How to read your W-2, box by box

First: where is your W-2?

If you worked as an employee, your employer gives it to you on paper, by mail or in their payroll portal or app — usually under "Tax documents". If you had more than one job during the year, you'll get one W-2 from each employer.

Box 1: wages, tips, other compensation

This is the part of your pay that's subject to federal income tax. It can be lower than your total pay if you contributed to a retirement plan such as a 401(k) or paid for certain benefits, like health insurance, before taxes.

If you have several W-2s, add up box 1 from all of them to get your total income for the year.

1 Wages, tips, other compensation

2 Federal income tax withheld

3 Social security wages

Box 2: federal income tax withheld

This is what your employer already paid the IRS for you during the year, taken out of each paycheck. When you file, it's compared with the tax you actually owe: if too much was withheld, the difference is your refund; if too little, you owe the difference.

1 Wages, tips, other compensation

2 Federal income tax withheld

3 Social security wages

Boxes 3 to 6: Social Security and Medicare

These show your wages subject to Social Security and Medicare (boxes 3 and 5) and what was taken out for those programs (boxes 4 and 6). These taxes aren't part of your income tax refund, so you don't need them for an estimate. The exception: if you had two or more employers and together they withheld Social Security on more than $176,100 of wages (the 2025 limit), the excess comes back to you as a credit.

Box 12: codes

It holds letters and amounts. For example, code D shows what you put into a 401(k). You don't need to do anything with these codes for an estimate — they're already reflected in box 1.

Boxes 15 to 17: your state

Box 15 shows the state, box 16 your wages subject to state tax and box 17 the state income tax withheld. If you worked in more than one state, you'll see one line for each.

15 State

16 State wages, tips, etc.

17 State income tax

Common mistakes

• Using the gross salary in your contract instead of box 1.
• Forgetting to add a second W-2 from a job you held for only a few months.
• Mixing up box 4 (Social Security) with box 2 (federal income tax).
• If something on your W-2 is wrong, ask your employer for a corrected W-2 (W-2c).