Schedule SE tax on net profit

Self-Employment Tax Calculator

Figure Schedule SE tax on net profit after the 92.35% factor, sharing the Social Security wage base with W-2 wages, plus Form 8959 Additional Medicare Tax.

Your numbers

Self-employment tax

Schedule SE tax on net profit, after the 92.35% factor, sharing the Social Security wage base with any W-2 wages.

TAX YEAR 2026

2026 Schedule SE (Form 1040) draft and 2026 Instructions for Schedule SE (Form 1040)us-tax-2026-v1

Net profit from self-employment$Schedule C line 31, combined with farm profit if you have it

W-2 Social Security wages$Box 3. Reduces the remaining Social Security wage base

Filing status

Medicare wages for Additional Medicare Tax

W-2 Medicare wages$Box 5. Leave blank to use Social Security wages

Schedule SE tax

$7,064.78$46,175.00 of net earnings from self-employment

Deductible one-half$3,532.39Schedule SE line 13, not Additional Medicare Tax

Additional Medicare Tax$0.00Form 8959, not deductible

Social Security remaining$184,500.00Of the $184,500.00 wage base

High confidenceArithmetic follows the 2026 Schedule SE draft and SSA wage base; Church employee income and optional methods are not modelled; A filed return rounds each line to whole dollars.

How we got this

Net profit$50,000.00
Net earnings from self-employmentSchedule SE line 4a: profit × 0.9235$46,175.00
Social Security 12.4%On $46,175.00 of the $184,500.00 wage base$5,725.70
Medicare 2.9%No wage-base cap$1,339.08
Schedule SE tax$7,064.78
Deductible one-halfSchedule SE line 13. Additional Medicare Tax is not deductible$3,532.39
Additional Medicare Tax (Form 8959)Combined Medicare wages and net earnings are not over the $200,000.00 threshold for Single$0.00

What we assumed

Tax year 2026. Schedule SE Social Security 12.4% and Medicare 2.9% are twice the employee FICA rates in the snapshot, which is how the form is written.
Net profit above $0 is multiplied by 0.9235 before the tax. That is Schedule SE line 4a, not a rounded estimate.
W-2 Social Security wages of $0.00 reduce the remaining Social Security wage base. They do not reduce Medicare.
Form 8959 Additional Medicare Tax uses combined Medicare wages and net SE earnings over the Single threshold. It is not part of Schedule SE and is not included in the deductible half.
A filed Schedule SE rounds each line to whole dollars, so this estimate can differ by up to $0.50 per line.
Church employee income, the farm and nonfarm optional methods, ministers and Form 4361, Conservation Reserve Program payments, and QBI are not modelled. Omitting an optional method can understate Social Security credits; it does not invent extra tax here.
This is self-employment tax only — not income tax on the profit, and not state tax.
Sources: 2026 Schedule SE (Form 1040) draft and 2026 Instructions for Schedule SE (Form 1040); OASDI contribution and benefit base; Additional Medicare Tax from the IRS Q&A.

Technical details

Method self-employment-tax-v1.0.0Data us-tax-2026-v1

Guide

Why self-employment tax is 15.3% of something smaller than profit

CostAnswer editorialIndependent calculator publisher

Schedule SE does not take 15.3% of whatever Schedule C printed. It first knocks the profit down by 7.65%, then splits what is left between Social Security that shares a wage base with any W-2 job and Medicare that does not.

The 92.35% factor is the deductible half coming out first

An employee and employer each pay 7.65% of FICA. A self-employed person pays both sides, then deducts one-half of the Schedule SE tax on Form 1040. The form approximates that deduction up front by taxing only 92.35% of net profit when profit is positive.

If that figure is under $400, Schedule SE is not filed and the tax is zero. The optional methods that can create Social Security credits on a loss or a tiny profit are not on this page.

W-2 wages use the Social Security wage base first

Social Security on self-employment is 12.4%, but only on net earnings that fit in the remaining wage base after Form W-2 box 3. Someone already at the cap from a job pays Medicare on the profit and no more Social Security.

Additional Medicare Tax is a different 0.9% on Form 8959 once combined Medicare wages and net SE earnings pass a filing-status threshold. It is not deductible.

This is not income tax on the profit

Schedule SE is a payroll tax. Ordinary income tax on the same profit is a separate line, and so is any state tax. Using this number as “what I owe on my gig work” understates the return.

Questions about this calculator

Why is self-employment tax not 15.3% of my profit?

Because Schedule SE first multiplies a positive profit by 92.35%, then charges 12.4% Social Security only up to the remaining wage base and 2.9% Medicare on all net earnings.

The 15.3% figure is the sum of those two rates before the factor and the wage base do any work.

Can I deduct self-employment tax?

One-half of Schedule SE tax is deductible in figuring adjusted gross income. Additional Medicare Tax on Form 8959 is not part of that half.

Do W-2 wages change my Schedule SE tax?

They reduce the Social Security wage base left for the profit. They do not reduce Medicare on net earnings, and they can start Additional Medicare Tax sooner when combined with those earnings.

Terms used here

Net earnings from self-employment: Positive net profit multiplied by 92.35%, which is the base Schedule SE taxes.
Schedule SE: The Form 1040 schedule that figures Social Security and Medicare tax on self-employment income.
Deductible one-half: 50% of Schedule SE tax, allowed as an adjustment to income. Additional Medicare Tax is excluded.
Wage base: The annual cap on earnings subject to Social Security tax, shared between W-2 box 3 and Schedule SE.

Practical tips

If you also have a job, enter W-2 Social Security wages or the page will charge Social Security on profit that may already sit against a used-up wage base.
The deductible half lowers AGI, which can change other credits; this page does not rerun those credits.
Quarterly estimated tax is how this bill is usually paid during the year.

Limits and caveats

Church employee income, optional methods, ministers and Form 4361 are not modelled.
A filed Schedule SE rounds to whole dollars.
This is not income tax on the profit and not tax advice.

Results are for information. They are not legal, tax, medical, or financial advice. How the math is maintained · Report a wrong figure.

Engine notes

Rounding, versioning, and omissions that sit beside the guide rather than repeating it.

Net profit is not the tax base. If net profit is above $0, Schedule SE multiplies it by 92.35% before charging tax. That factor is the deductible employer-equivalent half of FICA coming out first. Below $400 of net earnings after that factor, the form is not filed and the tax is $0.
Social Security shares a wage base with W-2 wages. Social Security on self-employment is 12.4% of net earnings, but only up to the $184,500 wage base minus Social Security wages already reported on Form W-2. Medicare is 2.9% of all net earnings. Those rates are twice the employee FICA rates in the snapshot, which is how the form is written.
Additional Medicare Tax is a different form. Form 8959 charges 0.9% once combined Medicare wages and net SE earnings pass the filing-status threshold. That amount is not on Schedule SE and is not included in the deductible one-half.
What is left out. Church employee income, the farm and nonfarm optional methods, ministers and Form 4361, and QBI are not modelled. Income tax on the profit is a separate calculation.

Calculation receipt

What each number here is

This answer is built from published figures. Each one is named below, with the release it came from.

VERIFIEDIRS and state revenue departments: Sets the figures this answer is made of. Without it the page says so rather than estimating.

If a source above is unavailable or out of date: The SE rates, the net-earnings factor and the wage base are published figures.

Sources

Where this data comes from

Internal Revenue Service2026 Schedule SE (Form 1040) draft and 2026 Instructions for Schedule SE (Form 1040). Wage base from OASDI contribution and benefit base. Snapshot us-tax-2026-v1.IRS · Tax year 2026 ↗