Tennessee Pay Stub Generator -- Free

Tennessee's economy is remarkably diverse given its mid-South position. Nashville has transformed from a country music capital into a major healthcare industry hub -- nearly a third of the investor-owned hospital companies in the United States are headquartered in Nashville, including HCA Healthcare (one of the country's largest hospital operators) and Community Health Systems. The music and entertainment industry anchors a tourism economy that draws over 16 million visitors annually to Nashville alone. Tennessee's automotive manufacturing footprint has expanded dramatically with the Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga, the Ford Blue Oval City EV campus under construction near Memphis, and dozens of suppliers throughout the state. FedEx is headquartered in Memphis, reflecting Tennessee's significance as a logistics hub straddling the Mississippi River.

Tennessee completed a long process of eliminating state income tax when the Hall Income Tax -- which taxed investment income like dividends and interest, but never wages -- was fully repealed effective January 1, 2021. Tennessee workers have never paid a state income tax on wages, and since 2021, there is now no Tennessee state income tax at all. Your Tennessee pay stub shows only federal deductions. This generator calculates all federal taxes correctly and downloads as a professional PDF.

Tennessee Income Tax Rates

Tennessee has a 0% state income tax on all income, including wages, salaries, and investment income. The Hall Income Tax, which existed since 1929 and applied to dividend and interest income (not wages), was phased out beginning in 2016 and fully repealed on January 1, 2021. Tennessee joins Florida, Texas, Nevada, Washington, Wyoming, South Dakota, Alaska, and New Hampshire as states with no personal income tax.

Tennessee funds its government through the sales tax (7% state rate plus up to 2.75% local), one of the highest combined sales tax rates in the country. Tennessee also has significant excise taxes on alcohol, tobacco, and gasoline. None of these appear as payroll deductions.

On a Tennessee pay stub, deductions are entirely federal:

• Federal income tax: IRS graduated brackets, 10% to 37%
• Social Security: 6.2% up to the $168,600 wage base
• Medicare: 1.45% of all wages
• Voluntary deductions: Health insurance, 401(k), etc.

The absence of state income tax makes Tennessee exceptionally attractive for higher earners relocating from states like California, New York, and Illinois. A Tennessee musician earning $300,000 avoids approximately $15,000 in California income tax annually, or approximately $20,000 in New York state and city taxes combined.

Does Tennessee Require Pay Stubs?

Tennessee does not have a state law requiring employers to provide pay stubs to employees. The Tennessee Wage Regulation Act focuses on when wages must be paid, not on the format or documentation of payment. There is no mandate for written wage statements under Tennessee state law for most private sector workers.

Federal FLSA record-keeping requirements apply, and essentially all major Tennessee employers provide electronic pay stubs through payroll systems. HCA Healthcare's thousands of employees access pay stubs through employee portals; FedEx workers use the company's payroll system; Volkswagen's Chattanooga plant provides detailed stubs reflecting UAW negotiated wages.

For independent contractors, gig workers, and cash-paid workers in Tennessee's large agricultural, construction, and service industries, this generator provides the income documentation needed for housing and financial applications. No Tennessee law requires employers to provide pay stubs, but federal FLSA §211(c) requires employers to maintain payroll records for a minimum of three years.

Pay Stub Requirements in Tennessee

Without a state mandate, Tennessee pay stubs follow federal FLSA standards and employer best practice. A complete Tennessee pay stub should include:

• Employer name and business address
• Employee name and identification
• Pay period start and end dates
• Pay date
• Total hours worked (hourly workers)
• Regular and overtime hours and rates
• Gross wages
• Federal income tax withheld
• Social Security tax withheld
• Medicare tax withheld
• Any voluntary deductions (401k, health insurance)
• Net pay
• Year-to-date totals

Note the absence of any state income tax line on a Tennessee stub. This is correct -- there is no Tennessee income tax to withhold. Property managers and lenders in Tennessee understand this, but if submitting documentation to out-of-state parties, the absence of a state tax line should not raise concerns.

Pay Frequency Laws in Tennessee

Tennessee law (TCA § 50-2-103) requires that wages be paid at least monthly. This monthly minimum is the same as several other states and reflects a general preference for minimal regulation. Most Tennessee employers pay bi-weekly or semi-monthly as a practical standard.

Tennessee requires that the regular payday be announced to employees in advance. If the regular payday falls on a non-business day (weekend or holiday), payment must be made on the preceding business day.

Tennessee does not have specific final paycheck timing requirements for involuntary termination -- the next regular payday is generally sufficient under state law. Federal law (FLSA) does require prompt payment, but Tennessee does not impose the strict same-day or within-72-hours requirements that California and some other states have.

Tennessee's Diverse Economy and Pay Documentation

Nashville healthcare workers: Nashville's healthcare industry is enormous -- HCA Healthcare alone generated $60+ billion in annual revenue and employs hundreds of thousands across the country, with corporate HQ and significant operations in Nashville. Healthcare executives, hospital administrators, nurses, and medical staff throughout Middle Tennessee work in one of the most specialized healthcare economic clusters in the world. Many healthcare professionals relocate to Nashville for career advancement and need income documentation for Nashville's competitive real estate market, which has been among the fastest-appreciating in the country.

Music and entertainment professionals: Nashville's music industry extends well beyond country music -- the city has become a significant pop, Christian, and Americana production center. Session musicians, songwriters, producers, engineers, and touring musicians often have highly variable income that may not follow standard pay periods. A session musician may earn $500 for a three-hour session, then nothing for two weeks, then $2,000 the following week. Generating pay stubs that accurately reflect this episodic income requires careful attention to which earnings belong in which pay period.

Automotive manufacturing workers: Volkswagen's Chattanooga assembly plant, where the Atlas SUV is manufactured, employs approximately 4,000 workers represented by the UAW since a 2024 union vote. Additionally, Ford's Blue Oval City EV manufacturing complex near Memphis (under construction as of 2024) will employ thousands when complete. Automotive workers need income documentation for home purchases in the surrounding communities.

FedEx employees in Memphis: FedEx's world hub at Memphis International Airport employs tens of thousands of workers, from package handlers to pilots to logistics managers. FedEx pilots are among the highest-paid employees in the country; handlers are hourly workers with complex schedules. The breadth of FedEx employment types creates diverse pay documentation needs across the greater Memphis area.

What a Tennessee Paycheck Looks Like -- A Worked Example

A healthcare and logistics worker earning $55,000 per year in Tennessee on a bi-weekly schedule ($2,115 gross per check) pays: $0 in Tennessee state income tax (no state income tax since Hall Tax repeal, 2021), $131 in Social Security (6.2%), $31 in Medicare (1.45%) -- net take-home approximately $1,775 per paycheck.

2024 minimum wage in Tennessee: $7.25/hr (federal minimum; Tennessee has no higher state minimum).

Frequently Asked Questions for Tennessee Workers

My pay stub shows no state income tax. Is that correct for Tennessee?

Yes, completely correct. Tennessee has no state income tax on wages. The Hall Income Tax was fully repealed January 1, 2021, and Tennessee never taxed wage income even when the Hall Tax existed (it only taxed interest and dividend income). Your Tennessee pay stub correctly shows $0.00 in state income tax withholding. The only taxes on a Tennessee wage earner's stub are federal income tax, Social Security, and Medicare. Anyone who tells you that you should see Tennessee state income tax on your stub is mistaken.

I'm a Nashville musician with irregular income. How do I generate pay stubs for apartment applications?

Generate stubs for each pay period (weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly) reflecting your actual earnings during that period. For session work, the session fee is the gross pay for the period in which you received payment. For music publishing royalties or streaming payments, use the date received as the pay date. Nashville landlords, particularly in the Midtown and East Nashville markets, are accustomed to musicians' income patterns. Providing 3-6 months of stubs alongside bank statements that confirm deposits is the strongest documentation approach for variable income. Our self-employed pay stub generator has more detail on documenting irregular income streams.

Tennessee has some of the highest sales tax in the country. Does that affect payroll?

Tennessee's high sales tax (up to 9.75% combined state and local) does not affect payroll at all -- sales tax is paid by consumers at point of purchase and by retailers to the state government. It does not appear on pay stubs or affect employer withholding obligations. The high sales tax does affect workers' effective disposable income (you pay more on purchases), but that is separate from payroll documentation. Tennessee workers who move from no-sales-tax states like Oregon or Montana may need to adjust their personal budgets, but their pay stub deductions are limited to federal taxes.

I work at the Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga. How does UAW membership affect my pay stub?

Following the successful UAW organizing vote at the Chattanooga plant in 2024, UAW dues will appear as a deduction on pay stubs for dues-paying union members. UAW dues are typically 1.44% of straight-time wages (the rate can vary by contract and local). These dues are deducted from post-tax wages -- they do not reduce your federal or state taxable income in the same way that pre-tax benefit deductions do. Your pay stub will show UAW dues as a separate voluntary/union deduction line. Workers have the right to opt out of full union membership while remaining covered by the union contract (under certain circumstances), and "agency fees" (a subset of dues) may apply in their place.

Does Tennessee have paid family leave or disability insurance I should know about?

Tennessee has no state-funded paid family leave or disability insurance program. There are no employee payroll deductions for these programs, and Tennessee workers have no access to state-provided benefits when they cannot work due to illness, disability, or new child care needs (beyond federal FMLA unpaid leave). Workers who need income replacement for these situations must rely on employer-provided benefits (PTO, short-term disability plans) or private insurance. Tennessee's lack of these programs is consistent with its minimal-government approach and no-income-tax stance, but it means Tennessee workers have less automatic protection than workers in states like California, New York, or New Jersey.

Related Tools

For neighboring state comparisons, see the Georgia pay stub generator (5.49% flat rate, Atlanta economy), the North Carolina pay stub generator (Research Triangle, declining flat rates), or the Virginia pay stub generator (graduated rates, Northern Virginia economy). For template formats, see the free pay stub template.