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Self-employment tax calculator
Self-employment tax — Social Security + Medicare — is the part of your tax bill that most first-time 1099 workers forget about. Drop in your net SE income and we'll show you what you owe, how the half-SE-tax deduction helps, and how the wage-base cap and Additional Medicare surtax factor in.
Your estimate
Enter a net self-employment income above to see your SE tax breakdown.
Why is SE tax so high?
As a self-employed person you pay both the employer share (7.65%) and the employee share (7.65%) of payroll taxes — the same total a traditional employee and their employer split. The IRS lets you deduct half of it on Schedule 1 to even things out with W-2 workers a little, but the SE tax itself is the full 15.3% (up to the Social Security wage base; 2.9% above).
About the math
- Uses 2026 figures: Social Security wage base $176,100, SE tax rate 15.3% up to that cap and 2.9% above.
- Additional Medicare surtax: 0.9% on combined wages + SE earnings over $200,000 (Single, HoH), $125,000 (MFS), or $250,000 (MFJ).
- W-2 wages reduce the remaining Social Security wage base available to your SE income (they don't reduce your SE tax directly).
- The “deduction benefit” is an estimate at a 22% marginal rate — common for self-employed filers, but verify against your actual marginal bracket.
- Quarterly estimated payments should cover both income tax and SE tax — quarterly tax calculator →
For educational purposes only. Consult a tax professional before sending money to the IRS based on a number from a website. See also: Freelancer tax deductions guide.