US Freelancer Self-Employment Tax Calculator

Compute Schedule SE self-employment tax (12.4% Social Security + 2.9% Medicare on the 92.35% net SE base), the half-SE deduction, an estimated federal income tax bill, a recommended quarterly estimated payment, and a comparison vs. an equivalent W-2 take-home.

Last reviewed Apr 27, 2026 · SN

Tax year 2026 · Schedule SE

For information only — not tax, legal, accounting, or financial advice. This calculator estimates results based on the inputs you provide. It does not constitute professional advice and infoz.com is not a CPA, EA, attorney, or registered investment adviser. Tax laws change. Individual circumstances vary. Consult a qualified professional licensed in your jurisdiction before making any financial decision.

Net take-home

$74,255

Effective 25.75% · Quarterly estimate $6,436.32

Net SE income: $100,000
× 92.35% (SE base): $92,350
SS portion (12.4%): $11,451
Medicare portion (2.9%): $2,678
Total SE tax: $14,130
Half-SE deduction: − $7,065
Estimated federal income tax: $11,616
Total tax: $25,745

W-2 equivalent take-home

$80,734 — same gross income paid as W-2 wages instead of self-employment. Difference is the employer-half of FICA you pay yourself as a freelancer.

How this calculator works

The calculator follows IRS Schedule SE: adjust net SE income by 92.35%, apply 12.4% SS (capped at the wage base after W-2 wages) and 2.9% Medicare (uncapped), take half-SE as an above-the-line deduction, then estimate federal income tax.

Adjust net SE income
SE base = netSE × 0.9235.
Apply Social Security 12.4%
On the SE base, capped at the wage base. W-2 wages count first toward the cap.
Apply Medicare 2.9%
On the full SE base; no cap. Additional Medicare 0.9% is not modeled here.
Take half-SE deduction
0.5 × totalSeTax is above-the-line, reducing AGI for income tax.
Estimate federal income tax
Using the standard deduction with above-the-line items applied.
Quarterly estimate
Total tax / 4 — refine with IRS safe harbor for actual filings.

seBase = netSelfEmploymentIncome × 0.9235 ssTax = min(seBase, max(0, $176,100 − w2Wages)) × 12.4% medicareTax = seBase × 2.9% totalSeTax = ssTax + medicareTax halfSeDeduction = totalSeTax / 2

Worked example: $100,000 net SE income, single filer, no W-2

seBase = 100,000 × 0.9235 = 92,350 ssTax = 92,350 × 12.4% = 11,451.40 medicare = 92,350 × 2.9% = 2,678.15 totalSeTax = 14,129.55 halfSeDeduction = 7,064.78 Federal income tax estimate (standard deduction): AGI ≈ 100,000 − 7,064.78 ≈ 92,935 Taxable ≈ 92,935 − 16,100 = 76,835 Income tax ≈ 11,840 (roughly) Total federal tax ≈ 14,130 + 11,840 ≈ $25,970 Quarterly estimate ≈ $6,490

Sources & methodology

Every numeric input to this calculator traces back to one of the following authoritative documents.

IRS — Schedule SE (Form 1040), Self-Employment Taxprimary · accessed 2026-04-27
IRS Publication 334 — Tax Guide for Small Businessprimary · accessed 2026-04-27
IRS Publication 505 — Tax Withholding and Estimated Taxprimary · accessed 2026-04-27
SSA — Contribution and Benefit Base (2026 wage base)primary · accessed 2026-04-27

Frequently asked questions

Why is SE income multiplied by 92.35%?: The 92.35% adjustment exists because employees and employers each pay half of FICA on W-2 wages — and the employer portion is deductible. When you're self-employed you pay both halves yourself, but to keep the math equivalent, the IRS lets you compute SE tax on only 92.35% of your net SE income. The 7.65% reduction equals the employer-portion FICA rate.
How is the half-SE-tax deduction applied?: Half of your computed self-employment tax is an above-the-line deduction (Form 1040 Schedule 1) that reduces your AGI for income-tax purposes. It does NOT reduce SE tax itself.
What if I have W-2 wages too?: W-2 wages count toward the Social Security wage base FIRST. If your W-2 wages already exceed the 2026 wage base ($176,100), no additional SS tax applies to your SE income; only the 2.9% Medicare portion runs on the SE earnings. Medicare has no cap.
Is the income-tax estimate exact?: It's an estimate. The calculator uses the standard deduction and applies above-the-line deductions for half-SE, health insurance, and Solo 401(k). Itemized deductions, child tax credit, EITC, AMT, NIIT, and many other items are not modeled — for any of those, the figure will differ.
Are quarterly estimated payments accurate?: We divide total estimated tax by 4 as a starting point. The IRS safe harbor is paying 110% of prior-year tax (for AGI > $150k) or 100% of current-year tax. Use Form 1040-ES to refine quarterly amounts based on your actual cash flow.
What does the W-2 equivalent comparison show?: Same gross income, paid as W-2 wages instead of SE earnings. The difference highlights the employer-half FICA cost you bear as a freelancer. It does NOT account for benefits, employer health insurance, or 401(k) match — all of which an employee would also receive.

Important disclaimers

Calculation logic is based on data verified for US tax year 2026.

No professional advice. This calculator is provided for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute tax, legal, accounting, or financial advice. infoz.com is operated by Netlink BVI Ltd, which is not a certified public accountant, enrolled agent, attorney, registered investment adviser, or licensed financial professional in any jurisdiction. Use of this calculator does not create any professional, fiduciary, or advisory relationship.

No warranties. Results are best-effort estimates based on the inputs you provide and the data sources cited. Tax law and financial regulations change without notice; data may be revised, withdrawn, or superseded between releases. We make no warranty, express or implied, that the result is accurate, current, complete, or suitable for your situation.

No liability. To the maximum extent permitted by law, infoz.com, Netlink BVI Ltd, and the authors disclaim liability for any direct, indirect, consequential, or incidental loss arising from use of this calculator or reliance on its output. You assume all risk of your reliance on the result.

Assumptions baked in:

Sole proprietorship / single-member LLC reporting on Schedule C with net SE income flowing to Schedule SE.
Standard deduction is used for the income-tax estimate.
Filer is under 65, not blind, no dependents (income-tax estimate purposes).
Solo 401(k) contributions are within IRS limits.
All income is in USD and represents annual figures.

What this calculator does NOT cover:

Additional Medicare 0.9% above $200k single / $250k MFJ.
Net Investment Income Tax (NIIT) 3.8%.
QBI (Section 199A) 20% qualified business income deduction.
Itemized deductions, child tax credit, EITC, AMT.
State and local self-employment / income tax (CA, NY, etc.).
Multi-member LLC / partnership / S-Corp with K-1 distributions.
Solo 401(k) employer profit-sharing contribution.
SEP IRA, SIMPLE IRA, defined benefit / cash balance plans.
Quarterly safe-harbor calculations (Form 1040-ES Worksheet).
Underpayment penalty calculations.

Talk to a professional. For decisions that involve real money — filing a return, structuring compensation, choosing an investment strategy — consult a qualified, licensed professional who can review your full circumstances. The cost of one consultation is almost always less than the cost of a wrong decision.

See the full site-wide legal disclaimer and terms for additional notices, including AI-assisted content disclosures and third-party data attribution.

US Freelancer Self-Employment Tax Calculator

Last reviewed Apr 27, 2026 · SN

Tax year 2026 · Schedule SE

Frequently asked questions

Why is SE income multiplied by 92.35%?

The 92.35% adjustment exists because employees and employers each pay half of FICA on W-2 wages — and the employer portion is deductible. When you're self-employed you pay both halves yourself, but to keep the math equivalent, the IRS lets you compute SE tax on only 92.35% of your net SE income. The 7.65% reduction equals the employer-portion FICA rate.

How is the half-SE-tax deduction applied?

Half of your computed self-employment tax is an above-the-line deduction (Form 1040 Schedule 1) that reduces your AGI for income-tax purposes. It does NOT reduce SE tax itself.

What if I have W-2 wages too?

W-2 wages count toward the Social Security wage base FIRST. If your W-2 wages already exceed the 2026 wage base ($176,100), no additional SS tax applies to your SE income; only the 2.9% Medicare portion runs on the SE earnings. Medicare has no cap.

Is the income-tax estimate exact?

It's an estimate. The calculator uses the standard deduction and applies above-the-line deductions for half-SE, health insurance, and Solo 401(k). Itemized deductions, child tax credit, EITC, AMT, NIIT, and many other items are not modeled — for any of those, the figure will differ.

Are quarterly estimated payments accurate?

We divide total estimated tax by 4 as a starting point. The IRS safe harbor is paying 110% of prior-year tax (for AGI > $150k) or 100% of current-year tax. Use Form 1040-ES to refine quarterly amounts based on your actual cash flow.

What does the W-2 equivalent comparison show?

Same gross income, paid as W-2 wages instead of SE earnings. The difference highlights the employer-half FICA cost you bear as a freelancer. It does NOT account for benefits, employer health insurance, or 401(k) match — all of which an employee would also receive.

US Freelancer Self-Employment Tax Calculator

How this calculator works

Worked example: $100,000 net SE income, single filer, no W-2

Sources & methodology

Frequently asked questions

Related

Important disclaimers

US Freelancer Self-Employment Tax Calculator

How this calculator works

Worked example: $100,000 net SE income, single filer, no W-2

Sources & methodology

Frequently asked questions

Related

Important disclaimers