USA self-employed net income calculator (federal)
Your federal net income as a US sole proprietor is net earnings minus self-employment tax at 15.3% of 92.35% of them, then federal income tax after deducting half the SE tax, the 20% QBI deduction and the standard deduction.
Worked example: with Annual net business earnings of 100,000, this model computes Net income / year 78,343.85. See the full breakdown.
⚠ Illustrative rates Updated for 2026 · sources checked 2026-08-22
How self-employed (federal) in USA is calculated
Self-employment tax is the charge that surprises everyone who leaves a salary. It is 15.3% covering both the employee and employer halves of Social Security and Medicare, computed on 92.35% of net earnings, and it is due before a single dollar of income tax — on a 100,000 USD year it exceeds the federal income tax by nearly a factor of two.
Three deductions push back. Half the SE tax comes off income, the qualified business income deduction removes a further 20%, and the standard deduction applies on top. The Social Security portion also stops at the annual wage base, so the marginal rate on self-employment tax drops from 15.3% to 2.9% once you pass it — one of the few places in the US code where a marginal rate falls.
Worked example
| Annual net business earnings (USD) | 100000 |
|---|---|
| Se Tax Base ✓ | 92350 |
| Self-employment tax ✓ | 14129.55 |
| QBI deduction (20%) ✓ | 18587.05 |
| Taxable Income ✓ | 58248.18 |
| Federal income tax ✓ | 7526.6 |
| Net income / year (federal only) ✓ | 78343.85 |
Every row is computed by the engine from the inputs above. Rows marked ✓ are additionally pinned by a published self-test vector.
Frequently asked questions
How much is self-employment tax on 100,000 USD?
About 14,130 USD — 15.3% of 92.35% of net earnings. Half of it is deductible against income tax, and federal income tax on top comes to roughly 7,527 USD for a single filer.
What is the QBI deduction?
A deduction of 20% of qualified business income for pass-through owners including sole proprietors. It is subject to taxable-income and specified-service limits that this model does not apply.
Does this include state tax?
No. Only federal tax is modelled. State and local income taxes are separate and range from nothing in several states to over 10% in others, so your real net income may be considerably lower.
Sources
- IRS — Self-employment tax (Social Security and Medicare taxes) · checked 2026-08-22
- 2026 federal income tax brackets and standard deduction (Rev. Proc. 2025-32) · checked 2026-08-22
Estimate. Not tax advice. The rates in this calculator are illustrative: they reproduce the shape of the charge through 3 self-test cases, but they are not the official schedule, so the amount shown will not match your bill. Use the official source above for that.
Check the arithmetic yourself: how this calculator is verified — the formula behind every derived value, the 3 test cases the engine reproduces, and what the badge does and does not claim. Also available as machine-readable JSON.
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Also for USA: United States take-home pay · United States registration
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