Self-employment tax calculator, 2026
Enter your net profit and see each step of the calculation: the 92.35% rule, Social Security up to the $184,500 wage base, Medicare, and the half you can deduct.
Sources: IRS, self-employment tax and SSA, contribution and benefit base. Checked 2026-09-25.
This is self-employment tax only. Federal and state income tax are separate.
Questions
What is the self-employment tax rate for 2026? 15.3%: 12.4% for Social Security and 2.9% for Medicare, applied to 92.35% of your net profit. The Social Security part stops at the 2026 wage base of $184,500.
Why 92.35% and not all of my profit? Schedule SE multiplies net profit by 92.35% first, which takes off 7.65%: the half of Social Security and Medicare an employer would pay for an employee.
Do I pay it if I made very little? Not if your net earnings from self-employment are under $400.
Can I deduct self-employment tax? Half of the 12.4% and 2.9% parts is an adjustment to income. The 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax is not part of that deduction.
When is it paid? Through quarterly estimated tax payments with your income tax, and settled on your return.
Your profit, worked out from your books
AFGTracker adds up the year from your invoices, expenses and mileage and estimates each quarter with this same calculation, plus income tax.
General information from IRS and SSA publications, not tax advice. It does not cover church employee income, farm or non-farm optional methods, or combining more than one business. AFGTracker is a product of Arqam Financial Group.