Form W-2 Explained, Box by Box

When should your W-2 arrive?

Your employer must give you your W-2 by January 31; if that falls on a weekend, by the next business day (for 2026 W-2s, February 1, 2027). You get one from each employer you worked for during the year, even if you only worked there briefly.

Before you use it, check that your name and Social Security number match your card exactly: a wrong number can get your return rejected by the IRS.

Boxes a through f: who is who

• Box a: your Social Security number. The IRS tells employers not to accept an ITIN in place of a Social Security number for employment.
• Box b: the employer identification number (EIN).
• Box c: the employer's name and address.
• Box d: an optional control number some employers use to identify each W-2.
• Boxes e and f: your name, as it appears on your Social Security card, and your address.

Boxes 1 and 2: your wages and your withholding

Box 1 (wages, tips, other compensation): the total subject to income tax. It's the number that goes on line 1a of Form 1040. It's often lower than what you earned because it leaves out what you put into a 401(k) or 403(b) before tax, and certain pre-tax health insurance payments.

Box 2 (income tax withheld): what your employer withheld for the IRS during the year. On your return it counts as a payment you already made: if it's more than you owe, the difference is your refund. If it's zero, review your Form W-4 with your employer.

Boxes 3 to 6: Social Security and Medicare

• Box 3 (Social Security wages): the wages subject to Social Security tax. It includes what you put into your 401(k), so it can be higher than box 1. It has a cap: $176,100 for 2025 and, according to the IRS instructions, $184,500 for 2026.
• Box 4 (Social Security tax withheld): 6.2% of box 3.
• Box 5 (Medicare wages and tips): like box 3, but with no cap.
• Box 6 (Medicare tax withheld): 1.45% of box 5, plus the 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax your employer withholds on what it pays you over $200,000.
• If you had two or more employers and together they withheld Social Security on more than the year's cap, the excess comes back to you as a credit on your return.

Boxes 7 to 11

• Box 7 (Social Security tips): the tips you reported to your employer. They're already included in box 1.
• Box 8 (allocated tips): tips a large restaurant or bar allocates to you. They're not in box 1: you have to add them on your return, generally with Form 4137, unless you have records showing you received less.
• Box 9: not used; it should be empty.
• Box 10 (dependent care benefits): what your employer paid or reimbursed for child care. It goes to Form 2441, which works out how much is tax-free.
• Box 11 (nonqualified plans): payments from a nonqualified deferred compensation plan. They're already in box 1; this box is for information.

Box 12: the codes

Box 12 has up to four lines (12a to 12d), each with a letter code and an amount. The most common codes:

• D, E, G and S: what you put into a 401(k), 403(b), 457(b) or SIMPLE plan before tax. It's not in box 1.
• AA, BB and EE: Roth contributions to a 401(k), 403(b) or governmental 457(b). They are in box 1, because Roth contributions come from money that was already taxed.
• DD: the cost of the health coverage your employer provides. It's for information only: according to the IRS, it's not taxable.
• W: employer contributions (including the ones you chose through payroll) to a health savings account (HSA). They're reported on Form 8889.
• C: the cost of group-term life insurance above the tax-free limit; it's already in box 1.
• J (nontaxable sick pay), Q (nontaxable combat pay), T (adoption benefits, which go to Form 8839) and V (income from exercising nonstatutory stock options, already in box 1).
• A and B: Social Security and Medicare tax on tips that your employer couldn't collect; you pay it with your return.
• New on the 2026 W-2: TP (total cash tips reported to the employer), TT (total qualified overtime compensation) and TA (employer contributions to a Trump account).

Tips and overtime: the new deductions

Starting in 2025, the law lets you deduct qualified tips (up to $25,000 a year) and the part of overtime pay above your regular rate (up to $12,500, or $25,000 if filing jointly). Both phase out when modified adjusted gross income is over $150,000 ($300,000 jointly), require a valid Social Security number and, if you're married, a joint return. You can take them whether or not you itemize.

For 2025, employers weren't required to show qualified overtime separately on the W-2; if your employer didn't give you a breakdown, the Schedule 1-A instructions explain how to figure it. On the 2026 W-2, box 12 code TP shows your tips and code TT your overtime.

Boxes 13 and 14

• Box 13, "Statutory employee": certain workers, such as some salespeople or drivers, who have Social Security and Medicare withheld but no income tax. Their wages go on Schedule C, where they can subtract expenses, without paying self-employment tax.
• Box 13, "Retirement plan": you took part in an employer retirement plan during the year. It can limit the deduction for contributions to a traditional IRA.
• Box 13, "Third-party sick pay": checked by whoever paid you sick pay on your employer's behalf, such as an insurance company.
• Box 14 (other): free-form information from your employer, such as union dues or payroll deductions, each with a label. On the 2026 W-2 it's split into 14a (other) and 14b, which holds the Treasury Tipped Occupation Code when tips are reported with code TP.

Boxes 15 to 20: taxes that aren't the IRS's

Boxes 15 to 20 are for income tax of the place where you worked or lived, and of your city or locality if it has one: box 15 shows the two-letter abbreviation and the employer's ID number there; box 16, the wages subject to that tax; box 17, the tax withheld; box 18, local wages; box 19, local tax withheld; and box 20, the locality's name. A W-2 has room for two places; if there are more, your employer gives you another W-2.

These boxes aren't used on Form 1040. For your return with the IRS, boxes 1 and 2 are what count.

If your W-2 is missing or wrong

• Ask your employer first, and make sure it has your correct address.
• If your W-2 has a mistake, your employer corrects it with Form W-2c.
• If you still don't have it by the end of February, the IRS says you can call 800-829-1040 with your name, address, Social Security number, and the employer's name and address.
• If it doesn't arrive in time to file, you can use Form 4852 (substitute for Form W-2) with an estimate of your wages and withholding, for example from your last pay stub.
• If the W-2, or a corrected one, arrives later with amounts that differ from the ones you used, you must amend with Form 1040-X. See "How to amend a tax return (Form 1040-X)".

W-2 or 1099: what's the difference?

A W-2 is for employees: the employer withholds tax and pays its share of Social Security and Medicare. A 1099-NEC or 1099-K is for people who work for themselves: nobody withholds anything, and you pay self-employment tax. If you had both in the same year, everything goes on one return: we explain it in "W-2 and 1099 in the same year: how to file both on one return".

Your W-2 on Vordana Tax

You can type in your W-2 or upload a photo or PDF: the software reads the boxes and fills in the form for you to review before you save it. The box 12 list shows the codes for your return's year (TP, TT and TA only from 2026), and the same step asks about qualified tips and overtime and about boxes 13 to 20.

If you're using Form 4852 because your W-2 never came, mark it on the W-2 step and explain how you figured the amounts. The whole interview is in English, Spanish or Arabic, and your return gets a free review before you file.

Questions

Sources

• IRS: General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3
• IRS: Topic no. 154, Form W-2 and Form 1099-R (what to do if incorrect or not received)
• IRS: What the "No Tax on Tips" deduction means for you
• IRS: What to know about the No Tax on Overtime deduction

This guide is general information. Your situation may differ; the IRS's instructions are the final word.