take-home pay

noun

\ ˈtāk-ˌhōm-

Definition of take-home pay

: income remaining from salary or wages after deductions (as for income-tax withholding)

Examples of take-home pay in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Her take-home pay, $150 a week, covers expenses such as clothing, train fare, laundry and her cellphone bill. — Anne Kadet, WSJ, "Here’s How New Yorkers Make It in the Big Apple on $15 an Hour," 16 Oct. 2018 The sweeping Republican tax cuts that took effect in January were likely a major contributing factor, permanently slashing the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent and increasing many workers' take-home pay. — Gregg Re, Fox News, "GDP report shows booming 4.1 percent growth, as Trump touts 'amazing' numbers," 27 July 2018 Of course, if shoppers were simply made employees with a straightforward salary, figuring out one's take-home pay would be considerably easier. — Cyrus Farivar, Ars Technica, "Instacart changes how it pays shoppers, but many say they’re now making less," 18 Nov. 2018 For a lot of people, one big aspect of this transition is reevaluating your finances now that your pay schedule (and possibly your take-home pay) has changed. — Amy Keller Laird, SELF, "Does Work/Life Balance Exist in the Gig Economy?," 8 Nov. 2018 Total take-home pay for the 48-hour week, after taxes: Around $600. — Anne Kadet, WSJ, "Here’s How New Yorkers Make It in the Big Apple on $15 an Hour," 16 Oct. 2018 That’s an increase in take-home pay of $2,501, or 4.9%—nearly 70% higher than the 2.9% rate of inflation, assuming the inflation rate holds at around 2.9% for the rest of the year. — Andy Puzder, WSJ, "Bernie Sanders’s Half-Truth on Wages," 5 Sep. 2018 In addition, the cost of my health insurance keeps rising, usually erasing and even generating a deficit in my take-home pay. — Alvin Chang, Vox, "Teacher pay is falling. Their health insurance costs are rising.," 16 Mar. 2018 Some Americans are seeing bumps in their take-home pay in 2018, while others are on the receiving end of one-time bonuses from corporations that credit the tax bill for their generosity. — Amber Phillips, Washington Post, "What is Marco Rubio thinking when he criticizes the GOP tax bill?," 1 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'take-home pay.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

29 Dec 2018

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The first known use of take-home pay was in 1942

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More Definitions for take-home pay

take-home pay

noun

Financial Definition of take-home pay

What It Is

Take home pay is the portion of one's salary left after all payroll taxes have been deducted.

How It Works

John Doe has a salary of $100,000. He is paid 26 times per year (every other Friday). The federal and state payroll taxes (Social Security, Medicare, unemployment, and federal withholding) amount to, say, 10% of his salary.

John Doe's salary divided by 26 paychecks equals $3,846.15 per paycheck. However, because John Doe has payroll taxes withheld, his take home pay is actually 90% of that, or $3,461.53.

Why It Matters

Understanding the difference between salary and take home pay is important for anyone trying to create and live on a household budget. Taxes are not the only thing that can affect take home pay. If a person is having alimony, child support, retirement plan contributions, or other money withheld from his or her paycheck, these things will also affect the person's take home pay.

Source: Investing Answers

take-home pay

noun