This calculator works out the 2026 self-employment tax on Schedule C profit and shows it as separate lines rather than one number: federal income tax, the Social Security portion, the Medicare portion, the Additional Medicare Tax, state income tax where a state is selected, and the quarterly amount to set aside.
What this includes
Self-employment tax on 92.35% of net profit — 12.4% Social Security to the $184,500 wage base, plus 2.9% Medicare with no cap
The deductible half of self-employment tax, taken above the line
Federal income tax, after the standard deduction and the section 199A deduction
The 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax on wages and self-employment earnings combined
State income tax as its own line, when a state is chosen
What it excludes
State and local business taxes, franchise taxes and LLC fees
The Alternative Minimum Tax, the Earned Income Credit and education credits
The section 199A W-2 wage limit above the taxable-income threshold
Itemized deductions, dependents and credits beyond the standard deduction
The 2026 rule most people get wrong: the Social Security wage base is ONE annual cap shared by W-2 wages and self-employment earnings, not one each. If you earn $150,000 in wages, only $34,500 of the base is left, so the 12.4% applies to that much of your profit and no more. Calculators that cap wages and profit separately overcharge exactly this case. The 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax works the opposite way: wages and self-employment earnings are ADDED together against a single $200,000 threshold ($250,000 married filing jointly).
2026 tax inputs and methodology reviewed by Deepak Middha, Chartered Accountant · Passed the Series 65 examination · Methodology · Editorial standards · Methodology reviewed
Business income
Schedule C net profit
$
Gross receipts minus business expenses already claimed
Further business expenses
$
Home office, mileage, section 179 — these cut SE tax as well as income tax
W-2 wages from a job
$
Wages use the Social Security wage base first, which changes the SE tax on your profit
Filing status
State
State income tax is calculated separately and never folded into the federal figures
Deductions and payments
Solo 401(k) / SEP-IRA contribution
$
Reduces income tax, never self-employment tax
Traditional IRA contribution
$
Up to $7,500 for 2026, $8,600 if 50 or over
Self-employed health insurance
$
Deducted above the line; also reduces qualified business income
Federal tax already withheld
$
From the W-2 job, if any — reduces what quarterly payments must cover
Section 199A limits above the threshold
These only matter once taxable income passes the $201,750 threshold for this filing status. Below it the deduction is a straight 20% and neither figure is used. Both default to zero, which is the ordinary case for a sole proprietor with no employees — and above the threshold that zero is what phases the deduction out.
W-2 wages paid by the business
$
Wages the business pays to employees. The limit is 50% of this figure.
Qualified property (UBIA)
$
Unadjusted basis of depreciable property still in its recovery period. The alternative limit is 25% of wages plus 2.5% of this.
Your Schedule SE, line by line
Line 3 — net profit after expenses$85,000
Line 4a — net earnings (× 92.35%)$78,498
The 7.65% haircut mirrors the employer-side payroll tax a business would have deducted
Line 9 — earnings charged 12.4%$78,498
Line 10 — Social Security portion$9,734
Line 11 — Medicare portion (2.9%, no cap)$2,276
Line 12 — self-employment tax$12,010
Line 13 — deductible half−$6,005
An above-the-line adjustment. It lowers income tax; it does not lower self-employment tax.
Your 2026 tax, separated
Total tax
$17,800
Effective rate on profit
20.94%
Federal income tax$5,790
Schedule SE tax$12,010
Social Security plus Medicare on net earnings. Reported on Schedule SE.
Social Security$9,734
12.4% self-employment portion
Medicare$2,276
2.9% self-employment portion, uncapped
Additional Medicare Tax (0.9%)$0
Form 8959. Charged on wages and self-employment earnings COMBINED against one filing-status threshold.
State income taxnot included
Select a state above to include it
Total tax$17,800
Federal only. no state selected. Choose a state to add state income tax; the figures above exclude it.
Section 199A deduction
Qualified business income$78,995
Net profit less the deductible half of SE tax, the health-insurance deduction and retirement contributions — not 20% of revenue
20% of qualified business income$15,799
20% of taxable income before § 199A$12,579
The deduction can never exceed this, whatever the wage limit allows
Deduction applied$12,579
Limited by 20% of taxable income, not by 20% of QBI
This reduces taxable income only. It does not reduce self-employment tax — that is computed on net earnings, which § 199A never touches.
2026 quarterly set-aside
Q1 (Jan–Mar)
Due April 15, 2026
$4,450
Q2 (Apr–May)
Due June 15, 2026
$4,450
Q3 (Jun–Aug)
Due September 15, 2026
$4,450
Q4 (Sep–Dec)
Due January 15, 2027
$4,450
Projected annual tax divided by four. This is a set-aside figure, not a safe-harbor calculation. It is not a safe-harbor calculation: it ignores the prior-year safe harbor, uneven income and credits. For a penalty-proof figure use the Quarterly Estimated Tax Planner.
Tax on 1099 profit, from $20,000 to $250,000
Every figure below is produced by the same calculation as the tool above, for a single filer. The last two columns are the ones worth reading: they show what the next slice of profit actually costs, which is rarely the bracket rate people expect.
Self-employment profit only, no W-2 wages from a job, the standard deduction, no dependents, no retirement or health-insurance deductions, and no state tax. The business itself is taken to pay $0 of W-2 wages and to hold $0 of qualified property — the ordinary case for a sole proprietor with no employees — so above the section 199A threshold the W-2 wage limit reduces the deduction, and the last two rows show that happening. Every figure is this page's own calculation.
Net profit
Schedule SE tax
§ 199A deduction
Federal income tax
Total federal
Effective rate
Profit increment
Extra tax on it
Rate on the increment
$20,000
$2,826
$497
$199
$3,025
15.1%
—
—
—
$40,000
$5,652
$4,215
$1,775
$7,427
18.6%
+$20,000
+$4,402
22.0%
$60,000
$8,478
$7,932
$3,559
$12,037
20.1%
+$20,000
+$4,610
23.1%
$85,000
$12,010
$12,579
$5,790
$17,800
20.9%
+$25,000
+$5,763
23.1%
$100,000
$14,130
$15,367
$8,235
$22,365
22.4%
+$15,000
+$4,565
30.4%
$150,000
$21,194
$24,661
$16,413
$37,608
25.1%
+$50,000
+$15,243
30.5%
$250,000
$29,573
$36,152 ↓
$36,509
$66,360
26.5%
+$100,000
+$28,752
28.8%
The rate on each increment is not the bracket rate. Between $20,000 and $40,000 it is well above the 12% bracket, because self-employment tax runs at a flat 14.13% of profit alongside income tax from the first dollar. Between $150,000 and $250,000 two opposite forces meet: self-employment earnings pass the $184,500 Social Security wage base so the 12.4% portion stops, while taxable income passes the section 199A threshold so the W-2 wage limit starts cutting the deduction — marked ↓ in the table. A sole proprietor with no employees pays no W-2 wages, so at $250,000 the deduction falls from the $43,823 that 20% of taxable income would allow to $36,152. That single limit costs about $1,840 of extra federal tax, and it is the reason a high-earning sole proprietor should look at whether paying W-2 wages — through an S-Corp election or by hiring — changes the answer.
How the Self-Employment Tax Calculator works for tax year 2026, what it leaves out, and the official material behind its figures. Reviewed by Deepak Middha, Chartered Accountant · Data, formulas and sources last re-verified .
What this calculator estimates
Self-employment tax on net business profit
The Social Security and Medicare components separately
The income-tax deduction for one-half of self-employment tax
Federal income tax on the same profit, after the QBI deduction
Suggested quarterly estimated payments
What it does not calculate
Your Schedule C net profit — enter profit after business expenses
Employer-side payroll taxes if you run payroll for employees
State self-employment or business privilege taxes
Penalties for underpayment of estimated tax
Formula summary
Net profit × 92.35% = net earnings from self-employment
Social Security portion: 12.4% of net earnings up to the annual wage base, reduced by any W-2 wages already subject to Social Security
Medicare portion: 2.9% of all net earnings, plus 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax above the filing-status threshold
One-half of the resulting self-employment tax is deducted in arriving at AGI
Income tax is then computed on AGI less deductions, including QBI where it applies
Tax-year assumptions
Uses the 2026 Social Security contribution and benefit base
Uses the 2026 federal brackets and standard deduction for the income-tax portion
Assumes a calendar tax year and cash-basis reporting
Filing-status assumptions
All four filing statuses are supported for the income-tax and Additional Medicare Tax thresholds
For joint filers, the Additional Medicare Tax threshold is applied to combined earned income
Other W-2 wages you enter are treated as already subject to Social Security withholding
Important exclusions
Church-employee income, farm optional methods, and statutory-employee special rules
Self-employed health insurance and retirement-plan deductions beyond those entered
Not modelled: Alternative Minimum Tax, the kiddie tax, foreign-income and treaty rules, and any state-specific add-backs