Follow one stock-delivered RSU vest from compensation and basis through withholding, share funding and a possible later sale. Keep employer payroll estimates separate from annual household reconciliation, and compare sale outcomes under explicit assumptions rather than treating withholding as final tax or a price curve as a forecast.
Vest settlement and share ledger
This calculator assumes stock-settled RSUs are delivered when they vest, creating wage income equal to the delivered shares’ FMV. Deferred settlement, cash-settled awards, non-US arrangements and section 83(i) elections need separate review; an RSU promise is not automatically the same as restricted stock eligible for a section 83(b) election.
All vested shares delivered in this model create wage income and FMV basis before any shares are withheld or sold to fund tax. Later price changes do not reverse that wage income. Allocate the FMV basis to the shares actually sold, rather than taxing the same vest compensation again as sale gain.
All vested shares create wage income and FMV basis. Funding taxes with shares or cash does not reduce that income. Blank actual shares use the selected rounding assumption; any uncovered amount remains a cash requirement.
Zero-price or insufficient shares can leave cash funding required; share funding never erases wage income.
Share funding, cash paid and residual cash are reconciled once. The economic comparison uses the entered marginal federal proxy and state estimate; payroll uses annual incremental Additional Medicare only when confirmed. Withholding funds that budget and is not charged again.
Withheld versus modeled tax by jurisdiction
Federal differences use federal income tax only. State differences compare state withholding with the state estimate. Payroll differences compare actual employee withholding with the employer payroll estimate; annual household reconciliation is separate. Blank actual amounts are unknown, not zero.
The federal vest gap is a marginal-rate estimate, not a full-year estimated-payment requirement. Review annual income, credits, withholding and installment dates separately; no payment is made here.
A federal payment does not satisfy a state shortfall. State residence, sourcing and actual return liability are outside this percentage estimate.
Payroll withholding is not a second federal income-tax bill. Employer withholding and annual household Additional Medicare can differ; review the separate annual panel.
Optional actual withholding and sale-year NIIT details stay transient by default. Include them only for an explicit Save or reviewed full link; Copy and CSV include the current receipt’s assumptions.
The flat federal estimate uses 22% up to the remaining $1 million calendar-year supplemental wage threshold and 37% on the rest of this vest. Enter prior supplemental wages from this employer and businesses under common control. Payroll may use the aggregate method where applicable or apply 37% to the whole payment that crosses the threshold. Select the entered-rate method to model actual federal withholding.
Sale, basis and risk assumptions
Sale gain is proceeds minus allocated FMV basis and sale fees. Complete dates determine whether the holding period is more than one year. Without complete dates, the selected holding period is an assumption. Unmodeled state sale tax and investment surtax are excluded unless entered.
Subtract allocated FMV basis and sale fees from sale proceeds to find gain or loss. Complete dates use more than one year for long-term treatment; exactly one year remains short-term. A marginal-bracket rate proxy does not establish statutory capital-gain stacking or a future rate, and a modeled loss benefit is not proof of deductibility.
The bracket proxy is an approximation: it does not establish taxable income, capital-gain stacking or a future tax rate. Use an independently reviewed rate when needed; no household income is invented from a bracket.
The default assumes no tax benefit from capital losses. A reviewed usable-loss cap and assumed benefit rate are conditional inputs, not proof of deductibility. Other gains, annual netting, limits, carryforwards and wash-sale rules require separate review.
Holding keeps single-stock price and employer concentration risk. A price drop can leave a capital loss while vest wage income and its tax remain. This curve is conditional, not a forecast or investment recommendation.
Annual Additional Medicare reconciliation
Use wages from this employer for Social Security withholding. Other employers’ wages do not automatically stop it; an excess Social Security return credit is separate and is not included here. Blank Medicare wages use the entered Social Security wages.
Employer withholding starts above $200,000 regardless of filing status. Annual liability uses the household threshold and combined covered wages and net self-employment earnings. Enter a complete annual projection; ordinary Medicare, income tax, credits and excess Social Security are separate.
A negative balance is modeled excess withholding to reconcile on the return, not another tax bill. This is not a complete tax return or payment instruction.
For a 2026 joint-return scenario with USD 210,000 of annual Medicare wages from one employer, no spouse wages and no self-employment earnings, employer Additional Medicare withholding is USD 90 above its USD 200,000 threshold. Household Additional Medicare liability is USD 0 below the USD 250,000 joint threshold; the modeled reconciliation is USD -90, not another tax bill.
This vest payroll model uses 2026 rules. Future sale tax uses the entered or proxy assumptions, not a promised future-law result.
Save and share
Saving is explicit and local. Default links omit financial inputs. Full links reveal included values; approved advertising scripts on this page can access inputs.
Optional actual withholding and sale-year NIIT details stay transient by default. Include them only for an explicit Save or reviewed full link; Copy and CSV include the current receipt’s assumptions.
Review the complete scenario before applying it. Your current draft and saved bytes remain unchanged until you choose an action.
This older numeric scenario needs review. Original bytes are retained; numbers are interpreted from its known schema, never guessed from language or currency.
Every included financial value is in this link and visible to its recipient. Review the complete preview before copying it.
Vest withholding, marginal liability proxies, household Medicare reconciliation and sale tax assumptions are separate. No tax filing, brokerage order or payment is performed.
The federal vest gap is a marginal-rate estimate, not a full-year estimated-payment requirement. Review annual income, credits, withholding and installment dates separately; no payment is made here.
Follow one stock-delivered RSU vest from compensation and basis through withholding, share funding and a possible later sale. Keep employer payroll estimates separate from annual household reconciliation, and compare sale outcomes under explicit assumptions rather than treating withholding as final tax or a price curve as a forecast.