Estimate your 2026 self-employment tax, the federal income tax on your freelance profit and how much to set aside each quarter. Enter your income and expenses and the numbers update instantly.
Updated for the 2026 tax year · figures from IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32 and the Social Security Administration
2026 tax year estimate using IRS brackets, the standard deduction and the $184,500 Social Security wage base. It doesn’t include credits, other deductions or local taxes. Not tax advice.
Enter what you expect to earn: your total freelance or 1099 income for the year, before expenses.
Add your business expenses: software, equipment, a share of your phone and internet, coworking and anything else you can deduct on Schedule C.
Choose your filing status and, if you also have a job, add your W-2 salary. A salary changes which bracket your freelance income falls into and how much room is left under the Social Security cap.
Add your state’s income tax rate for a rough state estimate, or leave it at 0 if your state has no income tax.
You’ll see the total to set aside, how it splits between self-employment tax and income tax, and the amount to pay each quarter.
When you work for an employer, Social Security and Medicare taxes are split: you pay 7.65% and your employer pays the other 7.65%. When you work for yourself, you’re both, so you pay the full 15.3%: 12.4% for Social Security and 2.9% for Medicare. That’s self-employment tax, and it applies once your net earnings reach $400 in a year.
It comes on top of regular income tax, which is why a first tax bill as a freelancer often feels bigger than expected.
Start with net profit: your self-employment income minus business expenses.
Multiply by 92.35%. This mirrors the employer half of the tax that employees never see, so only 92.35% of your profit is taxed.
Apply 15.3%: 12.4% for Social Security on earnings up to $184,500 in 2026 (combined with any W-2 wages) and 2.9% for Medicare on everything.
Add 0.9% Additional Medicare tax on earnings above $200,000 ($250,000 if married filing jointly, $125,000 if filing separately).
Deduct half of it (not counting the extra 0.9%) when you work out your income tax.
Example: $80,000 of freelance profit
A single filer with $80,000 of net profit and no other income pays $11,303.64 in self-employment tax: 92.35% of $80,000 is $73,880, and 15.3% of that is $11,303.64. Half of it, $5,651.82, is deductible. After the $16,100 standard deduction and the qualified business income deduction, federal income tax comes to about $5,344. The total is roughly $16,647, or about $4,162 per quarter.
Here’s how the bill grows with profit for a single filer with no other income, using the standard deduction and the QBI deduction:
Net profit
SE tax
Federal income tax
Total
Effective rate
$20,000
$2,825.91
$198.96
$3,024.87
15.1%
$50,000
$7,064.78
$2,667.29
$9,732.07
19.5%
$80,000
$11,303.64
$5,343.83
$16,647.47
20.8%
$120,000
$16,955.46
$11,506.32
$28,461.78
23.7%
$200,000
$28,234.30
$25,196.31
$53,430.61
26.7%
Your freelance profit, minus half your self-employment tax and your deductions, is taxed at these 2026 rates. Each rate applies only to the part of your income inside its band.
Rate
Single
Married filing jointly
Head of household
10%
Up to $12,400
Up to $24,800
Up to $17,700
12%
$12,401–$50,400
$24,801–$100,800
$17,701–$67,450
22%
$50,401–$105,700
$100,801–$211,400
$67,451–$105,700
24%
$105,701–$201,775
$211,401–$403,550
$105,701–$201,750
32%
$201,776–$256,225
$403,551–$512,450
$201,751–$256,200
35%
$256,226–$640,600
$512,451–$768,700
$256,201–$640,600
37%
Over $640,600
Over $768,700
Over $640,600
The 2026 standard deduction is $16,100 for single filers and married couples filing separately, $32,200 for married couples filing jointly, and $24,150 for heads of household.
Business expenses. Every legitimate expense reduces both income tax and self-employment tax, so tracking them pays off twice.
Half of your self-employment tax. It’s deducted on Schedule 1, and the calculator includes it automatically.
Qualified business income (QBI) deduction. Many freelancers can deduct up to 20% of their business profit. Without employees, it phases out between $201,750 and $276,750 of taxable income for single filers ($403,500 to $553,500 for joint filers), and from 2026 anyone with at least $1,000 of qualifying income gets a minimum deduction of $400.
Retirement contributions. A SEP IRA or solo 401(k) can cut your income tax a lot. The calculator doesn’t include them.
Health insurance premiums. What you pay for yourself and your family is usually deductible if you’re self-employed. Also not included in the estimate.
Looking for more write-offs? Our tax deduction cheat sheet lists the common ones.
Nobody withholds tax from freelance income, so the IRS expects you to pay as you go with quarterly estimated payments on Form 1040-ES. For income earned in 2026, the due dates are:
Income earned
Payment due
January 1 – March 31, 2026
April 15, 2026
April 1 – May 31, 2026
June 15, 2026
June 1 – August 31, 2026
September 15, 2026
September 1 – December 31, 2026
January 15, 2027
Paying late or too little can lead to an underpayment penalty. You’re generally safe if you pay at least 90% of this year’s tax, or 100% of last year’s (110% if your adjusted gross income was over $150,000).
Most states tax freelance income as well, and rates and rules vary a lot. Nine states don’t tax wages or self-employment income at all: Alaska, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming. Elsewhere, add your state’s rate in the calculator for a rough figure, and check your state’s revenue department for exact brackets.
How much is self-employment tax in 2026?
Do I pay self-employment tax if I earn less than $400?
Is self-employment tax the same as income tax?
How much should I set aside for taxes as a freelancer?
Can I deduct self-employment tax?
When are quarterly estimated taxes due for 2026?
Does having a W-2 job change my self-employment tax?
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