Quarterly Estimated Tax Calculator (2026)
Self-employed and paying the IRS four times a year? Estimate your 2026 federal tax and what to send each quarter — so no deadline catches you short. Free, no sign-up.
2026 tax-year due dates
- Q1April 15, 2026
- Q2June 15, 2026
- Q3September 15, 2026
- Q4January 15, 2027
Florida has no state income tax, so these estimated payments go to the IRS only.
This is a planning estimate for the 2026 tax year, not tax advice. It splits your estimated federal tax into four equal payments and assumes the standard deduction with 1099 income as your only income; the QBI deduction and credits are not included. We're bookkeepers, not tax preparers — work with a CPA for your filing.
How quarterly estimated taxes work
When no employer withholds taxes for you, the IRS expects you to pay as you earn — in four estimated installments across the year. The amount is your total expected federal tax (income tax plus self-employment tax) divided into four. Miss the payments or underpay and you can owe an underpayment penalty on top of the tax, even if you settle up by April. This tool estimates the annual figure on your 2026 brackets and shows the per-quarter amount alongside the 2026 due dates.
2026 quarterly estimated tax due dates
| Payment | Income earned | Due date |
|---|---|---|
| Q1 | Jan 1 – Mar 31, 2026 | April 15, 2026 |
| Q2 | Apr 1 – May 31, 2026 | June 15, 2026 |
| Q3 | Jun 1 – Aug 31, 2026 | September 15, 2026 |
| Q4 | Sep 1 – Dec 31, 2026 | January 15, 2027 |
If a due date lands on a weekend or federal holiday, it moves to the next business day. Note the quarters aren't equal — Q2 covers two months, Q4 covers four.
The safe harbor shortcut
If your income swings month to month, the safe harbor rule keeps things simple: pay at least 100% of last year's total tax (110% if your prior-year AGI topped $150,000) in equal quarterly amounts, and you generally avoid the underpayment penalty no matter how this year turns out. Keeping clean books all year makes either approach — this year's estimate or last year's safe harbor — easy to run.
This calculator is a planning tool, not tax preparation or advice. Your actual payments depend on your full-year income, filing status, deductions, credits, and any withholding. We keep your books current so these numbers are accurate — for the filing itself, work with a CPA.
A worked example: a 1099 contractor with $80,000 of net profit
Say you freelance and expect $80,000 of net self-employment profit in 2026, filing single with the standard deduction and no other income. Self-employment tax runs on 92.35% of that profit at 15.3%, roughly $11,300. Federal income tax applies after deducting half the SE tax and the standard deduction — taxable income lands near $58,700, for roughly $8,200 of income tax on 2026 single brackets. Total ≈ $19,500 for the year, so each quarterly installment is about $4,875 on the dates above. Run your own numbers in the calculator — the point of the example is the shape: SE tax is usually the surprise, and it applies from the first dollar of profit, not after the standard deduction.
Tracking profit as you go is what makes these estimates easy — that's a side effect of clean monthly books. If your records are behind, our catch-up bookkeeping service gets the year rebuilt before the next deadline.
Missed a quarterly payment? Do this, in this order.
First: pay as soon as you can, even partially. The underpayment penalty accrues on the unpaid amount from the missed due date until it's paid — it doesn't wait for year-end, and a partial payment shrinks it immediately. Second: don't skip the next quarter to "average it out"; each installment period is assessed on its own. Third: check whether the safe harbor above already protects you — if your withholding plus payments will reach 100% of last year's tax (110% at higher incomes), the miss may cost little or nothing. Fourth: in limited situations (casualty, disaster, other unusual circumstances), the IRS can waive the penalty via Form 2210 — that's a conversation for your tax professional, not a box to guess at.
The pattern behind most missed quarters isn't the money — it's not knowing the profit number in time to pay on it. That's a bookkeeping cadence problem, and it's fixable.
Frequently asked questions
For the 2026 tax year, federal estimated payments are due April 15, 2026, June 15, 2026, September 15, 2026, and January 15, 2027. The IRS generally expects four roughly equal payments across the year.
Estimate your total federal tax for the year — income tax plus self-employment tax — and divide by four. This tool does that for 2026 based on your expected net income and filing status. Treat the result as a planning estimate, not tax advice.
You generally avoid an underpayment penalty if you pay at least 90% of this year's tax or 100% of last year's tax, whichever is smaller. If your prior-year AGI was over $150,000, the prior-year figure rises to 110%.
No. Florida has no state personal income tax, so your quarterly estimated payments go to the IRS only. You don't file or pay state estimated income tax in Florida.
Never scramble at a quarterly deadline again
We keep your books current month to month, so your estimated payments are based on real numbers instead of guesswork — and nothing piles up at year-end. Spanish-friendly support available.