Free severance calculator

Your severance, taken all the way.

Your take-home by state, your actual tax (not just the 22% withheld), and how long your money really lasts — savings and unemployment included.

Runs in your browser Nothing saved or sent Updates as you type

Your pay used for tax bracket & unemployment

Pay basis

Amount ($)

Your severance

Years of service

Weeks per year

Policy minimum weeks, optional Policy cap weeks, optional

Unused PTO / final bonus — optional, paid out too

Your taxes

State

Filing status

Earned this year so far — for your actual tax Other income expected — rest of year, optional

Payout type

Your money & dates

Current savings cash on hand Monthly expenses makes runway real Last day sets COBRA Agreement received sets sign-by

Your estimate

Est. severance

$7,500

6 weeks of pay

Take-home estimate

$5,276

Flat 22% withholding — your actual tax may be lower once you file.

Runway

1.5 mo

assumes you spend 70% of your pay

Take-home breakdown

Take-home Federal FICA State

Gross severance $7,500

Federal (22% withheld)−$1,650

Social Security & Medicare (7.65%)−$574

State withholding — select your state−$0

Take-home$5,276

Federal shown is the flat 22% supplemental withholding. Add your filing status and income above for an actual-tax estimate.

Paid as a lump sum, withheld at the flat 22% rate.

Cash runway 1.5 mo

Now+6 mo+12 mo

Lean

—

Stretched

—

Monthly burn

$3,500

Add your state to include an unemployment estimate, and your savings for a real runway.

Your deadlines

File for unemploymentnow

Sign, or ask for time21 d

Elect COBRA (retroactive)60 d

401(k) rolloverno deadline

How we estimate this

The math, in the open.

Severance is a supplemental wage. We take your severance (from your policy, or the figure you enter), then:

Federal — 22% withheld, or your actual bracket. Employers withhold a flat 22% on a lump sum. Give us your filing status and income already earned this year and we compute the actual marginal tax with 2025 brackets — the gap is what typically comes back at tax time.
FICA — 7.65%. Social Security (6.2%) + Medicare (1.45%).
State — varies. Your state's flat supplemental rate where it has one, its flat income-tax rate where it's flat, a representative rate for graduated states, and 0% for the nine no-income-tax states.

Withholding is a prepayment, not your final tax. Rates are 2025–2026 estimates. Educational only — not legal, tax or financial advice.

Runway & sources

Runway = savings + take-home severance + estimated unemployment (~50% of your weekly pay, capped at your state's maximum, for up to its maximum weeks) against your monthly spending. Salary continuation delays unemployment until it ends.
IRS — supplemental withholding (Pub. 15); Tax Foundation — 2025 brackets & state rates.
State agencies — unemployment weekly maximums & duration.
Dept. of Labor — COBRA (60-day election) & notice timelines.