California taxes income on a steeply progressive scale from 1% up to 12.3%, and on top of that it withholds State Disability Insurance (SDI) from every paycheck.
For most workers the marginal rate lands in the 6% to 9.3% range, and the SDI line is easy to forget. Here is how California's brackets really work, what they cost on a typical salary, and the SDI change that recently made the bill bigger. See your exact take-home with the free California paycheck calculator.
How California's income tax works
California is a progressive-bracket state: only the dollars inside each band are taxed at that band's rate. Your taxable income is your wages minus pre-tax items (401(k), HSA, health premiums) and California's standard deduction (about $5,540 single / $11,080 married for 2025). The first brackets are tiny, but the rate reaches 6% by roughly $40,000 of taxable income and 9.3% in the low six figures.
Separately, California withholds SDI (State Disability Insurance, which also funds Paid Family Leave) as a flat percentage of wages. As of 2024 the wage cap was removed, so SDI now applies to all of your wages rather than just the first chunk, which quietly raised the bill for higher earners.
| Taxable income | Rate |
|---|---|
| $0 – $10,756 | 1% |
| $10,756 – $25,499 | 2% |
| $25,499 – $40,245 | 4% |
| $40,245 – $55,866 | 6% |
| $55,866 – $70,606 | 8% |
| $70,606 – $360,659 | 9.3% |
| Over $1,000,000 | 12.3% – 13.3% |
Your take-home on a $65,000 salary in California
Here is how a $65,000 salary breaks down for a single filer, using 2025 federal and FICA figures alongside California's progressive brackets from 1% to 12.3% plus SDI.
| Item | Annual |
|---|---|
| Federal income tax | $5,246 |
| FICA (Social Security + Medicare) | $4,973 |
| California income tax | $2,298 |
| State disability (SDI) | $715 |
| Take-home pay | $51,769 |
| Percent of gross kept | 79.6% |
On a $65,000 salary a single Californian keeps about $51,769, or 79.6% of gross, after roughly $2,298 of state income tax and $715 of SDI, about $3,000 less than a worker in no-income-tax Texas. And because California has the nation's highest housing costs, that smaller take-home buys far less in San Francisco or Los Angeles than the same paycheck would elsewhere. Compare with Texas.
SDI, the cost of living, and who actually pays 12.3%
The 12.3% headline rate (13.3% with the millionaire surcharge) only hits income above $1 million, so almost no wage earner pays it. What affects everyone is SDI plus California's high baseline cost of living, which means a given salary delivers less real spending power than in most states.
California taxes most retirement income (401(k), IRA, and pension withdrawals) at ordinary rates, but it does not tax Social Security benefits, a meaningful exception for retirees.
How to keep more of your California paycheck
Because California stacks a high state rate on top of federal tax, pre-tax 401(k) and HSA contributions are especially powerful here: each dollar can save you 30%+ across federal and state, and HSA dollars dodge FICA too. Maxing them is the single biggest lever on a California take-home.