A pay stub is a short report that shows how much you earned during a pay period, what was taken out, and what actually landed in your account. Reading it well comes down to four areas: your earnings, your deductions, your net pay, and the year-to-date totals. Once you know where each one sits, a few minutes each payday is enough to catch errors early.
The header: who, when, and how often
The top of most stubs lists your name, your employer, an employee ID, and the dates of the pay period. Check the period start and end dates first, because every number below them refers only to that window. The pay date, which is when the money is released, may be a few days after the period ends.
You may also see your filing details or withholding settings summarized here. If those look wrong, the tax lines further down will usually be off too, so this small block is worth a glance.
Earnings: what you made before anything was removed
The earnings section breaks your gross pay into parts. Salaried workers often see one line for regular salary. Hourly workers usually see hours multiplied by a rate, with separate lines for overtime, holiday pay, bonuses, commissions, or paid leave. Some stubs also list taxable benefits, such as certain employer-paid perks, that add to your taxable income even though you never receive them as cash.
Compare the hours shown with your own records. Missed overtime or an incorrect rate is one of the most common payroll errors, and it is far easier to fix in the same month than half a year later.
Deductions: taxes, benefits, and other withholdings
Deductions usually fall into three groups:
- Taxes. Income tax withheld for national, regional, or local governments, plus any mandatory social insurance contributions. The names and rates depend entirely on where you live and work.
- Pre-tax deductions. Amounts taken out before income tax is calculated in many systems, such as certain retirement plan contributions or health premiums. They reduce your taxable pay.
- Post-tax deductions. Items taken out after tax, such as some insurance policies, union dues, charitable payroll giving, or court-ordered payments.
Rules about which deductions count as pre-tax differ by country and change over time, so treat the labels on your stub as the employer’s description and check official guidance if something seems unclear.
A worked example
The figures below are a simple illustration with made-up, round numbers. They do not reflect any real tax rate.
| Line | This period | Year to date |
|---|---|---|
| Regular pay (80 hours at 25) | 2,000 | 12,000 |
| Overtime (4 hours at 37.50) | 150 | 450 |
| Gross pay | 2,150 | 12,450 |
| Retirement contribution (pre-tax) | -100 | -600 |
| Income tax withheld | -205 | -1,190 |
| Social insurance | -160 | -930 |
| Health premium | -85 | -510 |
| Net pay | 1,600 | 9,220 |
For the period, total deductions are 100 + 205 + 160 + 85 = 550, and 2,150 minus 550 leaves 1,600. For the year so far, deductions add up to 3,230, and 12,450 minus 3,230 equals 9,220. Running this kind of quick subtraction on your own stub confirms that nothing is missing.
Net pay and year-to-date columns
Net pay is the amount deposited or paid to you. It should match your bank deposit exactly. The year-to-date column adds up every pay period since the start of the tax year. It is useful for tracking how much tax has been withheld so far, how close you are to any contribution targets you set, and whether your total earnings match what you expect before the year-end tax forms arrive.
Common mistakes
- Looking only at net pay and never checking hours or rates.
- Ignoring a new deduction that appeared without explanation.
- Assuming year-to-date totals are correct after a job change or a payroll system switch.
- Throwing away stubs before the annual tax summary has been checked against them.
A pay stub is less intimidating once you read it top to bottom in the same order every time: dates, earnings, deductions, net pay, then year-to-date totals. If a line does not make sense, your payroll or HR team can explain it, and keeping a few months of stubs on file gives you an easy record to compare against later.