Work out what to send the IRS each quarter so you avoid underpayment penalties and an April surprise.
Payment per quarter
$4,819
April, June, September, January.
Enter last year's tax.
Your estimated 2025 federal tax is $19,274 — $11,304 of self-employment tax plus $7,971 of income tax. After $0 already withheld, $19,274 remains, or $4,819 per quarterly payment. Estimated payments are due in April, June, September and the following January.
If you pay at least 100% of last year's total tax (110% if your AGI exceeds $150,000) across your estimates and withholding, you generally avoid underpayment penalties even if you end up owing more. Enter last year's tax above to see that number — it's especially useful when this year's income is unpredictable.
The IRS charges an underpayment penalty when too little is paid during the year, calculated quarter by quarter — so paying everything in the final quarter doesn't fix an earlier shortfall. The penalty is effectively interest on the amount that was late. Paying on schedule, or meeting safe harbor, is what avoids it.
These payments come from your projected annual tax. See the full breakdown of self-employment and income tax on your business profit.
1099 tax calculatorWorked scenarios with the full analysis, so you can see how the numbers move before entering your own.
A full-time self-employed filer paying the whole liability through estimates.
Payment per quarter
$4,819
Your estimated 2025 federal tax is $19,274 — $11,304 of self-employment tax plus $7,971 of income tax. After $0 already withheld, $19,274 remains, or $4,819 per quarterly payment. Estimated payments are due in April, June, September and the following January.
If you pay at least 100% of last year's total tax (110% if your AGI exceeds $150,000) across your estimates and withholding, you generally avoid underpayment penalties even if you end up owing more. Enter last year's tax above to see that number — it's especially useful when this year's income is unpredictable.
The IRS charges an underpayment penalty when too little is paid during the year, calculated quarter by quarter — so paying everything in the final quarter doesn't fix an earlier shortfall. The penalty is effectively interest on the amount that was late. Paying on schedule, or meeting safe harbor, is what avoids it.
Salary withholding covers part of the bill, so estimates only need to cover the rest.
Payment per quarter
$2,244
Your estimated 2025 federal tax is $22,977 — $4,239 of self-employment tax plus $18,738 of income tax. After $14,000 already withheld, $8,977 remains, or $2,244 per quarterly payment. Estimated payments are due in April, June, September and the following January.
If you pay at least 100% of last year's total tax (110% if your AGI exceeds $150,000) across your estimates and withholding, you generally avoid underpayment penalties even if you end up owing more. Enter last year's tax above to see that number — it's especially useful when this year's income is unpredictable.
The IRS charges an underpayment penalty when too little is paid during the year, calculated quarter by quarter — so paying everything in the final quarter doesn't fix an earlier shortfall. The penalty is effectively interest on the amount that was late. Paying on schedule, or meeting safe harbor, is what avoids it.
A filer with variable income paying based on last year's tax to guarantee no penalty.
Payment per quarter
$6,565
Your estimated 2025 federal tax is $26,261 — $16,955 of self-employment tax plus $9,306 of income tax. After $0 already withheld, $26,261 remains, or $6,565 per quarterly payment. Estimated payments are due in April, June, September and the following January.
You can sidestep underpayment penalties entirely by paying 100% of last year's total tax ($21,000), regardless of what you actually end up owing — the higher 110% threshold applies because your income is above $150,000. That's $5,250 per quarter after withholding. It's the safer route when this year's income is hard to predict.
The IRS charges an underpayment penalty when too little is paid during the year, calculated quarter by quarter — so paying everything in the final quarter doesn't fix an earlier shortfall. The penalty is effectively interest on the amount that was late. Paying on schedule, or meeting safe harbor, is what avoids it.
AGI over $150,000, where the safe harbor requires 110% of last year's tax.
Payment per quarter
$15,294
Your estimated 2025 federal tax is $61,177 — $27,193 of self-employment tax plus $33,984 of income tax. After $0 already withheld, $61,177 remains, or $15,294 per quarterly payment. Estimated payments are due in April, June, September and the following January.
You can sidestep underpayment penalties entirely by paying 110% of last year's total tax ($52,800), regardless of what you actually end up owing — the higher 110% threshold applies because your income is above $150,000. That's $13,200 per quarter after withholding. It's the safer route when this year's income is hard to predict.
The IRS charges an underpayment penalty when too little is paid during the year, calculated quarter by quarter — so paying everything in the final quarter doesn't fix an earlier shortfall. The penalty is effectively interest on the amount that was late. Paying on schedule, or meeting safe harbor, is what avoids it.
The US tax system is pay-as-you-go. Employees satisfy this through paycheck withholding; anyone with income that isn't withheld — freelancers, contractors, business owners, and people with significant investment or rental income — generally must make estimated payments four times a year. The threshold is expecting to owe $1,000 or more when you file.
Payments are due in mid-April, mid-June, mid-September and mid-January of the following year. Note the quarters aren't evenly spaced, which surprises people. Each payment should cover the tax on income earned in that period, which is why paying everything at the end doesn't avoid a penalty for earlier shortfalls.
The most useful protection for anyone with unpredictable income is the safe harbor. If your withholding plus estimated payments total at least 100% of last year's tax liability — or 110% if your adjusted gross income exceeded $150,000 — you generally avoid underpayment penalties no matter how much more you end up owing. You'll still owe the balance at filing, but without a penalty.
This is enormously helpful for a year when income jumps unexpectedly. Rather than trying to forecast a moving target, you can simply pay based on the known prior-year figure and settle up in April. The alternative method — paying 90% of the current year's actual tax — works too, but requires accurate forecasting that most variable-income earners can't manage.
Penalties are computed quarter by quarter. A late catch-up payment doesn't undo an earlier shortfall.
Paying 100–110% of last year's tax guarantees no penalty. It's the simplest protection for variable income.
Estimates must cover both income tax and the 15.3% SE tax. Budgeting only for income tax falls far short.
The quarters aren't three months apart. Note April, June, September and January specifically.
A big change mid-year should change your remaining estimates. Recalculate rather than repeating the same amount.
Estimate your total annual tax — income tax plus self-employment tax — subtract any withholding, and divide the remainder by four. On $80,000 of business profit, that's often around $5,000 a quarter. Alternatively, use the safe harbor: pay 100% of last year's tax (110% if AGI over $150,000) to guarantee no penalty.
Estimated payments are generally due April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15 of the following year. The periods aren't evenly spaced, which catches people out. If a due date falls on a weekend or holiday, it moves to the next business day.
The IRS charges an underpayment penalty, calculated quarter by quarter, that works like interest on the amount paid late. Crucially, paying everything in the final quarter doesn't fix an earlier shortfall. You can avoid the penalty entirely by meeting the safe-harbor threshold.
If your total withholding and estimated payments equal at least 100% of last year's tax liability — or 110% if your AGI exceeded $150,000 — you generally avoid underpayment penalties regardless of what you actually owe this year. It's the most reliable approach when your income is hard to predict.
Maybe not. If your job's withholding covers enough of your total tax, you may not need estimates. You can also increase your W-2 withholding to cover side income, which has an advantage: withholding is treated as paid evenly through the year, so it can retroactively fix an earlier shortfall in a way estimated payments cannot.
The next calculations that usually follow this one.
Estimate self-employment tax plus federal income tax on 1099 income — and what to set aside each quarter.
Estimate the Social Security and Medicare tax on your business profit — the extra 15.3% W-2 workers never see.
Bracket-by-bracket breakdown, your effective rate, and what the next dollar costs.
Estimate whether your current withholding leaves you with a refund or a bill — and what to change on your W-4.
Federal tax, FICA, state tax and deductions — see exactly what lands in your account.
Guides that explain the decisions behind these numbers.
How US federal tax brackets work, the difference between marginal and effective rates, and the deductions and accounts that actually reduce your bill.
Updated January 15, 2026
How to build a budget on take-home pay using the 50/30/20 framework, account for irregular annual costs, and fix the categories that actually matter.
Updated January 15, 2026
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