What is a pay stub?
A pay stub is the written breakdown that goes with one paycheck or direct deposit. The deposit tells you how much arrived. The stub tells you why: what you earned, each tax and deduction taken out, and what was left, plus running totals for the year.
You may also hear it called a check stub, earnings statement, pay statement or payroll stub. The name changes; the contents barely do.
What a pay stub looks like: the parts of this sample
Every amount below is printed on the sample above, in the order you meet it.
Who paid whom
The top block names the employer (Example Bakery Co., with its address and a placeholder EIN) and the worker (Taylor Sample, with an employee ID). Real stubs often mask the Social Security number down to its last four digits; this one is all zeros because it is fake.
Pay period and pay date
The work being paid ran from July 26, 2026 to August 8, 2026. The money landed on August 14, 2026, the following Friday. The gap is normal: payroll needs a few days to close the timesheets.
Earnings
Each kind of pay gets its own row of hours, rate and amount. Regular: 80 hours at $24.00 = $1,920.00. Overtime: 5 hours at $36.00 = $180.00. Added together they make gross pay, $2,100.00. Source: US Department of Labor, Overtime pay.
Federal income tax
$168.15 was withheld for federal income tax. The amount depends on the filing status on Form W-4 (single here) and the IRS withholding method for a two-week payday. Source: IRS Publication 15-T.
Social Security and Medicare (FICA)
Two flat-rate lines: Social Security at 6.2% ($130.20) and Medicare at 1.45% ($30.45). Together they are often labeled FICA. The employer pays a matching share, which never appears as a deduction on the worker's stub. Source: IRS Topic 751.
State income tax
North Carolina taxes wages, so the stub shows $65.83 on its own line. A worker in a state without a wage income tax would see zero there, or no line at all.
Other deductions
Anything else taken from pay is listed by name. The sample takes $84.00 for a Roth 401(k) contribution. Roth money goes in after tax, so it did not lower any tax line above it. Source: IRS Topic 424, 401(k) plans.
Net pay
Gross pay minus every tax and deduction ($478.63 in total) leaves $1,621.37. That is the amount that should match the direct deposit in the bank account.
Year to date (YTD)
The YTD column adds up every check since January 1, this one included. This is the year's check number 17, and every earlier check was the same, so YTD gross is $35,700.00 and YTD net is $27,563.29.
Want these lines for your own pay? The North Carolina paycheck calculator works them out free.
How to read a pay stub: five quick checks
Run these on your own stub the way they are run on the sample. Each takes a few seconds with a phone calculator.
- Hours times rate. 80 × $24.00 = $1,920.00. If your stub's math is off here, everything below it is off too.
- Overtime is the higher rate. $36.00 is $24.00 × 1.5. Federal law sets time and a half as the floor for covered hours past 40 in a workweek.
- Social Security is a flat share. 6.2% of $2,100.00 is $130.20. A quick multiply catches a wrong gross or a missing line.
- Gross minus deductions equals net. $2,100.00 − $478.63 = $1,621.37. Then compare net with the bank deposit.
- YTD grows by exactly this check. Last check's YTD gross ($33,600.00) + this check ($2,100.00) = $35,700.00. A jump means a missed or duplicated stub.
Pay stub abbreviations
Payroll systems shorten line names to fit. These are the ones you will meet most, with the sample's figure beside each.
| Code | Means | On the sample |
|---|---|---|
| REG | Regular hours or regular pay | $1,920.00 |
| OT | Overtime hours or overtime pay | $180.00 |
| GROSS | Total earnings before anything is taken out | $2,100.00 |
| FIT / FED WH | Federal income tax withheld | $168.15 |
| SS / OASDI / FICA-SS | Social Security (Old-Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) | $130.20 |
| MED / FICA-MED | Medicare | $30.45 |
| SIT / NC WH | State income tax withheld | $65.83 |
| SDI / FLI | State disability or family leave insurance, in states that have it | None in this state |
| ROTH | Roth 401(k), an after-tax retirement contribution | $84.00 |
| NET | Take-home pay | $1,621.37 |
| CUR / YTD | This period / year to date | Both columns shown |
Before-tax and after-tax deductions
The sample's Roth 401(k) is taken after tax, so every tax line stays where it was. A traditional 401(k) works the other way: the contribution comes off the wages used for federal income tax, but Social Security and Medicare are still charged on it. Health, dental and other cafeteria-plan benefits usually lower all three. Source: IRS Topic 424, 401(k) plans.
The same sample on other PayStubs349 designs
Same pay, same taxes, same totals. Only the arrangement changes, and every design costs the same.
Not paid by the hour?
- Contractors and freelancers: no payroll tax is withheld, so the stub shows earnings and net pay only. Side Rail design · Self-employed stubs
- Salaried workers: one salary row for the period, with no hours or rate. Ruled Statement design
Sample pay stub questions
Can I download this sample pay stub?
No. The sample is a picture with a PREVIEW mark, and its details are fake. Your own stub, with your own pay, downloads as a clean PDF after checkout for $3.49.
Does every pay stub look like this one?
The layout changes from one employer to the next, but the parts are almost always the same: who, when, earnings, taxes, deductions, net and YTD. Federal law requires employers to keep pay records rather than to use one stub format, and many states add their own rules. Source: DOL Fact Sheet #21, Recordkeeping.
Why is my federal tax different from the sample?
Federal withholding depends on your pay, your pay frequency and what you put on Form W-4. A different filing status, extra withholding or a pre-tax deduction all change it.
Is a pay stub the same as a W-2?
No. A stub covers one paycheck. A W-2 is the yearly summary your employer files and sends you after the year ends. The last stub's YTD figures and the W-2 are usually close, but pre-tax deductions can make them differ. Source: IRS, About Form W-2.
Why does the sample show no state disability line?
Only some states charge workers for disability or paid-leave insurance. The sample's state does not, so there is no such line.
Can I make a stub that looks like this?
Yes. Pick any design, enter your real pay, and the taxes fill in the same way. Optional add-ons cover extra lines such as a Roth deduction, at $1.00 per stub.
Questions about orders, delivery or refunds? See the PayStubs349 FAQ.