Free Pay Stub Generator
Create professional pay stubs with earnings, deductions, and YTD tracking — a free alternative to PayStubCreator and ThePayStubs. No sign-up required.
Built and maintained by James Nicolaus
TL;DR
Free Tool Shed's Pay Stub Generator creates professional pay stubs with earnings, deductions, and year-to-date totals — entirely in your browser. Supports hourly and salaried employees, multiple pay frequencies, custom tax rates, and instant PDF export. No sign-up, no upload, no recurring fee — a free alternative to PayStubCreator, Check Stub Maker, and FormPros.
Hourly & Salary Support
Generate pay stubs for hourly employees with overtime or salaried workers with flat amounts. Supports bonus, commission, and tips.
Instant PDF Export
Download professional pay stubs as PDF in one click. Your data never leaves your browser — everything is processed locally on your device.
Standard US Deductions
One-click setup for Federal, State, Social Security, Medicare, 401(k), and health insurance deductions. Add custom deductions too.
Year-to-Date Tracking
Track cumulative earnings and deductions across pay periods with YTD totals on every pay stub. Save stubs to history for easy reference.
Free Pay Stub Generator Online
Generate professional pay stubs in minutes — completely free and without creating an account. Free Tool Shed's pay stub generator is a free alternative to PayStubCreator and ThePayStubs, which charge $8 or more per stub. Everything runs locally in your browser, so your employer and employee information stays completely private. Enter your details, choose a template, and download a print-ready PDF.
Features
- Hourly and salary pay type support
- Automatic amount calculation for hourly workers (hours × rate)
- 6 earning types: regular, overtime, bonus, commission, tips, other
- Standard US deduction presets — one-click setup
- 13 deduction types with pre-tax and post-tax categories
- Year-to-date (YTD) tracking on earnings and deductions
- 3 professional PDF templates (Standard, Modern, Compact)
- Custom accent color — 8 presets plus custom color picker
- Company logo upload (PNG, JPEG, SVG)
- 4 date format options (MM/DD/YYYY, DD/MM/YYYY, YYYY-MM-DD, Month D YYYY)
- Auto-save — your draft saves every second
- Pay stub history — save, load, duplicate, and manage stubs
- Export and import stubs as JSON for backup
- Save employer defaults for faster stub creation
- SSN last-4 display with privacy toggle
- Employee roster — save profiles and switch employees without re-entering info
- Bulk PDF export — download all saved stubs as one multi-page PDF
- Print directly from the browser or download PDF
How to Create a Pay Stub
- 1
Enter employer and employee details
Add your company name, address, EIN, and optionally upload a company logo. Then fill in the employee name, ID, department, and SSN last 4 digits.
- 2
Set the pay period
Choose a pay frequency (weekly, bi-weekly, semi-monthly, or monthly), set the period start date, and the end date and pay date will auto-fill.
- 3
Add earnings
Toggle between hourly or salary mode. For hourly workers, enter hours and rate — the amount calculates automatically. Add overtime, bonuses, commission, or tips as needed.
- 4
Add deductions
Click "Apply Standard US Deductions" to set up Federal tax, State tax, Social Security, Medicare, 401(k), and health insurance. Adjust amounts and add custom deductions.
- 5
Customize and download
Choose a PDF template (Standard, Modern, or Compact), pick an accent color, then click Download PDF. Save the stub to your history for future reference.
Tips from Building the Pay Stub Generator
Notes from designing and testing this tool — what we kept in mind, the edge cases we worked around, and the small choices that make the difference between a tool that ships and one that breaks on real input.
Confirm your pay frequency before entering YTD
Year-to-date totals only make sense relative to a pay frequency (weekly, bi-weekly, semi-monthly, monthly). Lock the frequency first so the math stays consistent across pay periods.
Use realistic tax rates
Federal, state, and local rates vary by jurisdiction and filing status. The tool lets you set custom rates rather than guessing — pull your actual rate from a recent paycheck or your state revenue department.
Group recurring deductions into a saved template
If you generate stubs for the same employee each pay period, save the deduction set once and reuse it. Health insurance, 401(k), and other recurring items stay consistent and reduce data entry errors.
Verify YTD math against a prior stub
When you generate a new stub mid-year, the YTD column should equal the previous stub's YTD plus the current period's gross. A quick check there catches data-entry mistakes before the stub is printed.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Mixing gross and net in the same column
A pay stub lists gross pay, then deductions, then net pay — in that order. Putting net in the earnings column makes the math look wrong to anyone (lender, landlord, accountant) reviewing the stub.
Forgetting employer contributions
Employer-side contributions (employer 401(k) match, FICA) don't reduce employee net pay but should appear on the stub for completeness. Adding them avoids questions later.
Using a generic deduction label
Labels like "Other" or "Misc" raise flags during income verification. Use specific labels — Health, Dental, 401(k), HSA — so the stub matches a payroll record.
Not previewing before exporting
The live preview shows exactly what the PDF will print. Check that the period dates, employee info, and totals all match before exporting — fixing a PDF after the fact means regenerating.
Key Takeaways
- Free Tool Shed's Pay Stub Generator produces print-ready PDF stubs with gross, deductions, net, and YTD totals.
- It supports hourly and salaried pay, multiple pay frequencies, and custom tax and deduction line items.
- All math and PDF generation happen client-side; no payroll data is uploaded or stored on a server.
- It is a free alternative to PayStubCreator, Check Stub Maker, and FormPros for one-off stub generation.
Free Pay Stub Generator vs Paid Alternatives
| Feature | Free Tool Shed | PayStubCreator | ThePayStubs | 123PayStubs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | $8.99/stub | $7.95/stub | $3.99/stub |
| Sign-up Required | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| PDF Export | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Templates | 3 included | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| Logo Upload | Yes | No | Yes | No |
| Hourly & Salary | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| YTD Tracking | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Deduction Presets | Yes | No | No | No |
| Stub History | Yes (local) | No | No | No |
| Accent Color | Yes | No | No | No |
| JSON Export | Yes | No | No | No |
| Client-Side Privacy | Yes | No | No | No |
| Bulk PDF Export | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Employee Roster | Yes | No | No | No |
Pricing based on publicly available information at time of writing. All paid services require account creation and store your data on their servers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this pay stub generator really free?
Yes, completely free with no hidden fees, no premium tiers, and no per-stub charges. The tool is ad-supported so it can remain free for everyone.
Do I need to create an account?
No. You can start generating pay stubs immediately without signing up or providing any personal information.
Is my data private and secure?
Yes. All processing happens locally in your browser. Your employer details, employee information, and pay data never leave your device. Nothing is uploaded to any server.
Does it support hourly and salaried employees?
Yes. Toggle between hourly and salary mode. For hourly workers, enter hours and rate and the amount calculates automatically. For salaried employees, enter the flat pay amount directly.
What deductions are included?
One-click setup for 6 standard US deductions: Federal Income Tax, State Income Tax, Social Security, Medicare, 401(k), and Health Insurance. You can also add custom deductions for dental/vision, HSA/FSA, Roth 401(k), life insurance, garnishments, union dues, and more.
What PDF templates are available?
Three templates: Standard (traditional table layout with borders), Modern (accent-colored header with card-based sections), and Compact (dense layout for minimal page usage). All templates support custom accent colors and company logos.
Can I track year-to-date totals?
Yes. Enter YTD amounts for each earnings and deduction row. YTD totals appear on the PDF when present. When you duplicate a stub from history for a new pay period, YTD values carry over.
Can I save and reuse pay stubs?
Yes. Your current draft auto-saves every second. Save completed stubs to a history panel, then load or duplicate them for future pay periods. You can also save employee profiles to a roster — select an employee and their info and deduction structure pre-fill instantly, so you only enter what changes each period.
Can I add my company logo?
Yes. Upload your company logo in PNG, JPEG, or SVG format (up to 2MB) on the Style tab. The logo appears on all three PDF templates.
How do I print a pay stub?
Click the Print button to open your browser’s print dialog, or download the PDF and print from your PDF viewer. Both options produce professional, print-ready output.