PA income tax rate and earned income tax on the Main Line

Pennsylvania income tax at a glance

Income tax plus property tax by Main Line township

Pick a township by the total of both taxes, because a no-EIT township can still cost more. Here's a household earning $500,000 on a $2M home in 2026, using estimated property bills:

Among the three with confirmed EIT figures, Easttown comes in lowest and Haverford Township, with no EIT at all, comes in highest. Property figures are county-average estimates before homestead relief, and a real bill runs on the parcel's assessed value, so pull the parcel from the Main Line property tax comparison before you rely on the gap. The local services tax is left out because it's $52 or less wherever it could be confirmed.

Lower Merion or Easttown: the income tax break-even

Lower Merion overtakes Easttown once Easttown's EIT exceeds the property gap, and that point rises with the home's price. Divide the estimated gap by 0.5% to find it:

Earn above the tie point and Lower Merion's total is lower. Below it, Easttown's is. Only earned income counts here, so investment income doesn't move the tie point.

Gladwyne income tax on a typical home

Gladwyne is the clean example, since ZIP 19035 sits wholly in Lower Merion. On Zillow's typical home value for the ZIP, $1,625,035 in September 2026, the estimated property bill is about $22,900. Add $15,350 of state tax and $0 of EIT, and a $500,000 household pays about $38,250 in the two taxes combined.

What is the PA income tax rate in 2026?

The rate is 3.07%, flat, with no brackets. That makes the state line the simplest part of the decision, because it doesn't change when you cross from one township to the next.

PA income tax on a paycheck

Pennsylvania takes 3.07% of taxable pay, or about $1,279 a month on $500,000. Federal withholding and payroll taxes sit on top, and this page doesn't price them. A local line is added only where your township has an EIT or local services tax, and a city job adds the wage tax.

Eight classes of PA income tax

Pennsylvania sorts income into eight classes, and a loss in one can't offset income in another. So a $100,000 loss in one class leaves $100,000 of income in a different class fully taxed, which costs you $3,070.

Which Main Line townships have an earned income tax?

Easttown is the only one of the five with a confirmed EIT, at 0.5%. Lower Merion and Haverford Township have none, and Radnor and Tredyffrin weren't reported to have one in 2024, but check the state's register for those two.

Does Lower Merion have an earned income tax?

No. Lower Merion has no EIT, and the school district says it relies on real estate tax as a result, which helps explain a total of 47.2727 mills in 2026. On $500,000 of earnings the local income tax adds $0, and you pay for it on the property bill instead.

Haverford Township earned income tax

Haverford Township's Finance Department says it has no EIT currently and charges a $52 local services tax. That adds $52 a year at any income. With no EIT to weigh, the township's estimated $32,400 property bill on a $2M home is the number that decides it.

Easttown earned income tax

Easttown charges 0.5%, all of it municipal, with 0% to the Tredyffrin/Easttown school district, on DCED's register as of November 5, 2026. The register also shows a $0 local services tax. On $500,000 of earnings it adds $2,500 a year, and unearned income is reported to be exempt.

Radnor earned income tax

A 2024 local report said Radnor had no EIT, and neither a township page nor the state's register confirmed that for this page. Treat it as a check to run on your address. If it's still zero, the $500,000 household pays $41,150 on a $2M home, and each 0.1% of EIT would add $500.

Tredyffrin earned income tax

Tredyffrin voted against an EIT in 2023 and none was reported in 2024, while Easttown, in the same school district, has since adopted one. So confirm the current status on DCED. A 0.5% rate like Easttown's would add $2,500 on $500,000 and put Tredyffrin at $42,650 in the table above.

Check the local earned income tax by address

Run the exact address through DCED's local withholding lookup, because mailing addresses cross township lines. By land area, Villanova 19085 is 57% Radnor and 43% Lower Merion, and Wayne 19087 is 50% Tredyffrin, 35% Radnor and 15% Upper Merion, with no land in Easttown. Land share isn't parcel proof, and the Main Line ZIP code guide covers the rest of those lines.

Does PA tax retirement income?

Pennsylvania doesn't tax distributions from eligible retirement plans after retirement age, or Social Security. Eligibility turns on the plan and on retirement age, and Revenue's guide says federal qualification doesn't control the answer, so have the plan checked instead of assuming. When earnings stop, income tax mostly drops out of the township comparison and property tax is what's left.

Retirement plan distributions and PA income tax

An eligible distribution after retirement age adds $0 of PA income tax, at any size. The catch is the word eligible: confirm your plan's status and your retirement age before you budget on it.

Social Security and PA income tax

Revenue's guide lists Social Security as never taxable. That line adds $0 to the bill. The federal treatment is separate, and this page doesn't cover it.

Early IRA withdrawals and PA income tax

A premature IRA withdrawal is partly taxable, using a cost recovery method. If you pull $100,000 early, the most it can add is $3,070, and your contributions reduce that. A withdrawal to fund a down payment is the kind worth pricing before you make it.

Investment income in a retirement income tax budget

Retirement distributions are exempt, but interest and dividends stay taxable at 3.07%, so $200,000 of them costs $6,140. Add an estimated property bill on a $2M home and the two-tax total is $31,340 in Easttown or $34,240 in Lower Merion. With no earned income, Easttown's EIT stops counting, and its $2,900 property advantage is all that's left.

Is Pennsylvania income tax heavy on the Main Line?

No, on a $2M home it's the smaller of the two main bills until income passes about $808,000, where 3.07% matches the lowest estimated property bill. A $500,000 household pays $15,350 to the state, against estimated bills of $24,800 to $32,400 across the five townships. The Main Line cost of living page adds the rest of the household budget.

Where you lose money on Pennsylvania income tax

• Choosing Lower Merion for its zero EIT alone: on a $2M home at $500,000 of earnings, the estimated total runs $400 above Easttown's.
• Trusting a Wayne address: 19087 crosses three townships and three counties, so a wrong guess can move an estimate by $1,000 a year between Tredyffrin and Radnor alone on $2M.
• Forgetting the city job: a non-resident working all five days in Philadelphia owes $17,125 of wage tax on $500,000, more than the $15,350 state bill.
• Assuming a loss nets out: $100,000 lost in one income class leaves $3,070 of tax on $100,000 in another.

Confirm your own numbers with a Pennsylvania CPA or tax attorney; this page is general information, not tax advice. If the income tax total points you toward a particular township, a private search on the Main Line can narrow to that side of the line.

Pennsylvania income tax FAQs

Sources

• PA Department of Revenue: Personal Income Tax
• PA Personal Income Tax Guide: Gross Compensation
• PA DCED Municipal Statistics: Find Local Withholding Rates by Address (Easttown result, November 5, 2026)
• Lower Merion SD: Understanding LMSD Budget & Fund Balance
• Haverford Township: Finance Department
• Montgomery County: Millage Rates
• Chester County: Tax Rates 2026
• Delaware County: 2026 Tax Rates
• PA Department of Revenue: Common Level Ratio Factors
• Savvy Main Line: Easttown earned income tax report (2024)
• Zillow Home Value Index, September 2026