Paychecks in a Year?

On a biweekly schedule you receive 26 paychecks per year — two months of the year you’ll get three paychecks instead of two. At $16/hour, that third paycheck month delivers an extra $1,101 (net, Texas) that can go toward an emergency fund or paying down debt.

Impact of Pre-Tax Deductions

Adding a 5% 401(k) contribution ($64/paycheck) reduces your net — but less than $64 because it lowers taxable income:

	Without 401(k)	With 5% 401(k)
Gross biweekly	$1,280	$1,280
401(k) contribution	$0	−$64
Taxable income	$1,280	$1,216
Federal tax	−$75	−$67
FICA	−$98	−$98
Net biweekly (TX)	~$1,107	~$1,051
401(k) deposited	$0	$64
Total wealth built	$1,107	$1,115

$16/Hour vs. Nearby Wage Rates

Hourly Rate	Annual Gross	Net Biweekly (TX)
$14/hr	$29,120	~$972
$15/hr	$31,200	~$1,036
$16/hr	$33,280	~$1,101
$17/hr	$35,360	~$1,165
$18/hr	$37,440	~$1,229

Each additional $1/hour = ~$65 more per biweekly paycheck net (in a no-income-tax state).

Note on California State Tax

At $33,280/year, California’s effective state income tax rate is roughly 4–5%. That translates to about $116/biweekly paycheck in CA state taxes, bringing your take-home to ~$985 vs. ~$1,101 in Texas — a $116/paycheck difference, or $3,016 per year.

See your exact biweekly net with our Biweekly Pay Calculator.