California vs Oregon taxes

Where the difference comes from

On $75,000 a single filer keeps $1,830 more a year in California. The two states’ income taxes and payroll levies pull in opposite directions, and the income tax wins.

Oregon’s income tax is the heavier one. Its 8.75% band starts at $11,400 of taxable income, and its standard deduction is only $2,910. Oregon softens that by letting you subtract the federal income tax you paid, up to $8,750, and still charges $5,055 on $75,000. California charges $2,775: its low bands are narrow, but its 9.3% rate does not begin until $72,724 of taxable income.

California’s payroll levy is the heavier one. SDI takes 1.3% of every dollar, $975 on $75,000. Oregon’s two levies, Paid Leave Oregon and the statewide transit tax, come to $525.

Where Oregon pulls ahead

The two differences grow at different speeds. Oregon’s extra income tax is $3,100 on $150,000 and $3,700 on $250,000, and then stops growing: above that California’s rates climb through 10.3%, 11.3% and 12.3%, while Oregon’s stop at 9.9%. California’s extra payroll levy keeps growing, because Paid Leave Oregon stops at $184,500 of wages and SDI has no cap. It is $900 on $150,000, $1,893 on $250,000 and $4,893 on $500,000.

For a single filer the lines cross at about $443,000. Below it California keeps more; above it Oregon does, by $1,406 on $500,000. A married couple filing jointly, whose brackets are wider in both states, keeps more in California up to about $816,000.

Portland changes the top of the range

Oregon has no local income tax outside the Portland area. Inside it there are two, and neither is in the Oregon column: Metro’s Supportive Housing Services tax and Multnomah County’s Preschool for All tax. Both start only at high incomes, which is exactly where this comparison is closest. At the salary where Oregon would otherwise start to keep more, a Multnomah County resident pays both, and together they come to far more than Oregon’s lead. The Oregon calculator page sets out their rates and thresholds, including the Preschool for All increase from January 1, 2027. No California city or county levies an income tax.

Working across the state line

Income tax follows the work. The Oregon Department of Revenue says that if you don’t live in Oregon, you pay tax only on the wages for work you do inside Oregon. The Franchise Tax Board taxes nonresidents on income from services performed in California. The statewide transit tax follows the work too, and applies to nonresidents for work done in Oregon.

What the take-home figure does not count

Oregon is one of five states with no general sales tax, and California is not one of them. That difference is real, and it is not in these figures, which cover only what is taken from wages. Whether it outweighs the income tax gap depends on how much of your income you spend, and on housing costs that differ widely within both states.

Questions people ask

Do you take home more in California or Oregon on $75,000?

California, by $1,830 a year, or $153 a month, for a single filer in 2026. That counts federal tax, Social Security, Medicare, state income tax and every state payroll deduction.

Is the difference the same at every salary?

No, but the same side stays ahead. The gap is $1,262 a year at $30,000 and $1,807 at $250,000, for a single filer.

How can Oregon's income tax be higher than California's?

Because of where the rates start. Oregon charges 8.75% from a taxable income below what a full-time minimum-wage job pays, and its standard deduction is one of the smallest in the country. California's bottom five bands run from 1% to 8%, and its 9.3% rate begins several times further up the income scale. California's 13.3% top rate applies only above a million dollars of taxable income.

What comes out of an Oregon paycheck besides income tax?

Two payroll levies. Paid Leave Oregon takes 0.6% of wages up to an annual wage cap, and the statewide transit tax takes 0.1% of all wages with no cap. The transit tax also applies to nonresidents for work they do in Oregon. California's only state payroll levy is SDI, at 1.3% of every dollar.

Which state taxes me if I live in one and work in the other?

The state where you do the work taxes those wages. Oregon taxes a nonresident on wages for work done inside Oregon, and California taxes a nonresident on income from services performed in California. Your home state still taxes you as a resident, and California may allow an other state tax credit where both states have taxed the same income.

What this comparison covers

Income tax and payroll deductions on wages: federal income tax, Social Security, Medicare, state income tax, every state payroll deduction. It does not compare sales tax, property tax, housing or the cost of living, which can outweigh the difference in take-home pay. Figures assume the standard deduction, no dependents and no pre-tax retirement contributions. See how we calculate.