$30–40M in tax.
Model it before you sign.

Reading each card

Each card shows the same tax stack: home-state tax on the home half of the season, away-state jock tax on the road half (league-wide blended rate), state tax on endorsement income (sourced to state of residence), and federal tax at 37.9% combined (37% top ordinary + 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax on earned income above $200K single / $250K MFJ). The bank-account figure is what's left after every tax on the card.

The ranking is set by the state-tax differential, because federal is the same across every team offer. Two cards can end at very different bank-account numbers if you change the residence state or endorsement income — but the order of the teams only moves when the state/local math moves.

Methodology & limitations — read before citing

• What this models. The primary comparison figure is after state + local tax. Federal-uniform items (federal income tax, FICA, agent fees) are held constant across teams and stripped out of the ranking. The state / local tax differential is the entire decision-relevant differential between teams.
• Federal tax bucket — what's included. Federal is modeled at 37.9% = 37% top ordinary income tax + 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax on earned income above $200K single / $250K MFJ. The tool does not apply the 3.8% Net Investment Income Tax (NIIT) to salary or endorsement income — NIIT only applies to investment income (interest, dividends, capital gains, rental / royalty income, passive activity income). An athlete's portfolio income will be subject to NIIT above the threshold, but that's a separate calculation this tool does not model. Federal also excludes state-level or city-level income taxes (captured in the state/local bucket), FICA (Social Security + regular Medicare payroll withholding), and agent fees. For a full effective-rate calculation, work with a sports-financial CPA.
• Salary split — home vs. away. MLB, NBA, and NHL regular seasons are ~50/50 (81/81, 41/41, 41/41). NFL is 8-9 home / 8-9 away out of 17 — the tool uses 50/50 for NFL as well, which is close enough at this stage of modeling.
• Away-game sourcing is a weighted average. League-wide benchmark rates for the away portion of salary: MLB 5.5%, NBA 6.5%, NFL 5.0%, NHL 5.5%. These are rough blends. For a team-specific away schedule, contact a sports-financial CPA.
• Endorsement sourcing. Off-field income is sourced to state of residence, which is a planning variable. New York and California audit residency aggressively — actual residency requires physical-presence and domicile evidence.
• Signing bonus. Bonuses paid on execution are generally sourced to state of residence at receipt (Rev. Rul. 74-108) — provided the bonus is not conditional on future services in the team's state. The tool does not model signing-bonus timing separately.
• Deferred compensation — IRC 114 flag. Under 4 U.S.C. §114 (the "Bobby Bonilla rule"), qualified retirement plan and substantially-equal deferred payments over 10+ years are sourced to state of residence when received. This tool does not model deferred-comp planning — it flags it. Contracts with meaningful deferred structures need custom modeling.
• City / local add-ons. NYC (3.876% for Yankees / Mets / Knicks / Nets home games), Philadelphia city wage tax (3.75%), and Pittsburgh Sports & Entertainment tax are captured. Detroit and Kansas City are approximated.
• 2025 relocations. The Oakland Athletics play in Sacramento CA for 2025–27 seasons ahead of the Las Vegas move (targeted 2028+). This tool uses Sacramento CA rates.
• Canadian NHL teams excluded. The 7 Canadian franchises are excluded pending US–Canada treaty modeling. The Arizona Coyotes franchise moved to Salt Lake City as the Utah Hockey Club in 2024 — the tool uses Utah rates.