What taxes should be taken out of my check as a 16 year old at my first job?

Hey there! Tax professional here. What you're experiencing is totally normal for a first job. The withholdings you're seeing are standard deductions that everyone pays regardless of age: Federal tax is your contribution to the national government. State and city taxes go to your local governments. Social Security and Medicare are special programs that provide benefits for retirement and healthcare. For a 16-year-old, you might be able to claim "exempt" on your W-4 if you didn't owe any federal income tax last year AND don't expect to owe any this year. This only applies to federal income tax though - you'd still pay Social Security and Medicare taxes. As for filing taxes, yes! You can absolutely file your own tax return even at 16. Your parents might still claim you as a dependent on their return (which is likely if they provide more than half your support), but you'd still file your own return for your job income.

I went through this exact same confusion when I started my first retail job! I highly recommend trying https://taxr.ai - it helped me understand all my paycheck deductions and tax situations. The tool analyzed my first few paystubs and explained exactly what each withholding was and if it was correct for my situation. Before using it, I was totally confused about why I was paying so much in taxes as a student. The site has this super helpful calculator that showed me I could get most of my federal taxes refunded at tax time since my yearly income would be below the standard deduction. Changed my W-4 after that and saw more money in each paycheck!

Just wanted to update everyone - I actually tried https://taxr.ai after asking about it earlier in this thread. Super helpful for a first-time worker like me! I uploaded my last paystub and it immediately explained that I was having too much federal tax withheld since I'll make under $12,000 this year. The step-by-step guide for filling out a new W-4 was perfect, especially the explanation about claiming exempt status. My parents were impressed when I showed them how I figured all this out. Just got my first paycheck after the change and I'm keeping about $30 more per check now! Definitely check it out if you're confused about your withholdings.

Another thing that really helped me was using Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) when I had questions about my withholdings that weren't answered online. I spent HOURS trying to call the IRS directly last year when I was confused about my first job's taxes and literally could not get through. Claimyr got me connected to an actual IRS agent in like 15 minutes when I needed clarification about whether I should be exempt as a part-time high school worker. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c - basically they wait on hold for you and then call you when an actual human at the IRS picks up. Totally changed my perspective on dealing with tax questions!

I need to eat my words about Claimyr from my comment above. After being super skeptical, I was desperate to figure out why my employer was withholding city tax even though I don't live within city limits. Decided to try Claimyr as a last resort after spending THREE separate lunch breaks on hold with the IRS. It actually worked exactly as advertised. I put in my number, they called the IRS, and then called me back when an agent was on the line. Total game changer. The IRS agent explained that I needed to fill out a special local tax exemption form with my employer. Problem solved in one 10-minute call instead of wasting hours on hold. Consider me converted!

Something nobody mentioned yet - make sure to keep track of your first pay stub from the beginning of 2025 and your last one in December! You'll need the total income and withholding amounts when you file taxes in early 2026. I lost track of mine when I was 16 and it made filing my first return super complicated. Even if you don't owe taxes, you should still file to get back any federal withholding that was taken out. Most tax filing software is free for basic returns with just W-2 income.

Just a heads up that the withholding for social security seems high to me for your income level. Social security tax is 6.2% of your wages and Medicare is 1.45%. Based on the amounts you shared, it looks like your gross pay was around $840 for that check ($52.02 ÷ 0.062 = ~$840). If that's right, your social security withholding does match up! Just wanted to confirm the math looked right since that was one of your concerns.

One more thing to consider - if you're planning to work during the summer when school's out, your income might go up significantly and could push you over the threshold where you'd actually owe federal taxes. If you claim exempt now but then start working full-time hours in June/July, you might want to submit a new W-4 to start having federal taxes withheld again. I made this mistake my junior year - claimed exempt in January when I was only working weekends, but then worked 35+ hours a week all summer and ended up owing money at tax time. It's easy to update your W-4 whenever your situation changes, so don't feel like you're locked into whatever you choose now!

Hey Alexander! As someone who's been through this exact situation, I want to add that you should also check if your state has any special provisions for minors. Some states have lower tax thresholds or different rules for students under 18. Also, don't forget that even if you claim exempt from federal withholding, you might still want to have a small amount taken out if you're unsure about your total yearly income. You can specify a specific dollar amount on your W-4 instead of going completely exempt - this gives you a safety net while still keeping more money in your paychecks. One last tip: download a paycheck calculator app or use an online one to estimate your take-home pay after any W-4 changes. This helped me understand exactly how much more I'd see in each paycheck before making the change!

Welcome to the working world, Alexander! I remember being just as confused when I got my first job at 17. The tax withholdings you're seeing are completely normal, but there are definitely ways to optimize them for your situation. Since you're only 16 and working part-time, you'll likely qualify to claim exempt from federal income tax withholding if your total earnings for the year stay under the standard deduction (around $14,600 for 2025). This would stop the $32.18 federal withholding but you'd still pay Social Security and Medicare taxes - those are required for everyone. Here's what I'd recommend: Keep detailed records of your hours and pay, and use that to estimate your total yearly income. If it looks like you'll stay well under $14,000, go ahead and update your W-4 to claim exempt. You can always change it back if your hours increase significantly during summer break. Also, even though your parents will likely claim you as a dependent, you should still file your own tax return to get back any federal taxes that were withheld. Most online tax software is free for simple returns like yours. Good luck with your first job - you're asking all the right questions!

Great question, Alexander! I went through the same confusion when I started my first job at 16. Your withholdings look completely normal - those are the standard deductions everyone pays. Here's a quick breakdown: Federal, state, and city taxes go to different government levels, while Social Security (6.2%) and Medicare (1.45%) are mandatory for all workers regardless of age. The good news is that as a part-time student worker making around $5,000 annually, you'll likely get most of that federal tax back when you file your return next year. I'd definitely recommend talking to HR about updating your W-4 to claim "exempt" from federal withholding. Since your yearly income will probably be well under the standard deduction (~$14,600), you won't owe federal income tax anyway. This would put that $32.18 back in your pocket each paycheck while you'd still pay the required Social Security and Medicare taxes. And yes, you can absolutely file your own tax return even at 16! Your parents can still claim you as a dependent on their return, but you should file your own to get back any over-withheld federal taxes. Keep all your pay stubs - you'll need them to verify the W-2 form your employer sends you in January. You're being really smart by asking these questions early. Most people don't think about optimizing their withholdings until they've been working for years!