San Francisco paycheck calculator (2026)
SF has the highest minimum wage of any California city: $18.67/hr (OLSE 2026). No SF income tax, California state and federal apply. Health Care Security Ordinance is an employer obligation, not a paycheck deduction. Tech salaries push into Additional Medicare and (for some) the 32%+ federal brackets.
Tax outcomes depend on your specific situation. This page summarises 2026 published guidance from the SF Office of Labor Standards Enforcement, the California FTB, the HUD Fair Market Rent tables, and the BLS OEWS. Consult a CPA about your circumstances.
How San Francisco paychecks compare with the rest of California
San Francisco workers pay the same federal income tax, California state income tax, FICA, and SDI as workers anywhere else in California. There is no SF income tax. The differences from a paycheck-mechanics perspective are subtle. First, SF's minimum wage is the highest of any major California city at $18.67/hour in 2026 (per the SF Office of Labor Standards Enforcement). This is meaningfully above the California statewide minimum of $16.50 and the LA City minimum of $17.28. Second, the median wage in the SF / San Mateo / Redwood City MSA per the BLS May 2024 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics was approximately $98,000, far above LA's $58,000 and California statewide median around $54,000. SF's wage distribution skews toward tech, finance, and biotech professionals, who pull the median significantly upward.
Third, San Francisco's housing costs are dramatically higher than California averages. Per HUD Fair Market Rent FY 2026 (published October 2025), the FMR for a one-bedroom apartment in San Francisco County is approximately $2,795/month and a two-bedroom is approximately $3,495, well above LA's $2,160 and $2,795 respectively. Real-market rents in SOMA, Mission, Hayes Valley, Pacific Heights, and Marina routinely exceed HUD FMR by 20-50%. Fourth, SF's employer-side Health Care Security Ordinance (HCSO) requires SF employers with 20+ employees to spend approximately $3.55/hour on healthcare for each covered worker in 2026 (per the SF OLSE 2026 HCSO rate notice). HCSO is an employer obligation, not a paycheck deduction, workers benefit from improved healthcare access without seeing it as a payroll line.
SF take-home table by tech-band salary
The table below shows annual and biweekly take-home for a single filer at common SF tech compensation tiers. Salary brackets begin at $80,000 (entry-level professional, well above SF MSA median for non-tech roles) and run to $500,000 (staff engineer / mid-senior tech levels at major SF tech firms). All numbers use California state income tax, federal income tax, FICA, SDI, and Additional Medicare Tax (0.9% on wages above $200,000 single) at the standard published 2026 rates.
| Annual gross | Federal tax | CA state tax | Annual take-home | Biweekly net | ETR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $80,000 | $9,214 | $3,499 | $60,287 | $2,319 | 24.6% |
| $120,000 | $18,047 | $7,219 | $84,234 | $3,240 | 29.8% |
| $150,000 | $25,247 | $10,009 | $101,619 | $3,908 | 32.3% |
| $200,000 | $37,247 | $14,659 | $132,076 | $5,080 | 34.0% |
| $250,000 | $52,263 | $19,309 | $160,685 | $6,180 | 35.7% |
| $350,000 | $86,797 | $28,609 | $213,401 | $8,208 | 39.0% |
| $500,000 | $139,297 | $44,520 | $289,814 | $11,147 | 42.0% |
Above $200,000 single, Additional Medicare Tax of 0.9% applies to the portion above the threshold. Above $250,000 single, the federal Net Investment Income Tax of 3.8% applies to investment income (capital gains, interest, dividends), not to wage income but commonly relevant for SF tech workers with substantial RSU vesting. Per IRC 1411.
SF tech compensation: salary + RSU + bonus
SF tech compensation packages typically combine three tax-distinct components. Base salary is taxed as ordinary income, withheld via the standard W-4 / DE 4 process. Annual bonuses are taxed as supplemental wages, withheld at the 22% federal supplemental rate and 6.6% California cash supplemental rate (per the FTB DE 4 instructions). RSU vesting is also supplemental wages, withheld at 22% federal and 10.23% California stock supplemental rate. The three together produce a paycheck-vs-W2 reconciliation that is often surprising at year-end. A senior SF tech worker earning $250,000 base + $50,000 annual bonus + $200,000 in RSU vesting has W-2 reported wages of $500,000, sits in the 35% federal bracket, and routinely faces a year-end balance owed of $20,000-$50,000 because the supplemental withholding under-collected vs actual marginal rate.
The fix is either making estimated quarterly tax payments (IRS Form 1040-ES, FTB Form 540-ES) or asking payroll to apply additional withholding via the W-4 / DE 4 additional-withholding line. SF tech workers expecting six-figure RSU vests in a given calendar year should review the safe-harbor threshold (lower of 90% of current-year tax or 110% of prior-year tax for AGI above $150,000) and arrange estimated payments to avoid the underpayment penalty. Detail on RSU mechanics: California RSU tax calculator. Bonus mechanics: California bonus tax calculator.
Compare SF with other California metros
San Francisco paycheck, common questions
San Francisco paycheck calculations on this page reflect 2026 published rates from the California FTB, IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-28, the SF Office of Labor Standards Enforcement, and HUD Fair Market Rent FY 2026. There is no San Francisco income tax. The Health Care Security Ordinance is an employer obligation. RSU and bonus supplemental withholding routinely under-collects for high-bracket SF workers. Consult a CPA about your circumstances.