What is the Massachusetts income tax rate?

Massachusetts taxes most income at a flat 5%. Since 2023, an additional 4% surtax applies to the portion of annual taxable income above $1 million, giving a 9% top marginal rate. Short-term capital gains are taxed at a higher 8.5% rate.

How does the millionaire surtax work?

The 4% surtax applies only to taxable income above $1 million in a year, not the entire amount. So $1.5 million of income is taxed at 5% on the first $1 million and 9% on the remaining $500,000, raising about $20,000 of extra surtax.

Is Massachusetts income tax really flat?

For most income it is a true flat 5%, unlike graduated states. The millionaire surtax adds a second tier above $1 million, and certain income types like short-term capital gains use a different flat rate, but ordinary wage income is taxed at 5%.

Does this include federal tax or FICA?

No. This calculator computes only the Massachusetts state income tax. Federal income tax, Social Security, Medicare, and the Paid Family and Medical Leave contribution are separate. Use it to estimate just the state line of your tax.

Massachusetts Income Tax Calculator

Q: Does Massachusetts have a standard deduction?

Massachusetts does not have a federal-style standard deduction. Instead it offers a personal exemption of $4,400 for single filers and $8,800 for married filing jointly, plus specific deductions for items like rent, dependents, and Social Security or Medicare taxes paid.

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Massachusetts uses a flat 5% income tax rather than graduated brackets, with a 4% surtax on income above $1 million. This calculator applies the rate and the state personal exemption to show your Massachusetts tax due and effective rate.

How it works

Massachusetts taxable income is reduced by a personal exemption, then taxed at a flat rate with the surtax stacked on top:

taxable = income − personalExemption
maTax   = taxable × 5%  +  max(0, taxable − 1,000,000) × 4%

The personal exemption is $4,400 for single filers and $8,800 for married filing jointly ($6,800 for head of household). Massachusetts has no graduated brackets for ordinary income, so the marginal rate is 5% up to $1 million and 9% above it.

The effective rate is tax divided by gross income, which is always below 5% because of the exemption, except at very high incomes where the surtax pushes it up.

Example

A single filer with $90,000 of Massachusetts taxable income subtracts the $4,400 personal exemption to get $85,600. The tax is 85,600 × 5% = $4,280, with no surtax, an effective rate of about 4.76% of gross income.

Notes

This tool models the flat 5% income tax on ordinary income plus the millionaire surtax. It does not model short-term capital gains (taxed at 8.5%), specific Massachusetts deductions for rent or dependents, or credits. It also excludes federal tax and FICA. Confirm your figures with Massachusetts Form 1 instructions at mass.gov/dor.