Mil-Cents | Data Viewer

Civilian Equivalent (Main Calculator)

We use a reverse-tax solver to calculate the Gross Salary required to match your purchasing power.

The Equation

Civilian Gross Salary = Take Home Pay + Taxes(Civilian) + Estimated Health Care Premium

Step 1: Calculate Military Take Home Pay

Cash Flow = (Base Pay + BAH + BAS + Additional Income) - Taxes(Military) - TSP Contributions
Take Home Pay = Cash Flow + (Government Match + TSP Contributions)

*Note: We add TSP back to the Take Home Pay target because it is your money (savings), not an expense.

Step 2: Define Taxes(Military)

Taxes(Military) = Federal + State + Social Security + Medicare

Based on State of Residence
Federal/State calculated on (Base Pay + Additional Income - Traditional TSP)
Social Security and Medicare calculated on (Base Pay + Additional Income)

Step 3: Define Taxes(Civilian)

Taxes(Civilian) = Federal + State + Social Security + Medicare

Based on Duty Zip Code
All taxes calculated on Civilian Gross Salary (less Health Premium for Income Tax)
State does NOT receive military exemptions

Step 4: Solve for Civilian Gross Salary

Solver Logic: Find Civilian Gross Salary where:

Civilian Gross Salary - Taxes(Civilian) - Estimated Health Care Premium = Take Home Pay

Critical Assumptions

Split-Location Tax Logic: Military Taxes use State of Residence; Civilian Taxes use Duty Zip Code.
Pre-Tax Health Insurance: Health Premium is deducted before Federal/State taxes.

Civilian Equivalent (Mil-to-Mil)

For dual-military couples, we use a "Stacked Income" approach.

The Logic

Member A (Primary Earner)

Calculated normally as the Base Earner (see Civilian Gross Salary logic above).

Member B (Stacked Income)

For Member B, we calculate the Marginal Tax Impact of adding their income to Member A's.

Tax Burden = Taxes(Income_A + Income_B) - Taxes(Income_A)

This ensures Member B's required salary accounts for the higher tax brackets they would effectively occupy.

TSP Planner Math

Calculating the exact percentage to max out your TSP ($23,500+) exactly by December 31st.

The Equation

Required Percentage = (Annual Limit / Total Projected Pay) \times 100

Components

Annual Limit: The IRS limit ($23,500 for 2025).
*Adjusts to +$7,500 if Catch-Up contributions are enabled (Age 50+).
Total Projected Pay: The sum of Base Pay for all remaining months in the year.
*Logic automatically accounts for Rank Promotions and TIS Raises occurring in future months.

Data Explorer

Civilian Equivalent (Main Calculator)

The Equation

Step 1: Calculate Military Take Home Pay

Step 2: Define Taxes(Military)

Step 3: Define Taxes(Civilian)

Step 4: Solve for Civilian Gross Salary

Critical Assumptions

Civilian Equivalent (Mil-to-Mil)

The Logic

Member A (Primary Earner)

Member B (Stacked Income)

TSP Planner Math

The Equation

Components