Self-Employment Tax Calculator
Calculate self-employment tax (Social Security + Medicare), income tax, and quarterly estimated payments for freelancers and 1099 workers.
Self-employment tax (SE)
$9,891
15.3% on 92.35% of net SE income
Quarterly estimated payment
$3,954
Federal SE + income tax ÷ 4
Net SE income
$70,000
Gross $80,000 − expenses $10,000
Deductible half of SE tax
$4,945
Reduces AGI as above-the-line deduction
Federal income tax
$5,926
On AGI of $65,055
Total tax + effective rate
$15,817
22.6% effective rate
Show the math
Self-employment tax is 15.3% applied to 92.35% of net SE income (the 7.65% reduction approximates the employer half). Half of the SE tax is then deducted from gross income to compute AGI before income tax.
Net SE income = $80,000 − $10,000 expenses = $70,000 | SE tax = $70,000 × 92.35% × 15.3% = $9,891
AGI = $70,000 − $4,945 (½ SE tax deduction) = $65,055 | Federal income tax = $5,926
Total tax of $15,817 gives an effective rate of 22.6%. Divide by 4 for quarterly estimated payments of $3,954.