Pay Stub Sample & Example

A typical pay stub has an earnings block, a deductions block, and a summary that reconciles gross to net. Here is how to read each part.

What a Pay Stub looks like

Pay Stub — sample layoutannotated

Gross pay

Total earnings for the pay period before anything is deducted, including regular hours, overtime, and bonuses.

Net pay

Your actual take-home amount after all taxes and deductions — the number that hits your bank account.

Federal & state income tax

Income tax withheld based on your W-4 elections and state rules.

Social Security & Medicare (FICA)

6.2% for Social Security and 1.45% for Medicare, withheld from most paychecks.

Pre-tax deductions

401(k), health/dental/vision premiums, HSA/FSA contributions — these lower your taxable wages.

Pay period & pay date

The date range the check covers and the date you were paid. Do not confuse the two.

YTD (year-to-date) columns

Running totals of earnings, taxes, and deductions for the calendar year so far.

Illustrative layout for education. A real pay stub may vary by issuer.

The data you get when you extract it

Upload the same pay stub to PayStub Parser and instead of reading it by hand you get clean structured data like this:

{
  "employee_name": "Jane A. Doe",
  "employer_name": "Acme Corp",
  "pay_period": "2026-01-01 to 2026-01-15",
  "gross_pay": "4820.00",
  "net_pay": "4820.00",
  "ytd_gross": "4820.00",
  "_confidence": 0.98
}

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FAQ

What does a Pay Stub look like?

A typical pay stub has an earnings block, a deductions block, and a summary that reconciles gross to net. Here is how to read each part. The annotated example above shows each region and what it contains.

Can I use this Pay Stub sample as a template?

Use it to understand the layout and fields. When you need the actual data off a real pay stub, upload it and get structured JSON/CSV back — no manual typing.

How do I calculate take-home pay from a pay stub?

Take-home (net) pay = gross pay − all taxes − all deductions. Every line item between gross and net explains the difference.

Can a pay stub be used for income verification?

Yes. Lenders and landlords commonly request one to three recent pay stubs to confirm employment and income.

This page shows an illustrative Pay Stub example for educational purposes and is not tax, legal, or financial advice.