How to read W-2
Form W-2 is relatively straightforward to read. The standard form contains 20 boxes of wage and tax withholding information as well as information about the payor (your employer) and the payee (you).
Boxes A-F
These boxes on the left of the form contain identifying information about your employer and yourself. That includes your Social Security number (box A), your employer’s EIN (box B), and the names and addresses of both.
Box 1
This contains your total income subject to income tax. This number includes wages minus any tax-deferred payroll deductions like 401(k) or HSA contributions.
Box 2
This contains the amount of income tax withheld from your paychecks throughout the year and paid directly to the IRS from your employer. You can adjust this number for next year by submitting a new W-4 to your employer.
Boxes 3 and 5
This contains your total income subject to Social Security (box 3) and Medicare (box 5) taxes. These numbers may be different from box 1 if you contributed to a workplace retirement account or received other benefits not subject to Social Security and Medicare tax, like employer-subsidized health insurance. Social Security earnings are also capped every year while Medicare is uncapped, so box 5 may be higher than box 3.
Boxes 4 and 6
This is the amount paid to the federal government in Social Security (box 4) and Medicare (box 6) taxes. These numbers show your half of Social Security and Medicare taxes paid. Your employer pays the other half.
Box 7 and 8
If part of your compensation comes from tips, you’ll see how much you received in tips directly (box 7) and how much your employer allocated to you (box 8).
Box 9
No longer in use.
Box 10
This is how much you received in dependent care benefits such as childcare from your employer.
