What payroll taxes does a Washington employer pay?

Employers pay the matching 6.2% Social Security and 1.45% Medicare (employer FICA), federal unemployment tax (FUTA), Washington state unemployment insurance (SUI), and the employer share of Paid Family and Medical Leave. Washington has no state income tax to withhold.

How is FUTA calculated?

FUTA is 6.0% on the first 7,000 dollars of each employee's wages, but employers who pay state unemployment on time receive a 5.4% credit, making the effective FUTA rate 0.6% — or 42 dollars per employee per year.

What is Washington's SUI rate?

Washington's state unemployment insurance rate varies by employer experience and industry, applied to a taxable wage base that adjusts yearly. New employers receive an assigned rate based on their industry average; established employers get an experience rate.

Does Washington have an employer PFML contribution?

Yes. Washington Paid Family and Medical Leave is funded by a combined premium split between employer and employee. Employers with 50 or more employees pay an employer share on wages; very small employers may be exempt from the employer portion.

Washington Employer Payroll Tax Calculator

Q: How accurate is this estimate?

It applies standard rates accurately, but your real burden depends on your exact SUI experience rate, the current taxable wage bases, and whether the PFML employer share applies to your business size. Use it for planning, not filing.

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Hiring in Washington means budgeting for employer-side payroll taxes on top of wages. Because Washington has no state income tax to withhold, the employer burden comes from federal FICA matching, FUTA, state unemployment insurance (SUI), and the employer share of Paid Family and Medical Leave. This calculator adds them all up so you can see the true cost of an employee above their salary.

How it works

The employer burden is computed per employee, then scaled by headcount:

Employer FICA. Match the employee’s 6.2% Social Security (up to the wage base) and 1.45% Medicare.
FUTA. 6.0% on the first $7,000 of wages, reduced by the 5.4% state credit to an effective 0.6% — $42 per employee per year.
Washington SUI. Your state unemployment rate × the SUI taxable wage base (or full wage if lower). New employers use an assigned rate; established ones use their experience rate.
PFML employer share. The employer portion of Washington’s Paid Family and Medical Leave premium, applied to wages (employers with 50+ employees).

The total is the extra cost above gross wages, shown per employee and across your whole headcount.

Tips and example

For one employee paid $60,000, employer FICA is about $4,590 (7.65%), FUTA is $42, and SUI plus the PFML employer share add a few hundred more depending on your rate. The total employer burden typically lands around 9%–11% of wages.

This is an estimate. Your exact SUI experience rate, the current taxable wage bases, and whether the PFML employer share applies to your business all change the figure. Use it to budget the loaded cost of a hire, then confirm with your payroll provider.