How Alabama taxes your paycheck
Alabama uses a graduated rate schedule with 3 brackets for single filers in 2026. Like the federal system, only the income inside each bracket is taxed at that bracket's rate — moving into a higher bracket never taxes your whole paycheck at the higher rate.
The 2026 standard deduction is $3,000 (single), $8,500 (married filing jointly), $5,200 (head of household).
On exemptions: Official Form 40 booklet: single and MFS personal exemption $1,500; MFJ $3,000. HOF (Head of Family) exemption presumed $1,500 (same as single) but amount was not visible in the extracted booklet text. Dependent exemption $1,000.
What’s taken out of a Alabama paycheck
| Taxable income (single) | Marginal rate |
| Up to $500 | 2% |
| $501 – $3,000 | 4% |
| Over $3,000 | 5% |
Single-filer schedule. Married and head-of-household thresholds differ; the calculator below uses the correct schedule for the filing status you pick.
Example: a $75,000 salary in Alabama
On a $75,000 salary as a single filer: federal taxable income is $75,000 − $16,100 = $58,900, giving $7,670 of federal tax. State taxable income is $72,000, giving $3,560 of state tax. FICA takes $4,650 (Social Security) + $1,088 (Medicare). Estimated take-home: $58,032 per year ($2,232 per biweekly paycheck).
| Gross salary | $75,000 |
| Federal income tax | −$7,670 |
| State income tax (AL) | −$3,560 |
| Social Security (6.2%) | −$4,650 |
| Medicare (1.45%) | −$1,088 |
| Estimated take-home | $58,032 |
| Effective tax rate | 22.6% |
Single filer, standard deduction, no pre-tax contributions. The interactive calculator above recomputes this for any salary and filing status.
Local income taxes in Alabama
A number of cities levy occupational/license taxes on wages (e.g., Birmingham 1%, Bessemer 1%, Gadsden 2%, Opelika 1.5%); tax applies based on where work is performed. Alabama League of Municipalities 2026 tax rate survey.
Alabama take-home pay: frequently asked questions
Does Alabama have a state income tax in 2026?
Yes. Alabama has a progressive income tax from 2% to 5% in 2026.
What are Alabama's 2026 tax brackets and standard deduction?
3 brackets for single filers, from 2% to 5%. The 2026 standard deduction is $3,000 single / $8,500 married filing jointly.
What payroll taxes come out of a Alabama paycheck?
No employee-paid state payroll taxes are in the 2026 dataset for Alabama. Federal Social Security and Medicare still apply.
Are there local income taxes in Alabama?
Yes — this matters. A number of cities levy occupational/license taxes on wages (e.g., Birmingham 1%, Bessemer 1%, Gadsden 2%, Opelika 1.5%); tax applies based on where work is performed. Alabama League of Municipalities 2026 tax rate survey. The calculator above does not include local taxes, so city earners should treat the estimate as slightly high.
Does Alabama have a personal exemption?
Official Form 40 booklet: single and MFS personal exemption $1,500; MFJ $3,000. HOF (Head of Family) exemption presumed $1,500 (same as single) but amount was not visible in the extracted booklet text. Dependent exemption $1,000.
Methodology & sources
State figures come from the site's versioned 2026 tax dataset (v1.0.0, researched 2026-10-11),
regenerated into this page automatically. Model: state taxable income = gross pay minus the state's 2026
standard deduction;
state brackets applied marginally; employee-paid state payroll taxes added at their 2026 rates and wage bases
(with published annual caps). Federal tax uses 2026 IRS brackets and standard deductions; FICA uses the 2026
Social Security wage base ($184,500) and Medicare rates. Personal exemption credits/deductions and
individual tax credits are not modeled — the result is an estimate, not a tax return.
State sources
Federal sources
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