Georgia switched from graduated brackets to a flat income tax in 2024, and the rate is 5.19% for 2025 on its way down toward 4.99%.
A standard deduction shelters the first part of your income, and most of Georgia has no local income tax. Here is how the new flat rate plays out on your paycheck. See your exact take-home with the free Georgia paycheck calculator.
How Georgia's income tax works
Georgia now applies a single flat rate after a standard deduction of $12,000 for single filers ($24,000 married). The old system of brackets and a personal exemption for the filer was replaced; dependent exemptions still apply.
The rate is on a glide path: it started at 5.49% in 2024, dropped to 5.19% for 2025, and is scheduled to keep falling toward 4.99% in future years if revenue triggers are met.
Your take-home on a $65,000 salary in Georgia
Here is how a $65,000 salary breaks down for a single filer, using 2025 federal and FICA figures alongside Georgia's a flat 5.19% income tax.
| Item | Annual |
|---|---|
| Federal income tax | $5,246 |
| FICA (Social Security + Medicare) | $4,973 |
| Georgia income tax | $2,751 |
| Take-home pay | $52,031 |
| Percent of gross kept | 80.0% |
On a $65,000 salary a single filer owes about $2,751 in Georgia income tax (after the $12,000 standard deduction) and keeps roughly $52,031, or 80.0% of gross. Compare with North Carolina.
From brackets to a flat tax, and a retirement break
Georgia's 2024 switch to a flat tax simplified things: nearly everyone now pays the same marginal rate, and the standard deduction does the work the old brackets used to. Most Georgians owe no separate local income tax.
Retirees get a notable break, Georgia excludes a large amount of retirement income (up to $65,000 per person at 65 and older, with a smaller exclusion from 62), which softens the flat rate considerably in retirement.
How to keep more of your Georgia paycheck
Traditional 401(k) and HSA contributions lower your Georgia taxable income along with your federal income, and an HSA also avoids FICA, an easy way to keep more of each check.