California SDI Calculator 2026

California SDI 2026 is a 1.3% employee-paid payroll deduction with no wage cap (since 2024 under SB 951), funding both short-term disability (DI) and Paid Family Leave (PFL) benefits. Maximum weekly benefit is $1,765/week (2026), with replacement rates of 70-90% of wages depending on income tier. Last updated September 2026.

How California SDI Works in 2026

Every California W-2 employee pays 1.3% of all wages — there is no taxable wage ceiling, meaning a worker earning $300,000 pays $3,900/year while a worker earning $50,000 pays $650/year. The deduction funds two benefits: State Disability Insurance (DI) for non-work-related illness or injury, and Paid Family Leave (PFL) for bonding with a new child or caring for a seriously ill family member. The maximum weekly benefit is capped at $1,765 in 2026 per the CA EDD.

Weekly Benefit Calculation (70-90% Replacement)

Benefits are calculated from your highest-earning quarter in the 5-18 months before your claim begins. Workers earning roughly 70% of the State Average Quarterly Wage (about $929/week or less in 2026) receive 90% wage replacement. Workers above that threshold receive 70%. Both tiers are capped at $1,765/week. Source: California EDD SDI and PFL benefit charts.

PFL: 8 Weeks Bonding or Family Care

Paid Family Leave provides up to 8 weeks of partial wage replacement per 12-month period. Common uses include bonding with a newborn or newly adopted child, or caring for a seriously ill family member (child, spouse, parent, parent-in-law, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, or designated person). PFL does not provide job protection — that comes from CFRA, FMLA, or PDL laws separately. At the max $1,765/week, an 8-week PFL claim pays up to $14,120.

Common California SDI Mistakes to Avoid

(1) Assuming there's still a wage cap — SB 951 removed it for 2024+. High earners pay 1.3% on full wages. (2) Confusing SDI with FMLA — SDI pays money, FMLA protects your job. You usually need both. (3) Missing the 7-day waiting period — DI claims have a 7-day unpaid waiting period; PFL does not. (4) Forgetting tax treatment — SDI benefits are not taxable income in California; PFL benefits ARE federally taxable.

California SDI Rate History: Why 2026 Is 1.3%, Not 1.1%

The California SDI employee contribution rate is 1.3% for 2026, up from 1.2% in 2025 and 1.1% in 2024. The rate has climbed every year since Senate Bill 951 removed the taxable wage ceiling on 1 January 2024 and raised wage replacement to 70–90%; the EDD sets the rate annually to fund those richer benefits. If a payroll calculator or an older article still shows 1.1%, it is quoting the 2024 figure and will understate your deduction by roughly 18%. On $120,000 of wages the difference is $1,560 at the 2026 rate versus $1,320 at the 2024 rate — a $240 annual gap. Current rates are published by the California EDD. Updated 2026-08-03.

How Your SDI Weekly Benefit Amount Is Actually Calculated

Your weekly benefit is not based on your current paycheck. The EDD uses a base period — the 5 to 18 months before your claim start date — and pays 70–90% of the wages in your highest-earning quarter of that period. Lower earners get the 90% tier; higher earners get 70%, and everyone is capped at the 2026 maximum of $1,765 per week (minimum $50). Two consequences catch people out: a recent raise will not lift your benefit because it falls outside the base period, and a spell of unemployment inside the base period can pull your benefit down even if you are earning well now. Disability claims also carry a 7-day unpaid waiting period; PFL claims do not. See the EDD benefit calculation rules. Updated 2026-08-03.

What You Pay and What You Get Back at Common California Salaries

Both sides of SDI are worth seeing together — the deduction is certain, the benefit only arrives if you claim. All figures use the 2026 rate of 1.3% and the $1,765 weekly cap, with the weekly benefit estimated from an even earnings history:

• $50,000 salary. Deduction $650 a year ($54 a month). Highest quarter ≈ $12,500, so a weekly benefit around $865 at the 90% tier. A full 8-week PFL claim pays roughly $6,920 — over ten times a single year's contribution.
• $90,000 salary. Deduction $1,170 a year. Highest quarter ≈ $22,500, giving about $1,212 a week at the 70% tier; 8 weeks of PFL is roughly $9,700.
• $150,000 salary. Deduction $1,950 a year. The 70% calculation would produce about $2,019 a week, so this earner is capped at $1,765 — an effective replacement rate closer to 61%. Eight weeks pays the maximum $14,120.
• $300,000 salary. Deduction $3,900 a year, because SB 951 removed the wage ceiling. The benefit is still capped at $1,765 a week, so this earner pays six times as much as the $50,000 worker for a benefit that is roughly twice as large.

That last line is the part high earners are usually unaware of: since 2024 the contribution scales without limit while the benefit does not, so the effective wage-replacement rate falls steadily as salary rises. Two practical points follow. First, if you are planning a leave, check whether your employer runs an EDD-approved Voluntary Plan — some pay above the state maximum. Second, remember the base period rule: your benefit is drawn from the highest-earning quarter in the 5 to 18 months before the claim, so the salary in the list above only produces those numbers if you have actually been earning it for a while. Rates and maximums are published by the California EDD. Updated 2026-09-10.