Live in Montana, Work in Wyoming: Which State Taxes Your Paycheck?
Answer
Montana gets all of it. Because Wyoming does not tax wage income, no Wyoming withholding exists and no Wyoming return is required — but Montana taxes residents on worldwide income, so every dollar earned in Wyoming still belongs on your Montana resident return.
Last verified
The instinct that working in a no-tax state means paying no tax is the single most expensive misunderstanding in this niche. Wyoming takes nothing, but Montana still taxes residents on income earned anywhere, so the full amount lands on your Montana return.
What you file
- 1Resident return · Montana
File a Montana resident return reporting all of your income.
The two states, side by side
| Montana | Wyoming | |
|---|---|---|
| Taxes wages | Yes — graduated | No |
| Reciprocity partners | 1 (Form MW-4) | None |
| Convenience rule | No | No |
| Nonresident return | Form 2 with the nonresident/part-year schedule | Not applicable |
| Credit for other-state tax | Form 2 (credit for income tax paid to another state) | No income tax |
| Nonresident safe harbour | None published | Not applicable |
| Local income tax | No | No |
| Revenue department | Montana Department of Revenue | Wyoming Department of Revenue |
| Last verified |
The other direction
Reversing the commute does not always reverse the answer. Living in Wyoming and working in Montana gives:Work state only.
Same two states, different situation
The withholding answer turns on how you are paid and where the work happens, not only on which two states are involved.
- Remote worker: Montana → WyomingHome state only
- 1099 contractor: Montana → WyomingHome state only — estimated payments
- Moved mid-year: Montana → WyomingOne part-year return — the state you left
Other Montana pairs
Questions people actually ask
I live in Montana and work in Wyoming. Which state takes the tax out of my paycheck?
Montana gets all of it. Because Wyoming does not tax wage income, no Wyoming withholding exists and no Wyoming return is required — but Montana taxes residents on worldwide income, so every dollar earned in Wyoming still belongs on your Montana resident return.
Which state should my employer be withholding for?
Montana. Your employer should withhold Montana tax rather than Wyoming tax on these wages. If a Wyoming line is showing on your pay stub, raise it with payroll now rather than at filing time.
How current is this?
The Montana and Wyoming rules on this page were last checked against Montana Department of Revenue and Wyoming Department of Revenue on 2026-08-07. We re-check the full grid every December after state legislative sessions close, and re-check the convenience-of-the-employer states quarterly because that is where the rules move fastest.
Sources
Every fact above comes from the revenue department that publishes the rule. We do not cite secondary summaries, and we do not restate a figure we could not find at source.
- Montana Department of Revenue — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07
- Wyoming Department of Revenue — individual income taxaccessed 2026-08-07