Pennsylvania · 2026 planning data

Pennsylvania SUTA rate and employer cost for 2026

Pennsylvania's sourced 2026 unemployment-insurance model uses a taxable wage base of $10,000 per employee and a 3.822% standard new-employer rate. The assigned rate can differ after an acquisition, experience rating, industry classification, or state assessment.

Calculate a Pennsylvania estimate

How the Pennsylvania 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 $10,000, the planning calculation is:

The standard sourced new-employer rate in the EmployerCost model is 3.822%. A transferred experience account, special industry rule, assessment, or employer notice can produce a different total.

What this Pennsylvania estimate does not include

Pennsylvania employers owe one mandatory cost that this calculator does not add to the total, one of which applies only inside a single locality, 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.

• City of Pittsburgh Payroll Expense Tax City of Pittsburgh only — about $330 a year for a $60,000 employee

  0.55% of payroll attributable to work performed in the city, uncapped

  Applies when: Only employees working within the City of Pittsburgh. It is a city tax, not a Pennsylvania one, and most Pennsylvania employers owe nothing.

  Source: City of Pittsburgh Payroll Tax Regulations, Chapter 258

What changes the real employer cost

• Pennsylvania's 2026 non-construction new-employer total is 3.8220% on the first $10,000; new construction uses 10.5924%.
• The ordinary computed total range is 1.4190% to 10.3734%, including the 9.2% surcharge adjustment and 0.60% additional contribution.
• Employer Social Security, Medicare, and FUTA remain separate federal cost lines.
• Workers compensation in Pennsylvania runs 105% of the national median — 5% above it, 21st of 51 jurisdictions at $1.14 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.

Pennsylvania employer cost questions

What is the Pennsylvania SUTA wage base for 2026?

The sourced taxable wage base used by EmployerCost is $10,000 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 Pennsylvania employer use?

The standard sourced new-employer rate in the EmployerCost model is 3.822%. A transferred experience account, special industry rule, assessment, or employer notice can produce a different total.

Is SUTA the full cost of a Pennsylvania employee?

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

Official sources

• Pennsylvania DLI 2026 contribution-rate computation
• 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.