Free Paystub Generator
We're building a free tool to turn your real income into a professional, downloadable pay stub — useful for proof of income, rental applications, and loan paperwork. It's not live yet, but you can join the waitlist below and read how it will work.
PDF paystub generator
Enter your gross pay and deductions (or start from a paycheck calculator result) and download a clean, itemized PDF pay stub — gross pay, tax withholdings, deductions, and net pay, formatted the way employers and lenders expect.
Who needs a free paystub generator
Most people needing to generate their own pay stub fall into one of a few groups: independent contractors and freelancers who don't receive one from an employer, small business owners who pay themselves directly, gig workers combining income from multiple platforms, and anyone who needs a document formatted for proof of income — a landlord, lender, or visa application. If you're self-employed, see our 1099 tax calculator first to know your actual net income after self-employment tax — the number that should appear on the stub is net of tax obligations you've set aside, not your raw gross payments.
Is it legal to make your own pay stub?
We won't dodge this question: generating a pay stub that accurately reflects real income you actually earned is legal and common practice for the self-employed. Generating one with inflated or fabricated numbers to misrepresent your income — to qualify for a loan, lease, or benefit you wouldn't otherwise qualify for — is income fraud, a serious offense that landlords and lenders actively screen for. This tool is built for the first use case only.
The distinction is intent and accuracy, not the act of generating a document. A traditional payroll system produces a pay stub automatically from real payroll data; a self-employed person has to assemble the same information manually because no employer exists to do it for them. As long as the figures reflect real income, using a generator to format that information properly is no different from formatting an invoice or an expense report yourself.
What a pay stub should include
Whether generated by a payroll system or by hand, a proper pay stub should include identifying information, the pay period, gross pay, an itemized breakdown of taxes and deductions, net pay, and year-to-date totals. See our full breakdown, including a real worked example, on what a pay stub is and what it contains.
Related pages
Frequently asked questions
Is it legal to make your own pay stub?
Yes, as long as it accurately reflects real income you actually earned. Self-employed people, freelancers, and small business owners routinely create their own pay-stub-style documents to summarize real earnings for record-keeping or to share with a landlord or lender. It becomes illegal the moment the numbers are fabricated or inflated to misrepresent your actual income — that's income fraud, and lenders and landlords do verify.
Will lenders and landlords accept a self-generated pay stub?
It depends on the recipient. Many landlords accept a self-employed applicant's own income summary, especially alongside bank statements or tax returns. Mortgage lenders and larger institutions typically want a full tax return or 1099s as well, since a self-generated stub alone isn't independently verifiable. Always ask what documentation format is acceptable before relying on just one document.
When is the free paystub generator launching?
We're building it now. Join the waitlist above and we'll email you as soon as it's available — no spam, just a launch notification.
What should a pay stub include?
At minimum: employee and employer identifying information, the pay period and pay date, gross pay, an itemized list of tax withholdings and other deductions, net pay, and year-to-date totals. See our full breakdown on the pay stub page.