Pay statement (pay stub)
A pay statement, also called a pay stub, is the per-payroll record showing how one payment was calculated, from gross pay to net pay.
State law, not the federal Fair Labor Standards ActFLSA. The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) is the federal law setting minimum-wage, overtime, recordkeeping, and youth employment standards for covered employment.Click to open the term, decides whether you must provide one with each payment. State law also governs its content and delivery. Each line shows the current payment and a year-to-date total. Year-to-date (YTD) balances are those running totals, accumulated for each employee since the start of the payroll year. Every new payroll continues from them, and they drive wage base limits, benefit limits, and year-end tax forms.
What does a pay statement show?
A pay statement covers one payment, while Form W-2Form W-2. Form W-2 is the annual wage and tax statement you give employees and file with the Social Security Administration, reporting wages paid and taxes withheld.Click to open the term covers a calendar year and reports taxable wages by tax. The two rarely match line for line, because each tax builds its own wage base. Comparing the year-to-date column on the year’s last pay statement against Form W-2 is a normal reconciliation step. A difference usually traces to a pre-tax deduction or an imputed amount rather than to an error.
- =Gross payCash earnings plus any taxable noncash compensation
- −Employee taxes withheldEmployer taxes are paid on top of wages and never reduce net pay
- −DeductionsBenefit premiums, retirement contributions, garnishments, union dues, each shown as pre-tax or after-tax
- =Net payWith the direct-deposit allocation naming the account or accounts that received it
- U.S. Department of Labor, elaws Fair Labor Standards Act Advisor: Are pay stubs required?
- General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 (2026)
General information, not legal or tax advice. Apply current federal and state rules with qualified guidance.