Massachusetts · 2026 planning data

Massachusetts SUTA rate and employer cost for 2026

Massachusetts's sourced 2026 unemployment-insurance model uses a taxable wage base of $15,000 per employee and a 2.42% standard new-employer rate. The assigned rate can differ after an acquisition, experience rating, industry classification, or state assessment.

Calculate a Massachusetts estimate

How the Massachusetts SUTA line is estimated

State unemployment tax applies only up to the annual UI wage base for each employee. For an employee earning at least $15,000, the planning calculation is:

The standard sourced new-employer rate in the EmployerCost model is 2.42%. A transferred experience account, special industry rule, assessment, or employer notice can produce a different total.

What this Massachusetts estimate does not include

Massachusetts employers owe one mandatory cost that this calculator does not add to the total, because it depends on facts the calculator never asks for — how many people the employer has, which city the work happens in, how much payroll it runs in a quarter. Adding it to every employer would overcharge the ones the rule does not reach, so it is named here instead of buried in a number.

• Paid Family and Medical Leave, employer share of the medical leave contribution — about $252 a year for a $60,000 employee

  0.42% of eligible wages, 60% of the 0.60% medical leave contribution, up to the Social Security wage base

  Applies when: Employers with 25 or more covered individuals. Below that the employer owes no share.

  Source: Massachusetts Department of Family and Medical Leave

What changes the real employer cost

• Massachusetts publishes two ranges and they are both correct. The federal DOL table shows the base schedule, 0.94% to 14.37%. The range recorded here, 1.118% to 17.086%, is the effective rate including the COVID-19 recovery assessment an employer actually pays.
• Massachusetts can include additional employer assessments and paid leave considerations depending on employer profile.
• The calculator uses a baseline planning model and does not replace payroll setup advice.
• Employer Social Security, Medicare, and FUTA remain separate federal cost lines.
• Workers compensation in Massachusetts runs 89% of the national median — 11% below it, 31st of 51 jurisdictions at $0.97 per $100 of payroll (Oregon DCBS 2024 premium rate ranking). That is a relativity between states, not your rate: class code, carrier, payroll exposure and experience modifier decide what you actually pay.
• Health benefits, retirement contributions, payroll software, and HR administration depend on the employer's choices.

Use the calculator's custom SUTA field whenever an official notice supplies a different rate. Read the SUTA rate guide and employer payroll tax guide before relying on a planning result.

Massachusetts employer cost questions

What is the Massachusetts SUTA wage base for 2026?

The sourced taxable wage base used by EmployerCost is $15,000 per employee. Wages above that cap are not included in this SUTA line, but can still affect Social Security, Medicare, benefits, workers compensation, and other costs.

What rate should a new Massachusetts employer use?

The standard sourced new-employer rate in the EmployerCost model is 2.42%. A transferred experience account, special industry rule, assessment, or employer notice can produce a different total.

Is SUTA the full cost of a Massachusetts employee?

No. Start with salary, then add employer FICA, FUTA, SUTA, workers compensation, benefits, and payroll administration. The Massachusetts calculator keeps uncertain items as ranges.

Official sources

• Massachusetts unemployment insurance employer rates
• U.S. Department of Labor — Significant Provisions of State UI Laws, effective January 2026

Verified against official sources July 30, 2026.

General planning information only. Not payroll, tax, legal, insurance, or HR compliance advice.