LLancerTools

Freelance Tax Calculator

Estimate what you'll owe and — more importantly — how much to move into a separate account every quarter so the tax bill is never a surprise. Free, instant, nothing leaves your browser.

Your situation

Set aside each quarter

$5,125

≈ $1,709/month, or 23% of every invoice you collect.

Estimated tax / year

$20,500

You keep (after tax)

$61,500

How this breaks down

Gross income
$90,000
— deductible expenses
$8,000
Taxable profit
$82,000
× effective rate
25%

Estimate only. Real liability depends on your brackets, deductions, filing status and local rules. Use this to set money aside so the bill never surprises you — and confirm the exact number with a professional.

The set-aside habit beats tax cleverness

Ask accountants what actually sinks freelancers and they rarely say "deductions they missed". They say: the money was spent when the bill arrived. Employees never face this — tax leaves their pay before they see it. The moment you go freelance, you become the withholding department.

The fix is mechanical, not clever: every time an invoice is paid, move a fixed percentage into an account you don't touch. The calculator above tells you what that percentage should be for your numbers — for most Western freelancers it lands between 25% and 40% of profit.

Typical effective rates by country

These combined ranges (income tax + self-employment/social contributions, for a mid-income solo freelancer) are sensible starting points as of 2026 — your bracket, deductions and region will move you within them:

  • United States: 20–30% (15.3% self-employment tax applies from the first dollar of profit; income tax stacks on top, state tax varies)
  • United Kingdom: 20–32% (income tax + Class 4 National Insurance)
  • Germany: 30–45% (income tax rises steeply; health insurance for the self-employed is a separate, significant cost)
  • France: 35–50% (social charges are the dominant component; the micro-entrepreneur regime simplifies but caps revenue)
  • Spain / Netherlands: 28–40% (both run meaningful self-employed deductions and allowances that reduce early-year burdens)

Two universal rules: expenses reduce taxable profit, so track everything; and rates apply to profit, not revenue — which is also why your pricingmust be built on after-tax targets. If you haven't done that arithmetic, the rate calculator does it in two minutes, and the 2026 rate statistics show what your field typically charges.

Frequently asked questions

How much should freelancers set aside for taxes?

A common rule of thumb is 25–30% of profit in the US, 25–30% in the UK, and 30–45% across much of Western Europe once income tax and social contributions are combined. Your exact figure depends on your bracket and deductions — this calculator lets you start from a country preset and tune the rate to your situation.

Do I pay tax on revenue or profit?

Profit. Legitimate business expenses — equipment, software, insurance, a home-office share — reduce your taxable base before rates apply. That's why tracking expenses properly is the highest-return 'tax strategy' available to most freelancers.

Why quarterly set-asides?

Most tax systems expect the self-employed to prepay through the year: quarterly estimated payments in the US, payments on account in the UK, Vorauszahlungen in Germany. Moving your estimated share into a separate account every month or quarter means the payment dates are non-events instead of emergencies.

Is this calculator exact for my country?

No — deliberately. It uses an effective-rate estimate rather than pretending to model every country's brackets, deductions and social schemes precisely. It exists to make sure you set aside roughly the right amount; the exact liability is a job for your accountant or official calculator.