Hourly pay after taxes in Iowa
$20 an hour in Iowa comes to $1,329.19 every two weeks after taxes, for a single person working full time.
Updated for 2026Checked Oct 29, 2026 against IRS and Iowa Department of Revenue sourcesHow we check
Take-home pay by hourly wage, 2026
| Wage | Two weeks | Month | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| $7.25 | $534.13 | $1,157 | $13,887 |
| $18.00 | $1,206.71 | $2,615 | $31,374 |
| $20.00 | $1,329.19 | $2,880 | $34,559 |
| $22.00 | $1,451.67 | $3,145 | $37,743 |
| $25.00 | $1,635.39 | $3,543 | $42,520 |
| $30.00 | $1,941.59 | $4,207 | $50,481 |
| $35.00 | $2,223.56 | $4,818 | $57,813 |
| $40.00 | $2,489.76 | $5,394 | $64,734 |
| $50.00 | $3,022.16 | $6,548 | $78,576 |
Every column after the wage is take-home pay. Each row assumes 40 hours a week all year, one paycheck every two weeks, single, no dependents, and no benefits taken out. The monthly and yearly columns are that paycheck times 26. Use the paycheck calculator for your own hours and deductions.
Nothing local is withheld from an Iowa paycheck. School district surtaxes, capped at 20 percent of a resident's state income tax, and a medical services surtax in six counties, capped at 1 percent, are paid with the annual return, so they are not in these figures. See Iowa's local tax rules, or try the paycheck calculator.
What comes out of an hourly paycheck
At $25 an hour, a two-week paycheck in Iowa starts at $2,000.00 and ends at $1,635.39.
| Federal income tax | $156.15 |
| Social Security | $124.00 |
| Medicare | $29.00 |
| Iowa income tax | $55.46 |
Iowa taxes income at a flat 3.8 percent, so an Iowa hourly check loses that state share along with federal income tax, Social Security, and Medicare. Iowa cities and counties do not tax wages, and nothing local is withheld from pay. No state disability or paid leave program takes a share either.
That leaves one state line that moves in step with the wage, with no bracket to cross and no payroll program stacked on top.
What changes your number
The Iowa extras do not touch your paycheck. Most school districts, and six counties for emergency medical services, add a surtax that is figured as a percentage of a resident's state income tax. You pay it with the annual Iowa return, so it shows up in the spring, not in each check.
On the check itself, the flat 3.8 percent means a raise is taxed at the same state rate at any wage. Your IA W-4 lines for personal allowances and dependents shape the amount withheld, and the federal tax is the part that climbs by bracket.
Hours matter too. At $20 an hour and 30 hours a week instead of 40, a two-week paycheck in Iowa comes to $1,022.99.
The minimum wage in Iowa
The minimum wage in Iowa is $7.25 an hour, and a full-time worker at $7.25 takes home about $1,157 a month. It has held since January 1, 2008. A worker in the first 90 calendar days may be paid $6.35, and businesses under $300,000 in annual sales are exempt except in listed industries.
Sources and checks
Checked on Oct 29, 2026. Source: Iowa Code 2026, section 422.5(1)(a) (www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/422.5.pdf, fetched Oct 29, 2026): tax is imposed "at a rate of three and eight-tenths percent"; Iowa Department of Revenue, "Iowa Individual Income Tax Withholding Formula, Effective January 1, 2026" (Released November 2025), Step 2: rate 3.80 percent.
Disability: Iowa has no state disability or paid family leave program. Its only state payroll insurance, unemployment insurance, is paid by employers: Iowa Code 96.7(1), "Employer contributions and reimbursements" (www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/96.7.pdf, fetched Oct 29, 2026). The 2026 withholding formula has no other employee deduction.
Local taxes: Iowa Department of Revenue, "Iowa Tax/Fee Descriptions and Rates" (revenue.iowa.gov/taxes/tax-guidance/general/iowa-taxfee-descriptions-and-rates, fetched Oct 29, 2026): school district surtax "Not to exceed 20% of state income tax liability" and "collected with the individual income tax return"; emergency medical services surtax "Up to 1% of state income tax liability"; IA 1040 Expanded Instructions, Line 19 (2025 instruction year; revenue.iowa.gov/taxes/tax-guidance/individual-income-tax/1040-expanded-instructions/school-district-surtaxemergency) lists the six counties; 2026 IA W-4, line 8 instructions: residents of a surtax district should "consider reducing the amount of allowances ... or have additional tax withheld", confirming the withholding formula itself does not include the surtax.
Minimum wage: Iowa Code 2026, section 91D.1(1) (www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/91D.1.pdf, fetched Oct 29, 2026): $7.25 as of January 1, 2008, or the federal minimum wage if greater; workers in their first 90 calendar days may be paid $6.35; businesses under $300,000 in annual sales are exempt except in listed industries. Tipped workers in restaurants, hotels, motels, inns, or cabins who receive more than $30 a month in tips: the employer may count tips up to 40 percent of the minimum wage ($2.90), so the cash wage is at least $4.35.
Federal withholding: IRS Publication 15-T (2026), Worksheet 1A and its "2026 Percentage Method Tables for Automated Payroll Systems and Withholding on Periodic Payments of Pensions and Annuities," pages 10 to 12. Fetched directly from irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p15t.pdf and transcribed Oct 28, 2026.
Every figure above comes from the sources listed here. How we check our numbers.
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