🇺🇸 United States Freelancer Tax Calculator
Estimate your after-tax income as a self-employed worker in the United States.
Estimated after-tax income
$44,359
≈ $15,641 in tax & contributions
Includes the 15.3% self-employment tax (Social Security + Medicare, both halves) plus federal income tax. State income tax and the half-SE-tax deduction are approximated.
Estimate only — not tax advice. Figures are estimates based on publicly available tax rules and may not reflect your full circumstances. See our methodology & sources. Always confirm with an official tax authority or a licensed adviser before making decisions.
Self-employment tax in the United States
Self-employed Americans pay self-employment tax (15.3%, covering both halves of Social Security and Medicare) on top of income tax, but can deduct half of it and many business expenses. It's a structurally different calculation from W-2 payroll — use the freelancer calculator.
Freelance taxation in the United States differs from United States employee payroll in three ways: who pays the social contributions, how and when you file, and which expenses you can deduct. The calculator above gives a simplified United States estimate — for anything beyond a ballpark, especially around deductible expenses and the special regimes the United States, speak to a qualified accountant.
Want the employee picture instead? Use the United States salary calculator.
Employee or freelancer, on the same money
On the same $60,000 of United States income, our estimate leaves a freelancer about $4,239 a year behind an employee — roughly $353 a month, against employee take-home of $4,050. That $353 is what a United States freelance rate has to absorb before it has priced in unpaid holiday or the gaps between contracts.
Deductible business expenses are the largest omission from the United States freelance column, and they work in your favour: equipment, software, professional insurance, an accountant and a legitimate share of home-office costs all come off profit before this arithmetic starts, so a freelancer with $9,000of genuine costs is comparing a much smaller taxable figure than the table shows. Includes the 15.3% self-employment tax (Social Security + Medicare, both halves) plus federal income tax. State income tax and the half-SE-tax deduction are approximated.
| Annual profit | As an employee | As a freelancer | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| $45,000 | $37,402 | $34,223 | −$3,179 |
| $60,000 | $48,597 | $44,359 | −$4,239 |
| $90,000 | $67,867 | $61,509 | −$6,358 |
| $120,000 | $86,182 | $77,704 | −$8,478 |
Frequently Asked Questions
+How are freelancers taxed in the United States?
Self-employment the United States is assessed on profit rather than gross pay, and you carry the contributions an employer would otherwise share. On $60,000 of profit our estimate leaves $44,359 after tax and contributions, before any deductible business expenses. The section above sets out how the United States rules work in detail.
+Is freelance tax higher than employee tax in the United States?
On the same $60,000, our estimate leaves a freelancer about $4,239 a year worse off than an employee — roughly $353 a month. Deductible United States business expenses are not modelled here and can move that $353 materially in your favour.
+What day rate do I need to match a salary in the United States?
To match the $60,000 median as a United States freelancer you need profit of roughly that figure before expenses, then divide by the days you can realistically bill — 200 to 220 after holiday, sickness, admin and gaps, not 260. On 210 days that is about $286 a day as a floor, not a target.
+How much should I set aside for tax as a freelancer in the United States?
At $60,000 of profit our estimate puts total tax and contributions near 26%. Setting aside that share of every United States invoice into a separate account, plus a margin, is the habit that prevents the annual scramble — on $60,000 of profit that is roughly $1,303 a month put aside.
Estimate only — not tax advice. Figures are estimates based on publicly available tax rules and may not reflect your full circumstances. See our methodology & sources (last reviewed June 2026). Always confirm with an official tax authority or a licensed adviser before making decisions.