California has the most involved withholding calculation of any state: a ten-bracket schedule layered on top of a low-income exemption, an estimated-deduction allowance, and a standard deduction that varies with the number of allowances claimed. The DE-4 form asks for regular allowances and estimated-deduction allowances separately, and they do different jobs — one reduces tax, the other reduces taxable wages. Getting those two fields right matters more in California than in most states.
Regular withholding allowances from DE 4 line 1. These determine the exemption credit and, for married employees, the low-income exemption and standard deduction.
DE 4, line 1
California estimated-deduction allowances
Additional allowances from DE 4 Worksheet B. Each subtracts $1,000 from annual wages and is not included in the exemption credit.
DE 4, Worksheet B / additional allowances
Married dual-income or multiple employers
Select when DE 4 directs a married employee with an employed spouse or multiple employers to use the single/dual-income schedule.
DE 4, filing-status election
Take-home pay in California by salary
Single filer, paid every two weeks, no pre-tax deductions, 2026 rates. Change any of those in the calculator.
Annual take-home pay after federal and California tax, 2026
Married employees with multiple employers or an employed spouse should elect the single/dual-income status on DE 4; the engine's federal Married Filing Separately status maps to that single schedule.
The married dual-income input applies EDD Table 5, the $18,896 low-income threshold, and the $5,706 standard deduction without changing the federal W-4 filing status.
Additional flat withholding requested on DE 4 line 2 is handled by the engine's generic additional state withholding field.
Sources
Every figure on this page is transcribed from a published source and carries the date it was read. Where two sources disagree, the disagreement is recorded rather than resolved silently.
This is an estimate of payroll withholding, not tax advice, and not a prediction of your final tax bill. Withholding is what your employer sends in during the year; what you actually owe is settled when you file.