What payroll taxes does a Minnesota employer pay?

Employers pay the employer share of FICA (6.2% Social Security up to the wage base and 1.45% Medicare with no cap), federal unemployment tax (FUTA), and Minnesota state unemployment insurance (SUI). The first two are federal; SUI is state-specific.

What is the FUTA rate?

FUTA is nominally 6.0% on the first 7,000 dollars of each employee's wages, but employers in states like Minnesota that are in good standing receive a 5.4% credit, making the effective rate 0.6% — a maximum of 42 dollars per employee per year.

What is Minnesota's SUI wage base and rate?

For 2024 Minnesota's taxable wage base is about 42,000 dollars per employee. New employers are assigned a starting experience rate (commonly 1% to 1.6% depending on industry), and a base tax plus assessments may apply. Established employers receive an experience-rated rate.

Does Minnesota have employer SDI or PFML payroll tax?

Minnesota does not have a state disability insurance payroll tax. A Paid Family and Medical Leave program is scheduled to begin contributions in 2026 (around 0.7% split between employer and employee); it is not included in this 2024 estimate.

Is this the employee's tax or mine?

This calculator shows the employer-side taxes only — the amounts you pay on top of wages. The employee separately has Social Security, Medicare, and income tax withheld from their paycheck, which this tool does not compute.

Minnesota Employer Payroll Tax Calculator

Email me this result

Get this tool's output sent to your inbox, plus one useful tool a week. No spam, unsubscribe any time.

Hiring in Minnesota costs more than the wage on the offer letter. As an employer you owe the employer half of FICA, federal unemployment tax (FUTA), and Minnesota state unemployment insurance (SUI). This calculator adds all three so you can see your true cost per employee and budget accurately.

How it works

Employer payroll taxes are layered on top of gross wages:

Employer FICA. Pay 6.2% Social Security on wages up to the annual wage base ($168,600 for 2024) plus 1.45% Medicare on all wages, with no cap.
FUTA. Pay 6.0% on the first $7,000 of wages, reduced by the 5.4% state credit to an effective 0.6% — a maximum of $42 per employee.
Minnesota SUI. Apply your assigned experience rate to the state taxable wage base (about $42,000 for 2024). New employers usually start near 1% to 1.6%.

Total employer tax is employer_FICA + FUTA + MN_SUI. The state and federal unemployment taxes only apply up to their respective wage bases, so they flatten out for higher-paid staff.

Tips and example

For a $50,000 salary with a 1.5% SUI rate: employer Social Security is $3,100, Medicare is $725, FUTA is $42 (on the first $7,000), and MN SUI is $42,000 × 1.5% = $630. Total employer payroll tax is about $4,497, roughly 9% on top of the wage.

Your real SUI rate is assigned by Minnesota DEED and changes with your claims history, so enter your actual rate for accuracy. Remember the 2026 Paid Leave contributions are not yet included here.