The $100,000 experiment · US study
We gave 51 states the exact same $100,000 salary. The take-home gap was $8,441.
Same job, same pay, same person — the only thing that changed was the state line. Here is where your paycheck survives, and where it quietly bleeds out.
We ran an identical $100,000 salary — single filer, no 401(k), standard deduction — through the real 2026 federal and state tax rules for all 51 states and DC. Federal tax and FICA are the same everywhere; the entire gap comes from state income tax. The result: someone in Alaska keeps $79,180, while the same person in Oregon keeps just $70,739 — a difference of $8,441 a year for doing nothing differently.
Every state ranked: take-home on $100,000
| Rank | State | Take-home | vs best |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alaska | $79,180 | — |
| 2 | Florida | $79,180 | — |
| 3 | Nevada | $79,180 | — |
| 4 | New Hampshire | $79,180 | — |
| 5 | South Dakota | $79,180 | — |
| 6 | Tennessee | $79,180 | — |
| 7 | Texas | $79,180 | — |
| 8 | Washington | $79,180 | — |
| 9 | Wyoming | $79,180 | — |
| 10 | North Dakota | $78,175 | -$1,005 |
| 11 | Ohio | $77,146 | -$2,034 |
| 12 | Arizona | $76,680 | -$2,500 |
| 13 | Indiana | $76,180 | -$3,000 |
| 14 | Louisiana | $76,180 | -$3,000 |
| 15 | Pennsylvania | $76,110 | -$3,070 |
| 16 | Arkansas | $75,402 | -$3,778 |
| 17 | Iowa | $75,380 | -$3,800 |
| 18 | Rhode Island | $75,229 | -$3,951 |
| 19 | West Virginia | $75,199 | -$3,981 |
| 20 | Kentucky | $75,180 | -$4,000 |
| 21 | New Jersey | $74,936 | -$4,244 |
| 22 | Michigan | $74,930 | -$4,250 |
| 23 | North Carolina | $74,930 | -$4,250 |
| 24 | Colorado | $74,780 | -$4,400 |
| 25 | Mississippi | $74,780 | -$4,400 |
| 26 | Missouri | $74,747 | -$4,433 |
| 27 | New Mexico | $74,677 | -$4,503 |
| 28 | Utah | $74,630 | -$4,550 |
| 29 | Oklahoma | $74,619 | -$4,561 |
| 30 | Maryland | $74,483 | -$4,697 |
| 31 | Nebraska | $74,454 | -$4,726 |
| 32 | Connecticut | $74,430 | -$4,750 |
| 33 | Wisconsin | $74,276 | -$4,904 |
| 34 | Illinois | $74,230 | -$4,950 |
| 35 | Alabama | $74,220 | -$4,960 |
| 36 | Massachusetts | $74,180 | -$5,000 |
| 37 | Vermont | $74,056 | -$5,124 |
| 38 | Georgia | $73,990 | -$5,190 |
| 39 | New York | $73,748 | -$5,432 |
| 40 | Virginia | $73,688 | -$5,492 |
| 41 | Kansas | $73,687 | -$5,493 |
| 42 | South Carolina | $73,657 | -$5,523 |
| 43 | Delaware | $73,597 | -$5,583 |
| 44 | Montana | $73,533 | -$5,647 |
| 45 | Idaho | $73,485 | -$5,695 |
| 46 | California | $73,338 | -$5,842 |
| 47 | Minnesota | $72,852 | -$6,328 |
| 48 | Hawaii | $72,689 | -$6,491 |
| 49 | Maine | $72,538 | -$6,642 |
| 50 | District of Columbia | $72,280 | -$6,900 |
| 51 | Oregon | $70,739 | -$8,441 |
The nine states at the top all tie because they levy no state income tax. Everywhere else, a slice of that identical salary goes to the state — quietly, before you ever see it. Check your own state on the paycheck calculator.
All figures computed from published IRS and state tax rules for the 2026 tax year, using the same engine behind our calculators, and verified 12 August 2026. Reproducible and free to cite — contact us for the underlying data.