1099 take-home pay calculator
What lands in your account after the IRS takes its share. Enter your contract income and see the take-home, monthly and annual.
Estimate only. Figures update as you type. Not tax advice — see the note at the bottom of this page.
Why 1099 take-home is lower than the contract sounds
A contract rate is a gross number with nothing removed. No employer withheld taxes, no employer paid half your payroll tax, and nobody set aside anything for April. All of that lands on you, which is why the take-home figure often lands well below what the headline rate suggested.
The set-aside habit
The gap between the contract and the take-home is roughly what you should be setting aside as you get paid. Moving that percentage into a separate account the day each payment arrives turns tax season from a scramble into a formality. The quarterly calculator turns it into four scheduled payments.
State tax is the wildcard
Several states levy no income tax at all, while others reach into the double digits at higher incomes. That difference can swing your take-home by thousands on the same contract, and it's worth knowing your state's treatment before you compare offers in different places.
Common questions
How much should I set aside from each 1099 payment?
A common starting point is 25 to 30 percent of net income for federal obligations, more where state tax applies. Running your actual numbers gives a figure tuned to your income and deductions.
Is 1099 income taxed twice?
No, but it carries two separate federal taxes: self-employment tax and income tax. That combination is what makes the total higher than employees expect.
Should I enter income before or after expenses?
After expenses. Take-home is calculated on net profit, so subtract deductible business costs before entering the figure.