Employee Cost: Utah vs Vermont (2026)

Side-by-side comparison of employer costs, payroll taxes, SUTA rates, and workers' comp.

At a $60,000 salary

Utah saves $266/employee/year

$65,590 in Utah vs $65,856 in Vermont

Utah

$65,590

1.09x salary

Vermont

$65,856

1.1x salary

Cost Breakdown Comparison

Based on $60,000 annual salary

Cost Component UT VT Diff
Base Salary $60,000 $60,000
Social Security (6.2%) $3,720 $3,720
Medicare (1.45%) $870 $870
FUTA (0.6%) $42 $42
SUTA (State Unemployment) $448 $216 +$232
Workers' Compensation $510 $1,008 -$498
Total Employer Cost $65,590 $65,856 -$266

Tax Rate Comparison

Rate Utah Vermont
SUTA Rate Range 0.1% – 7.0% 0.8% – 5.4%
SUTA Typical Rate 1.0% 1.6%
SUTA Wage Base $44,800 $13,500
Workers' Comp Rate 0.85% 1.68%
State Income Tax Yes Yes

What This Means for Employers

For a business hiring at a $60,000 salary, choosing Utah over Vermont saves $266 per employee per year in employer-side payroll costs alone. For a team of 10, that's $2,660 annually.

The biggest difference comes from workers' compensation rates — Utah charges 0.85% vs Vermont's 1.68%. Note that federal taxes (Social Security, Medicare, FUTA) are identical in both states.

These numbers reflect employer-side costs only and don't include benefits, overhead, or the employee's own tax burden. Use the interactive Employee Cost Calculator to model different salary levels and benefits packages.

Cost Comparison at Different Salary Levels

How the gap changes from $30K to $150K

Salary UT Total VT Total Difference
$30,000 $32,892 $33,057 -$165
$40,000 $43,842 $43,990 -$148
$50,000 $54,740 $54,923 -$183
$60,000 $65,590 $65,856 -$266
$75,000 $81,865 $82,256 -$391
$100,000 $108,990 $109,588 -$598
$125,000 $136,115 $136,921 -$806
$150,000 $163,240 $164,253 -$1,013

Click any amount to see the full cost breakdown for that salary and state. Amounts shown from the perspective of UT.

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