Fringe benefits are compensations or perks that an employer offers an employee in addition to their wages. Employers are required to provide some fringe benefits by federal law, but most of them are voluntary. Offering these benefits can have advantages for both companies and their employees, and employers must ensure that they’re in compliance with reporting and tax requirements.
Legally required fringe benefits can differ according to various factors, such as the company’s size and if you're interested, we can help you navigate those to stay compliant and competitive. In general, though, these are the fringe benefits that employers must provide to employees.
Companies may voluntarily offer fringe benefits; these can vary depending on employees’ roles, the size of the company, and the industry. They can also be specific to the business, such as Ben & Jerry’s supplying employees with free ice cream. Some of the most common voluntary benefits are:
According to IRS regulations, all fringe benefits are automatically taxable except those that have an explicit exemption. The IRS lists the fringe benefits that are exempt from taxation in Publication 15-B (2025), Employer's Tax Guide to Fringe Benefits Table 2-1:
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Maintaining a high employee retention rate is an advantage for any company, and fringe benefits can play a role in this by giving employees an incentive to stay. In fact, a healthy fringe benefits package from a current employer could be the deciding factor in an employee turning down other job offers. Even though fringe benefits represent an additional cost to the employer, a high employee turnover rate could cost even more due to lost productivity and additional training expenses.
Employers who want to make competitive job offers need to consider more than just a generous base salary. When top candidates choose between multiple job offers, fringe benefits are always an important factor. It’s also important to consider the relevance of the benefits to the employee; for example, someone who’s constantly on the road probably wouldn’t appreciate the availability of an in-office gym. On the other hand, they would probably value the use of a company car. A thoughtfully curated package of fringe benefits can be key for any company that wants to attract (and retain) top talent.
Fringe benefits are a way for the employer to show that they care about their employees’ wellbeing, whether it’s through bonuses, expanded health insurance, paid vacation time, or other benefits. When employees get fringe benefits that are both relevant and valuable to them, they’re more likely to be satisfied with their jobs.
Knowing how to calculate fringe benefits allows employers to see how much value an employee is receiving through these benefits. It’s done for two main reasons:
First, determining the value of the benefits being given to each employee for tax purposes. Taxable fringe benefits are counted as supplemental wages, and the IRS requires that the dollar amount is calculated based on the benefits’ fair market value (FMV). Even if the company is paying more, less, or not at all for a benefit, the FMV is still calculated. If a benefit is being used partly for business purposes, then that part of its value would be subtracted. As an example, if a cellphone given as a fringe benefit is used 25% of the time for work and 75% of the time for personal use, then 75% of the cellphone’s FMV would count as supplemental income.
Second, knowing how to calculate fringe benefits ensures that each employee is receiving an appropriate amount of benefits. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average percentage of benefits paid in June 2025 by private companies was 29.8% of their total wages; for federal workers, the average was 38.5%. The actual percentage of fringe benefits each employee receives can depend on the industry, the company, or their role within the company. It’s common practice to offer larger benefit packages for higher-ranking employees, although federal law mandates that all employees receive certain benefits (as mentioned above).
The formula for calculating an employee’s annual fringe benefits rate is simple:
(value of annual fringe benefits ÷ annual wages) × 100
Here’s how to calculate fringe benefits:
The IRS regulations for fringe benefits are detailed and complex. Although a variety of benefits are exempt from taxation, even some non-taxable benefits can be taxed if they meet certain conditions. Just like with tax laws in general, it’s important to have a firm grasp on IRS fringe benefit regulations to avoid the consequences of miscalculations.
Imputed income is all non-cash fringe benefits, excluding de minimis and non-taxable benefits. This term is essentially another way to describe supplemental wages through fringe benefits.
Given how complicated IRS regulations for fringe benefits are, employers may have a hard time avoiding errors in their tax returns. One of the most common pitfalls is to misclassify taxable benefits as non-taxable. While the IRS does exclude several categories of fringe benefits from taxation, many of these come with exceptions that have to be carefully adhered to. Another common mistake is to improperly track benefit usage. For example, employees driving a company car for personal purposes would have to be reported as imputed income, and included on their Form W-2s.
The method of valuation can vary from one benefit to the next; most, but not all, are based on FMV. An example of a benefit valuation that isn’t based on FMV is life insurance. If an employer provides group-term life insurance coverage that exceeds $50,000, it’s valued according to an IRS table that details the value of the excess coverage in increments of $1,000, depending on the employee’s age. The value of the coverage counts as imputed income, and is taxed along with the employee’s annual wages. There are several other examples like this, either because the FMV isn’t clear, or because the IRS has decided to make an exception for the fringe benefit’s valuation.
The IRS has a long list of regulations for determining the value of various fringe benefits. For many of them, employers must use fair market value. For others, the IRS publishes its own methods of valuation. Even if the employer pays more or less than FMV (or the employee feels that they receive more or less than the FMV of the benefit itself), employers still have to comply with IRS regulations for how to calculate fringe benefits.
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In order to be useful for both employees and employers, fringe benefits should align with the needs of employees. For example, employee discounts could be helpful from a business that offers in-demand goods or services to the public, but much less so from a company that manufactures parts for wind turbines. Many employers offer fringe benefits that end up being underutilized, simply because employees aren’t interested in them. To encourage employees to take full advantage of fringe benefits, employers should consider which ones can provide the most value to their workforce as a whole.
There are plenty of potential advantages to providing fringe benefits, including financial ones. However, this doesn’t mean that any and every benefit would be a good choice for both employees and employers. Before deciding to offer any fringe benefits, employers should conduct a thorough cost-benefit analysis to make sure that it’s a sound decision for their business.
The majority of fringe benefits are taxable, and the IRS provides a dizzying level of detail for any business that offers them. Even tax-exempt fringe benefits have exceptions – for instance, achievement awards are non-taxable unless they exceed $1,600 in value. IRS regulations regarding fringe benefits are quite complex, and even the smallest overlooked detail can result in consequences for the employer. This being the case, many businesses decide to hire experts who can ensure compliance with fringe benefit regulations.
In order to optimize their fringe benefit offerings, employers should consider a few different factors.
By optimizing which fringe benefits are being offered, employers can work towards increasing employee satisfaction, improving retention rates, and enjoying the potential financial advantages of a well-tailored benefit package.