Pay Stub Templates & Examples

What Is a Pay Stub Template?

A pay stub template is a preformatted layout for an employee wage statement: it arranges employer and employee details, the pay period, earnings, taxes, deductions, and net pay into a standard document so you only enter the figures. ExpertPaystubs offers 33 pay stub templates — 6 generic layout styles plus 27 employer-style designs — and every one runs on the same 2026 tax engine, which itemizes federal income tax withholding, Social Security (6.2% of wages up to the $184,500 wage base), Medicare (1.45%), and state taxes for all 50 US states. Pick a template, customize it in the online pay stub generator, and preview the finished document free in your browser; you pay ($8.99) only to download the unwatermarked PDF.

Pay Stub Template Styles and Categories

Six layout styles: Corporate Blue classic vertical (ADP style), Modern Grid boxed sections (Intuit style), Executive Horizontal condensed, Professional Multi-Color, Business Check on top, and Business Check on bottom — the two check layouts pair the earnings statement with a printable pay check. Employer-style templates are grouped by industry: Retail (Walmart, Target, Costco, Kroger, Publix, Home Depot, Lowe's, Best Buy, Walgreens, Dollar General), Fast Food (McDonald's, Starbucks, Burger King, Subway, Wendy's, Domino's, Pizza Hut), Logistics and gig work (Amazon, FedEx, UPS, USPS, Uber, Lyft, DoorDash, Instacart), Healthcare (CVS Health), and Hospitality (Marriott). Branded layouts are simulations for personal record-keeping and are not issued by or affiliated with those companies.

Free Pay Stub Templates for Word, Excel, and PDF

Many people search for a blank pay stub template for Word or Excel — a .docx or .xlsx file to fill in by hand. ExpertPaystubs does not offer downloadable Word or Excel files, and that is deliberate: a blank document makes you calculate federal income tax withholding, Social Security, Medicare, and state tax yourself, and one typo or outdated rate makes the whole stub wrong. Every template on this page is instead a free pay stub template with calculator built in — you enter employer, employee, and pay details, the 2026 tax engine computes each deduction line, net pay, and year-to-date totals automatically, and the result renders as a print-ready PDF (the format reviewers and record-keepers actually use). The preview is free with no signup; the unwatermarked PDF download is $8.99. Need figures in a spreadsheet? Copy them from your finished preview — the calculated PDF stays the version that always adds up.

What a Pay Stub Template Must Include

A complete pay stub template contains: employer name and address; employee name and address; pay period start and end dates plus the pay date; gross pay (hourly rate times hours worked, or salary); itemized taxes — federal income tax withholding, Social Security at 6.2% (2026 wage base: $184,500), Medicare at 1.45% (plus the 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax above $200,000), and state income tax where applicable; other deductions such as health insurance or 401(k); net pay; and year-to-date (YTD) totals for earnings, taxes, and deductions. What employers are required to show varies by state — see pay stub requirements by state. Rounded-off tax figures, missing YTD columns, and inconsistent dates are the classic red flags explained in how to spot a fake pay stub.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a pay stub template?

A pay stub template is a preformatted layout for an employee wage statement. It fixes the structure — employer and employee details, pay period dates, gross pay, itemized taxes and deductions, net pay, and year-to-date totals — so you only enter the figures. The tax math (federal income tax withholding, Social Security, Medicare, and state tax) is calculated automatically with 2026 rates.

Are these pay stub templates free?

Every template is free to preview and customize: you can fill in all details and see the complete pay stub in your browser with no signup. You pay only when you download the unwatermarked PDF — $8.99 for a single pay stub.

Can I edit a pay stub template?

Yes. Every field is editable — company name and address, employee details, pay rate, hours, pay period dates, and deductions — and the six generic layouts also support a custom logo and colors. Taxes recalculate automatically as you type, using 2026 federal and state rates for all 50 US states.

What must a pay stub template include?

A complete pay stub template includes: employer and employee names and addresses, pay period start and end dates plus the pay date, gross pay, itemized taxes — federal income tax withholding, Social Security at 6.2% (up to the $184,500 wage base for 2026), Medicare at 1.45%, and state income tax where applicable — other deductions such as health insurance or 401(k), net pay, and year-to-date (YTD) totals.

Is it legal to use a pay stub template?

Yes. Creating your own pay stub with a template is legal as long as every figure on it is truthful and matches actual payroll records — pay rate, hours, taxes, and dates. Using a template to misrepresent income or employment is fraud and is prohibited by our Terms of Service. Is it legal to make your own pay stubs?

Can I download a blank or fillable pay stub template for free?

Not as a blank file — ExpertPaystubs does not offer a .docx or .xlsx download, because the online generator replaces the blank template. Every template here is free to fill in and preview in your browser: enter your details and the built-in calculator does the 2026 tax math for you. You pay only for the unwatermarked PDF download ($8.99). A calculated PDF beats a fillable blank because the withholding lines are computed, not typed.