Illinois Paycheck Calculator 2026
Take-home pay in Illinois for 2026 — the flat 4.95% state tax after the personal exemption, plus federal tax and FICA.
Flat 4.95% after the personal exemption allowance.
Estimates for the 2026 tax year using the standard deduction. Actual withholding depends on your W-4, benefits, credits, and local taxes. Not tax advice.
Flat 4.95%, thin exemption, no city tax
Illinois taxes wages at a flat 4.95% — locked in by a constitutional flat-rate requirement that voters chose to keep in 2020. There’s no standard deduction, only apersonal exemption allowance of about $2,925 ($5,850 joint) in 2026. The result: Illinois’s effective rate lands near the top of the big flat-tax states, though Chicago’s lack of a city wage tax keeps the total honest.
Illinois take-home in 2026
| Salary (single) | IL tax | Annual take-home | Monthly | Effective rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $60,000 | $2,825 | $47,565 | $3,964 | 20.7% |
| $85,000 | $4,063 | $64,565 | $5,380 | 24.0% |
| $120,000 | $5,795 | $87,455 | $7,288 | 27.1% |
At $85,000 an Illinois worker takes home almost exactly what a New Yorker does ($64,565 vs $64,635) — the flat 4.95% and New York’s graduated schedule cross near that income. AgainstOhio, Illinois costs about $2,500 more per year at $85,000.
Workers pay, retirees don’t
Illinois’s hidden generosity is at the other end of life: all retirement income is exempt — Social Security, pensions, 401(k) and IRA withdrawals. A dollar earned at 40 is taxed at 4.95%; the same dollar withdrawn at 70 is taxed at zero. Traditional 401(k) contributions also reduce Illinois taxable income now, making pre-tax saving doubly attractive.
Estimates use 2026 figures with the personal exemption and exclude credits (like the Illinois EITC and property-tax credit) and benefit premiums — planning numbers, not tax advice. All math runs in your browser; nothing is uploaded. Compare all ten states on the mainUS paycheck calculator.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Illinois income tax rate for 2026?
A flat 4.95% on taxable income — the same rate for everyone, unchanged since 2017. Illinois grants a personal exemption allowance (about $2,925 per person in 2026) instead of a standard deduction, so a single $85,000 earner owes roughly $4,063.Does Illinois have a standard deduction?
No — just the personal exemption allowance ($2,925 single / $5,850 joint in 2026), which phases out for very high incomes. That makes Illinois’s effective bite higher than its headline rate suggests compared to states with big deductions.Didn’t Illinois try to switch to graduated rates?
Yes — the 2020 “Fair Tax” constitutional amendment would have introduced brackets up to 7.99%, but voters rejected it. The constitution still mandates a flat rate, so 4.95% applies to $30,000 and $3 million alike.Does Chicago have a city income tax?
No — unlike NYC or Philadelphia, Chicago levies no wage tax, so this calculator’s number is the full income-tax picture for Chicagoans. The city compensates with high sales taxes (10.25%) and steep property taxes.Is retirement income taxed in Illinois?
No — Illinois fully exempts Social Security, pensions, 401(k) and IRA withdrawals. It’s one of the few flat-tax states with a complete retirement exemption, a major perk for retirees despite the state’s fiscal headlines.How does Illinois compare to its neighbors?
Worse for workers than most: at $85,000 single, Illinois’s $4,063 beats only California and New York in this series — Michigan takes $3,362, Ohio $1,555, and Indiana’s flat ~3% (not in this tool) is lower still. The retirement exemption flips the comparison after 65.Is my salary data uploaded?
No — the entire calculation runs in your browser. Nothing is sent to any server, stored or logged, and the tool works offline once loaded.