Quarterly Estimated Taxes for the Self-Employed

When you work for an employer, tax comes out of every paycheck and you barely think about it. When you work for yourself, nobody withholds anything. The IRS still expects to be paid as the income comes in, not in one lump the following spring, and the way you do that is with quarterly estimated tax payments.

This guide covers who needs to pay, the due dates for tax year 2026, how Form 1040-ES fits in, and a simple routine for setting money aside so the payments are never a scramble.

Who has to pay estimated tax

For tax year 2026, the IRS says you generally need to make estimated payments if you expect to owe $1,000 or more when you file, after subtracting withholding and refundable credits. The rules are on the IRS’s estimated taxes page and in Publication 505.

That usually includes:

• Sole proprietors and freelancers who file Schedule C.
• Owners of a single-member LLC taxed as a sole proprietorship.
• Landlords whose rental profit isn’t covered by withholding.
• People with a side business alongside a job, if the job’s withholding doesn’t cover the extra tax.

Estimated tax covers both your income tax and your self-employment tax, the Social Security and Medicare tax you pay on your own business profit. For tax year 2026, self-employment tax is 15.3% on 92.35% of net earnings, as the IRS explains on its self-employment tax page. Many new freelancers forget this part, and it’s often the larger surprise.

The due dates for tax year 2026

The four payments for tax year 2026 are due on:

1. April 15, 2026, for income earned January through March.
2. June 15, 2026, for April and May.
3. September 15, 2026, for June through August.
4. January 15, 2027, for September through December.

If a date falls on a weekend or legal holiday, the payment is due the next business day. Notice that the “quarters” aren’t equal: the second covers two months and the fourth covers four. Plan your set-aside around the due dates, not around calendar quarters.

Form 1040-ES

Form 1040-ES is the IRS’s package for estimated tax. It has a worksheet to estimate what you’ll owe for the year and payment vouchers if you pay by mail. Most people pay online instead, and the IRS’s estimated taxes page lists the ways to pay. Whichever way you pay, keep a record of each payment: the date, the amount and the confirmation. You’ll enter the total on your return, and the IRS will compare it with what it received.

How much to pay

There are two common approaches.

Estimate this tax year’s tax

Project your income for the tax year, figure the tax on it, and pay a quarter of it by each due date. This works well if your income is steady and you have last year’s numbers to start from.

Use the safe harbor

The IRS also gives you a way to avoid an underpayment penalty even if your estimate turns out low. For tax year 2026, you generally avoid the penalty by paying the smaller of 90% of your 2026 tax or 100% of the tax shown on your 2025 return, or 110% of it if your 2025 adjusted gross income was over $150,000 ($75,000 if married filing separately). Details are in Publication 505. The safe harbor gets its own guide later; the short version is that paying based on last year’s tax is the simplest way to stay out of trouble when income is hard to predict.

A worked example

Maya is a freelance designer. She expects about $60,000 of net profit on her Schedule C for tax year 2026, and she has no other job.

Self-employment tax. Her net earnings for this purpose are 92.35% of $60,000, which is $55,410. At 15.3%, that’s $8,477.73.

Income tax. Income tax depends on her filing status, deductions and other income, so she uses the 1040-ES worksheet with her preparer. Suppose it comes to about $6,000.

Total. About $14,478 for the year, or roughly $3,620 per payment.

The monthly set-aside. Because the payment periods are uneven, Maya doesn’t try to save exactly a quarter each quarter. She moves money every month instead: $14,478 divided by 12 is about $1,207, which she rounds to $1,250 and transfers to a separate savings account on the day she’s paid. When a due date comes, the money is already there.

If her income rises partway through the tax year, she redoes the estimate and raises the transfer. If it falls, she lowers it.

A set-aside routine that works

A few habits make estimated tax routine:

• Keep a separate tax account. A savings account used only for tax makes it obvious what’s spoken for. Money left in your main account tends to get spent.
• Move money when you’re paid, not when tax is due. Either a fixed monthly amount, as in Maya’s case, or a percentage of each payment you receive. Choose the percentage with your preparer based on your own numbers.
• Put the due dates in your calendar with a reminder a week ahead.
• Look at your profit every month. Estimated tax depends on profit, not revenue. If your expenses are tracked, you can see whether your set-aside still matches.
• Record each payment as a tax payment, not a business expense. Federal income tax isn’t a business expense on Schedule C.

If you miss a payment

Pay as soon as you can. The underpayment penalty is figured on how much was short and for how long, so a late payment is better than a missed one. The IRS explains how the penalty works, and when it can be reduced or waived, in Publication 505. If you’ve fallen behind, a tax professional can help you work out the catch-up.

State estimated tax

Most states with an income tax have their own estimated payments, with their own forms and dates. They often line up with the federal dates but not always. Check your state’s revenue department.

Where Kemback fits

Kemback doesn’t calculate, file or e-file tax, and it doesn’t make estimated payments for you. What it does is keep the numbers you estimate from in one place. Small Business, part of Kemback Business, keeps a sole proprietor’s books with each account mapped to its Schedule C line, and its profit and loss report by month or quarter shows what you’ve earned so far. Kemback’s personal side, on the same login, makes a separate tax savings account and its monthly transfer easy to see.

For landlords, Rental Houses tracks rental income and expenses by Schedule E line. See the pricing page for both add-ons.

This post is general information, not tax advice. Tax rules change and depend on your situation; check with a qualified tax professional before you set your payments.

#estimated tax #self-employment #taxes

This article is general information, not financial, tax or legal advice. For decisions about your situation, talk to a qualified professional.