1099 Tax Refund Calculator
Enter your 1099 profit, any W-2 pay and what you've already paid to estimate your 2026 federal refund or balance due (the return you file in 2027), with self-employment tax and the QBI deduction included.
1099-NEC / 1099-K income minus business expenses.
Leave at 0 if you're only self-employed.
Interest, unemployment, etc.
Total of your 1040-ES payments for the year.
Estimated amount owed
$4,037.20
Self-employment tax
$8,477.73
Income tax after credits
$3,559.47
Marginal rate
12%
Income tax only
| Self-employment tax (Social Security + Medicare) | $8,477.73 |
| Adjusted gross income (after deducting half of SE tax, $4,238.87) | $55,761.14 |
| Standard deduction | -$16,100.00 |
| Qualified business income deduction | -$7,932.23 |
| Taxable income | $31,728.91 |
| Income tax, minus $0.00 Child Tax Credit | $3,559.47 |
| Total federal tax | $12,037.20 |
| Paid: withholding + estimated payments | $8,000.00 |
| Balance due | $4,037.20 |
How it's calculated
Self-employment tax comes first: 92.35% of net profit, taxed at 12.4% for Social Security (only on the part of the $184,500 wage base your W-2 wages haven't used) and 2.9% for Medicare. Half of that tax is deducted from income. Then income tax runs through the 2026 brackets:
taxable income = wages + profit + other income − pre-tax contributions − ½ SE tax − standard deduction − QBI deduction
The result is income tax after the Child Tax Credit plus self-employment tax. Your refund or balance due is everything you paid (W-2 withholding, quarterly estimated payments and any refundable child credit) minus that total.
Worked example
The calculator's defaults: a single freelancer with $60,000 of 1099 profit, no W-2 job, and $8,000 paid in quarterly estimates.
| Self-employment tax | $8,477.73 |
| QBI deduction (limited to 20% of taxable income) | $7,932.23 |
| Taxable income | $31,728.91 |
| Income tax | $3,559.47 |
| Total federal tax | $12,037.20 |
| Estimated balance due | $4,037.20 |
Self-employment tax is more than twice the income tax here, which is why an $8,000 estimate still leaves a balance due. The site's test suite checks these numbers against a hand calculation.
Sources
2026 brackets, standard deduction and QBI thresholds: IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32. Social Security wage base: Social Security Administration, 2026 COLA fact sheet. Checked 2026-10-24. Already paid tuition this year? Add the 1098-T education credit to this estimate.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you get a tax refund with 1099 income?
Only if you paid in more than you owe. Nothing is withheld from 1099 pay, so your payments are whatever you sent in as quarterly estimated taxes, plus any withholding from a W-2 job. Most people with only 1099 income owe at filing time unless they made estimated payments during the year.
What taxes do I pay on 1099 income?
Two separate taxes. Self-employment tax is 15.3% (12.4% Social Security up to the $184,500 wage base, plus 2.9% Medicare) on 92.35% of your net profit. Federal income tax then applies to the same profit, after you deduct half of the self-employment tax, the standard deduction and the qualified business income deduction.
What is the qualified business income (QBI) deduction?
It lets most self-employed people deduct 20% of their business profit (after the deductible half of self-employment tax), limited to 20% of taxable income. For 2026 the simple rule applies when taxable income is at or under $201,750 ($403,500 married filing jointly). The One Big Beautiful Bill Act adds a $400 minimum deduction for 2026 if you have at least $1,000 of QBI. Source: IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32, sections 2.12 and 4.26.
I have a W-2 job and 1099 side income. How does that change the math?
Your W-2 wages use up the Social Security wage base first, so less of your 1099 profit gets the 12.4% Social Security tax once your wages are high. Your W-2 withholding (box 2) also counts toward what you've paid, which is why many people with a small side income still get a refund.
Why do I owe even though I made quarterly payments?
Your payments were probably sized for a lower profit, or didn't include self-employment tax. Self-employment tax is often the larger of the two taxes at moderate incomes. Use the Quarterly Tax Calculator to size next year's payments with the IRS safe harbor.
What does this calculator leave out?
It uses the standard deduction ($16,100 single for 2026) and doesn't model itemized deductions, the self-employed health insurance deduction, SEP or solo 401(k) contributions, the earned income credit, education credits, or the QBI wage and service-business limits above the threshold. Treat the result as a planning estimate.
This is an estimate from the inputs you enter and the published rates above, not tax advice, and this site is not affiliated with the IRS, any state revenue department, or the Social Security Administration. Real tax bills involve credits, deductions and filing details this tool can't model -- see the Terms.