MISSISSIPPI PAYCHECK CALCULATOR
Mississippi is in the middle of the slowest-motion tax cut in the country. The flat rate on income above $10,000 dropped to 4% for 2026, the fourth straight annual cut since the state started this journey in 2022, and it’s locked into law to keep falling: 3.75% in 2027, 3.5% in 2028, 3.25% in 2029, and 3% in 2030. Governor Tate Reeves signed the legislation, the Build-Up Mississippi Act, in March 2025, and if a revenue trigger keeps firing every year after that, Mississippi could join Tennessee, Florida, and Texas as a state with no income tax at all sometime around 2040.
None of that changes what comes out of a paycheck today. A Mississippi paycheck still gets trimmed by federal income tax, Social Security, Medicare, and the state’s flat rate after the standard deduction and personal exemption. There’s no city or county income tax anywhere in the state, and no state disability or paid leave premium either. Curious how Mississippi stacks up against its neighbors? Check the calculators for Tennessee, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Alabama.
Calculate Your Take-Home Pay
Estimate only. Does not include pre-tax deductions like 401(k) or health insurance. Mississippi has no local income tax and no state disability or paid leave payroll tax. Consult a tax professional for exact figures.
Every Deduction on a Mississippi Paycheck
- Federal income tax: Withheld based on your W-4 and the 2026 IRS brackets, which run from 10% to 37% depending on taxable income and filing status.
- Social Security tax: A flat 6.2% on wages up to $184,500 for 2026, capping out at $11,439 for the year.
- Medicare tax: 1.45% on all wages with no cap, plus an extra 0.9% once you cross $200,000 as a single or head of household filer, or $250,000 filing jointly.
- Mississippi state income tax: A flat 4% on taxable income above $10,000, after subtracting the standard deduction and personal exemption. The first $10,000 of taxable income is untaxed for everyone, no matter the filing status.
- Local income tax: None. No city, county, or municipality in Mississippi levies its own income tax, and there’s no state disability insurance or paid family leave withholding either.
- Pre-tax deductions: 401(k) contributions, HSA contributions, and employer health insurance premiums reduce your taxable wages before any of the above taxes are calculated.
Mississippi’s Path Toward Eliminating Income Tax
The current 4% rate isn’t a stopping point, it’s a waypoint. The Build-Up Mississippi Act locked in annual cuts through 2030, and unlike a lot of state tax promises that depend on lawmakers voting again each year, these reductions are already written into the statute itself. They happen automatically on January 1 unless a future legislature votes to change course.
| Tax Year | Rate on Taxable Income Over $10,000 |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 4.7% |
| 2025 | 4.4% |
| 2026 | 4.0% |
| 2027 | 3.75% |
| 2028 | 3.5% |
| 2029 | 3.25% |
| 2030 and after | 3.0% (subject to further cuts via revenue trigger) |
Beyond 2030, the law adds a trigger mechanism: if Mississippi’s reserve fund is fully funded and general revenue growth clears a set threshold in a given year, the rate can drop by up to 0.3 percentage points annually. Nothing forces that to happen on schedule, it depends entirely on how the state’s finances actually perform, but if the trigger fires every year it could, independent analysts estimate Mississippi could reach a 0% income tax rate by around 2040.
Mississippi vs Nearby States at $70,000 (Single)
| State | State Income Tax Owed | Estimated Net Pay |
|---|---|---|
| Mississippi | $2,068 | $56,007 |
| Tennessee | $0 | $58,075 |
| Louisiana | $1,725 | $56,350 |
| Arkansas | $2,212 | $55,863 |
| Alabama | $3,285 | $54,790 |
At this income level, Mississippi sits in the middle of its own region, ahead of Alabama and Arkansas but behind Louisiana’s newly flattened 3% rate and obviously behind Tennessee, which skips wage income tax entirely. Alabama’s figure would run somewhat lower in practice since it’s one of the only states that lets residents deduct federal income tax paid from their state return, an adjustment not reflected in the estimate above.
Mississippi’s Tax Trade-Offs
| Category | Mississippi | National Average |
|---|---|---|
| State income tax | Flat 4% (over $10,000), heading to 3% by 2030 | ~5.5% |
| Sales tax | 7% state, 7.06% average combined | ~7.0% combined |
| Effective property tax rate | 0.58% | ~1.0% |
| Estate tax | None | Most states have none |
| Tax Foundation 2026 ranking | 27th overall | N/A |
Property tax is where Mississippi genuinely stands out, an effective rate of 0.58% is well under the national average and one of the lower figures in the entire country. Sales tax runs the opposite direction: a 7% base rate is among the highest starting points nationally, even though local add-ons stay minimal enough that the combined average barely moves above that. Mississippi did cut its grocery sales tax from 7% to 5% in mid-2025 as part of the same reform package driving the income tax cuts, a real break for household budgets even if it doesn’t show up in the headline sales tax figure.
Retirees in Mississippi
Mississippi is one of the more generous states in the country for retirement income. Social Security benefits, pension payments, and withdrawals from qualified 401(k) and IRA accounts are all fully exempt from state income tax, with no age requirement and no income cap. A retiree pulling $80,000 a year from Social Security and a pension combined would owe Mississippi nothing on any of it, as long as the retirement plan meets the state’s qualification standards.
That exemption, paired with the low property tax rate, is a big part of why Mississippi shows up regularly on lists of retirement-friendly states, even though its income tax on working wages still sits above states like Louisiana or Tennessee for now.
Federal Tax Bracket Example: $70,000 Single Filer
Start with $70,000 in gross wages. Subtract the 2026 federal standard deduction of $16,100, leaving $53,900 in taxable income. Here’s how the brackets apply:
- 10% on the first $12,400 = $1,240
- 12% on the next $38,000 (from $12,400 to $50,400) = $4,560
- 22% on the remaining $3,500 (from $50,400 to $53,900) = $770
Total federal tax: $6,570, an effective rate of about 9.4% on gross pay. Layer Mississippi’s state tax on top: that same $70,000 loses the $2,300 standard deduction and $6,000 personal exemption first, leaving $61,700 in Mississippi taxable income. The first $10,000 stays untaxed, and the remaining $51,700 gets taxed at the flat 4% rate for $2,068, bringing the combined federal-plus-state bill to $8,638.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Mississippi’s state income tax rate in 2026?
A flat 4% on taxable income above $10,000. The first $10,000 of Mississippi taxable income is not taxed at all, regardless of filing status. This is down from 4.4% in 2025 and 4.7% in 2024.
Is Mississippi really eliminating its income tax?
It’s on a locked-in path toward that goal. House Bill 1, the Build-Up Mississippi Act, signed by Governor Tate Reeves on March 27, 2025, drops the rate to 3.75% in 2027, 3.5% in 2028, 3.25% in 2029, and 3% in 2030. After that, a revenue trigger allows further annual cuts of up to 0.3 percentage points whenever the state’s reserve fund is fully funded and revenue collections clear a set growth target, with full elimination possible by around 2040 if those triggers keep firing every year.
What is Mississippi’s standard deduction and personal exemption for 2026?
The standard deduction is $2,300 for single filers and those married filing separately, $4,600 for married filing jointly, and $3,400 for head of family. The personal exemption is $6,000 for single filers, $12,000 for married filing jointly, and $8,000 for head of family, on top of the $10,000 of taxable income that already carries a 0% rate.
Does Mississippi tax retirement income?
No. Mississippi fully exempts Social Security benefits, pensions, 401(k) and IRA distributions, and annuity income from state tax, with no age or income limit, as long as the retirement plan meets the state’s qualification requirements.
How high is sales tax in Mississippi?
The state rate is 7%, among the highest base sales tax rates in the country, with an average combined state and local rate of 7.06% since most cities add very little on top. Groceries used to be taxed at the full 7% but dropped to 5% starting July 1, 2025 under the same legislation that’s phasing down the income tax.
Are Mississippi’s property taxes high?
No, they’re among the lowest in the country. The average effective property tax rate sits around 0.58%, well under the national average, and Mississippi has no estate tax or inheritance tax on top of it.
Mississippi’s tax code is a moving target right now, and that’s rare among states this size. Most of the country either has a settled flat rate or a settled bracket system that only shifts with inflation. Mississippi has a rate that’s legally scheduled to keep dropping for years, tied to a state government that keeps hitting its own revenue targets. Whether the trigger mechanism actually gets Mississippi to zero by 2040, or stalls out somewhere along the way, depends entirely on how the state’s finances hold up between now and then.