Beating the W4 question to death but

A warm welcome to the Community, dlynnhicks. I'd be pleased to provide you the details on how QuickBooks calculates employee's W4.

There are no specific formula tables to look for when calculating the employee's W4. However, there are four factors we need to consider to ensure the program calculates the correct taxes. These are the following:

• Taxable wage
• Pay frequency
• Number of allowances
• Filing status

For QuickBooks to properly calculate correct wages and tax amounts, the system has a built-in tax table so you'll need to ensure your employees and payroll items are set up correctly.

I'd suggest getting in touch with your tax adviser or consult with IRS if you have additional questions on how this information is calculated.

You can read through the following articles to know what payroll withholding taxes are as well as how this information are reported:

How QuickBooks calculates payroll taxes.

What is payroll withholding and how do you calculate it?

Feel free to get back to me if you have additional questions or anything about QuickBooks. I want to make sure you're set. I'm always here to answer and provide further guidance.

Hi, dlynnhicks.

Hope you're doing great. I wanted to see how everything is going about the W4 calculation issue you had the other day. Was it resolved? Do you need any additional help or clarification? If you do, just let me know. I'd be happy to help you at anytime.

Looking forward to your reply. Have a pleasant day ahead!

So really let me ask this a different way.  We keep referring to the W4 when in actuality I really need to know how to input this information into Quickbooks.  So first thing when I click on the taxes (when setting up the employee) the federal taxes pop up and you have a choice.  Use the 2019 or 2020 and later.  Of course we are using the 2020 or later because it is now 2021 and this is a new employee.  They have given me their signed w4.  I have four places to input numbers.  None of which is a simple 1 through however many allowances you want to claim.  I am assuming that this is a dollar amount so lets go on the assumption that this is a single mother with 1 child.  Unless she goes in and has the employer use the on line calculator all she has put in because the paper form does not get specific is $2000 for her one dependant.  She cannot claim herself and the rest of the places are going to typically be blank.  So Quickbooks now understands that this person is claiming 1 allowance and will recalculate the taxes.  Is that correct?  If you go in and use the online calculator you can get a more specifict number because it will calculate for child care and other things tax credit but typically this is something that most of the employees will not know and is usually shown when doing taxes.  Quickbooks could make this a little easier to understand by possibly explain that just like when you put in an allowance the back end of the software is doing all the calculations.  I sure hope I am understanding this correctly or I am going to have some really screwed up payroll.  The state form is still only requiring you to list the allowances.  People in the past have said oh just put down 5 in there for me so I am not getting any taxes taken out.  Now you would have to put in 10,000.00 in the first block.  Am I right? 

You're on the right track, @dlynnhicks.

Since your employee taxes are still calculated incorrectly even after entering the allowance accordingly, I'd recommend contacting our Customer Care Support.

With their tools, one of our specialists can pull up the account on file and investigate further what is the reason behind the incorrect calculation of your payroll taxes. To do so:

1. Go to Help.
2. Select QuickBooks Desktop Help.
3. Click Contact Us.
4. Enter Payroll Taxes in the What can we help you with? field.
5. Select Let's talk.
6. Choose a channel where you wish to connect with our dedicated specialists.

Additionally, I've also included this reference for a compilation of articles you can use while working with us: Help Articles for QuickBooks Desktop Payroll.

If there's anything else that I can help you with, please let me know by leaving any comments below. I'll be here to lend a hand.

I am unsure if the payroll is being tallied incorrectly.  Since this is really the first employee that has claimed anything.  I just am trying to simplify the answer to the question.  And highlighting the fact that the paper w4 does not even come close to the questions asked on the on-line calculator the IRS has so since this isn't the IRS forum I just need to say that the W4 is not simple and easy.  Maybe for a tax professional but it does not go in depth about the child care deductions etc.  Or I am missing a page when I print them out.  Without the employer going on line and using the calculator there you cannot refine the figures on the paper w4 so not sure what the point is on the IRS End or why that estimator is not included in QB and prefills made.  QB certainly collects enough money to make that a thing.  But I am just a 30 year user of the program.  Thanks for all your help and I hope that someone who was as confused as I understands what I said without having to decipher the IRS publications. LOL.