Massachusetts charges 5% flat + 4% surtax >$1M state income tax. Use the stock option tax calculator pre-loaded with Massachusetts rates.
Open Stock Option Tax Calculator →Stock option exercises in Massachusetts are subject to a flat 5% state income tax on top of federal tax. For NSOs, the spread at exercise is ordinary income subject to both federal and Massachusetts state tax plus FICA. For ISOs, while there is no regular tax at exercise, the spread counts for AMT purposes and for Massachusetts state tax calculations. This calculator helps you plan the optimal time and amount to exercise given Massachusetts's tax rates.
Massachusetts levies a flat 5% state income tax on all taxable income regardless of how much you earn. This makes tax planning straightforward: for every additional dollar you earn, 5 cents goes to Massachusetts. Massachusetts does not impose local income taxes, so the 5% flat rate is the only state-level income tax you owe.
The table below shows what you actually keep at five salary levels in Massachusetts, accounting for federal tax, FICA, and Massachusetts's flat 5% state tax.
See how Massachusetts compares to other Northeast states. Each link takes you to the stock option tax calculator landing page for that state.
For a comprehensive breakdown of Massachusetts’s tax structure, salary comparisons, cost-of-living analysis, and more, visit the full Massachusetts take-home pay page.