Match the stub to the deposit first
Find the pay-period dates and payment date near the top. The period tells you when the work or salary being paid was earned; the payment date tells you when the employer pays it. These can be different weeks. If you are comparing two deposits, check that both stubs cover comparable periods before treating a change as an error.
Next find net pay, sometimes called take-home pay. Compare that amount with the deposit in your bank activity. If they differ, first check whether you are looking at the right deposit and whether the stub shows more than one payment method or an adjustment. Record the amounts and ask payroll to explain a remaining mismatch; a bank deposit alone cannot show how a deduction was calculated.
Work from gross pay down to net pay
The earnings section builds gross pay. It may show regular hours and pay, overtime, vacation pay, bonuses or other entries, depending on your work and payroll setup. Do not assume a line on one employer’s stub will have the same name on another’s. Read the rate, hours or quantity, and amount as separate columns where they appear. A difference in hours, paid time or an adjustment may explain a changed gross amount before you examine deductions.
The deductions section shows money removed from gross pay. Common statutory lines include income tax, Canada Pension Plan (or Quebec Pension Plan) contributions and Employment Insurance premiums. A stub may also show deductions for benefits, a workplace pension or union dues when they apply. FCAC’s payroll overview describes these categories. A label tells you what payroll calls an item; it does not, by itself, prove the amount is correct or that the same deduction applies to everyone.
Here is fictional subtraction in CAD to show the layout, not a tax estimate. Suppose a stub lists $1,600 gross earnings, with $240 income tax, $95 CPP, $26 EI and $39 in an employee benefit deduction. Total deductions are $400, leaving $1,200 net pay. The useful check is gross pay − all listed deductions = net pay. Your actual deductions depend on your circumstances and payroll records; these made-up amounts should not be used to forecast a paycheque.
| Stub field | Question it answers | What to check if it changed |
|---|---|---|
| Pay period and payment date | Which work period and deposit does this cover? | Compare the same period type and confirm the right bank entry. |
| Earnings and gross pay | What pay was included before deductions? | Check hours, rate, paid leave and adjustments shown. |
| Each deduction | What was removed under each label? | Compare the line with the previous stub and ask payroll about an unexplained difference. |
| Net pay | What amount should this stub produce after deductions? | Reconcile the subtraction and the actual deposit. |
Keep “this pay” and year-to-date apart
Many stubs show a current-period column beside a year-to-date (YTD) column. Current-period numbers explain this paycheque. YTD numbers accumulate amounts during the employer’s stated payroll year. Do not subtract a YTD deduction from this period’s gross pay: you would mix two different time spans. If labels are unclear, ask payroll where the current-period totals are and when its YTD count starts.
YTD can help you spot an entry that appears over several pays or check whether an adjustment was carried forward. It is not a substitute for the current-period arithmetic, and it does not necessarily match a calendar-year tax total without checking the employer’s reporting and dates.
If the take-home amount changed
Place two actual stubs side by side and move through the same sequence: period → gross earnings → each deduction → net pay. Write down which line changed and by how much. For example, a lower net deposit may begin with fewer paid hours; a larger deduction may be a separate question. Avoid attributing the whole change to “tax” until you have identified the exact line.
Ask payroll a narrow question that includes the pay dates and line label: “On my [date] stub, the [line] is [amount], compared with [amount] on [earlier date]. What changed in the hours, adjustment or deduction behind it?” Keep the stubs and the answer together. If an entry still appears wrong, ask what correction process payroll uses and how any correction will appear on a later stub. This guide does not determine your tax owing or employment rights.
Once you know the actual net amount and pay dates, you can plan bills from money that will reach your account. For a separate method of reserving monthly bills from every two-week pay, see how to budget biweekly pay for monthly bills. If a specific bill falls before the next deposit, use the payday bill calendar to map that timing gap.