Social Security wage base (US FICA cap)
The annual ceiling above which the 6.2% Social Security portion of FICA stops applying — $176,100 (2025).
The Social Security wage base is the annual gross-wage ceiling above which the 6.2% Social Security portion of FICA stops being collected. For 2025 the wage base is $176,100. Wages up to that amount are subject to 6.2% employee + 6.2% employer Social Security contributions; wages above it are exempt from the Social Security portion.
The 1.45% Medicare portion of FICA has NO wage-base cap — it applies to every dollar of wage income with no ceiling. Above $200,000 of single income, an additional 0.9% Medicare surtax applies (employee only; employer does not match this portion). So the effective FICA marginal rate is 7.65% below the wage base, 1.45% between the wage base and $200,000, and 2.35% above.
The wage base rises with the National Average Wage Index each November. The site's US calculator applies the cap automatically across all 5 supported states.
Calculator pages that use this term
See also
- FICA (Social Security + Medicare) — The US payroll tax that funds Social Security and Medicare — flat-rate, applies before federal income tax.
- Standard deduction (US federal) — The flat amount subtracted from gross income before federal-income-tax brackets apply — $15,000 single (2025).
- Marginal tax rate — The percentage paid in tax on the next unit of income earned — distinct from the average effective rate.