Freelance Take-Home Pay Calculator (2026)

Your 2026 numbers

What this estimates

Self-employment tax uses 2026 Schedule SE rules (92.35% of profit, 12.4% Social Security up to $184,500 minus W-2 wages, 2.9% Medicare). Federal income tax uses the 2026 brackets and standard deduction from the IRS inflation adjustments, with half of SE tax deducted from AGI. It skips state tax, the QBI deduction, credits, and itemizing, so treat it as a planning sketch.

Sources: IRS newsroom tax year 2026 inflation adjustments; SSA 2026 contribution and benefit base. Pair with the self-employment tax and estimated tax safe-harbor calculators for the pieces behind this total.

Keep a running quarterly estimate

The Freelancer Income & Quarterly Tax Tracker logs invoices and expenses and keeps a running quarterly estimate so January 15, 2027 is not a scramble. Excel and Google Sheets, instant download.

Questions

What is freelance take-home pay?

Roughly your net profit after self-employment tax and federal income tax. Real take-home also depends on state tax, retirement contributions, health premiums, and credits this calculator does not include.

Why is self-employment tax so high?

You pay both the employee and employer share of Social Security and Medicare (15.3% on most of your net earnings). Half of that tax is deductible when figuring AGI.

Which 2026 standard deduction does this use?

Single and married filing separately $16,100; married filing jointly $32,200; head of household $24,150 (IRS tax year 2026 inflation adjustments).

Is this tax advice?

No. It is a free browser-only planning tool. Special cases and state rules can change the result a lot, so check with a tax professional.