Alaska pay stubs: no income tax, but an employee UI deduction
Alaska has no state income tax, but employees pay a small unemployment insurance contribution. Here is what an Alaska pay stub shows, plus federal withholding.
Last reviewed
Rates on this page are for the 2026 tax year and are reviewed every January.
State income tax
Alaska does not tax individual income, so there is no state withholding certificate to collect and no state income tax line on the stub. That makes the state portion of an Alaska paycheck simpler than in most places, but not empty.
Other state payroll deductions
The line that surprises people is unemployment insurance. In most states only the employer pays into the unemployment fund. Alaska is different: employees contribute too, through payroll withholding. For 2026 the employee rate is 0.5% of wages, and it applies only up to the state's taxable wage base for the year, so the deduction stops once an employee's year-to-date wages reach that limit. The employer withholds the employee share and sends it in along with its own contribution on the quarterly report.
Because the deduction stops partway through the year for higher earners, year-to-date wage totals matter. An accurate running total is the only way to know when to stop withholding.
Alaska does not have a state disability insurance program or a state paid family leave payroll deduction.
Local taxes
No Alaska city or borough taxes wages. Some local governments have sales or property taxes, but none of those appear on a pay stub.
Federal withholding still applies
Whatever Alaska requires, the federal deductions are the same as in every other state. Federal income tax is figured from the employee's Form W-4. Social Security takes 6.2% of wages until the employee reaches the annual Social Security wage base. Medicare takes 1.45% of every dollar, and once an employee's wages for the year pass $200,000, the employer also withholds the 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax.
Creating an Alaska pay stub with PayStubNest
Start a new pay stub, pick Alaska, and enter either hours and a rate or a salary. The exact amounts on the stub depend on pay, pay frequency, W-4 choices, deductions and year-to-date totals. PayStubNest calculates all of it automatically: it works out the federal and state withholding, then keeps the year-to-date columns running across pay periods so each stub picks up where the last one left off. Previewing is free; you pay only for downloads.
Record-keeping tip
Keep each employee's year-to-date wages visible on every stub so you can see exactly when the unemployment contribution should stop. The Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development publishes the current rate and wage base each year. For general how-tos, see our guides.