Quarterly Tax Calculator
Quarterly Tax Calculator
IRS mandates you to pay Q4 taxes by Jan 15
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75% of freelancers overpay on their taxes
Most freelancers don't consider tax deductions while estimating quarterly taxes. This leads to either overpayments or penalties.
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A.I. automatically finds every deduction
You can review the deductions, and answer a few basic questions to accurately calculate quarterly tax payments in just 5 minutes.
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Michael saved $4,512
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Michael is a freelance videographer in Florida, earning his income through freelance video projects. When it was time to pay his quarterly taxes, he wanted to ensure he wasn't overpaying. He understood that finding tax deductions was key. FlyFin’s A.I. assisted him by automatically uncovering every eligible deduction. From camera equipment to editing software, the A.I. organized his deductions and calculated his quarterly tax payment with 100% accuracy.
Michael saved $4,512
in quarterly taxes.
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How An Estimated Tax Calculator Can Help Calculate Quarterly Taxes?
last updated-
October 3, 2025
You might think paying self-employment taxes is an annual occurrence, but it might actually happen more frequently than you think. If you’re new to the world of self-employment, it’s a good idea to familiarize yourself with how to calculate quarterly taxes and how to pay estimated taxes.
You can estimate taxes by yourself or you can use an estimated tax calculator. You just need to enter a few details about your tax situation, and an estimated tax payments calculator can easily find your owed tax liability.
1099 employees have to calculate estimated tax every year as they may need to make this payment every quarter if they think their income will result in a tax amount over $1,000. Figuring out how much estimated tax to pay with a calculator will make tax season much easier to navigate.
Key takeaways:
- Self-employed individuals have to pay estimated taxes every quarter if they owe more than $1,000.
- A quarterly tax calculator is a handy tool that can find your estimated tax payments 2024.
- Failing to pay quarterly taxes on time will result in an underpayment penalty from the IRS.
Most Asked Questions to a FlyFin CPA
Table of contents
Who has to pay estimated taxes?
Self-employment tax (or SECA tax) needs to be paid by every 1099 employee who makes over $400 in income every year. The SECA tax is set at a rate of 15.3%, with 12.4% towards Social Security, and 2.9% for Medicare.
However, SECA tax isn’t paid once a year like the federal income tax. The IRS taxes this income as it is earned, so this isn’t a problem for W-2 employees. Self-employed individuals are in charge of paying their own taxes, so they have to make these tax payments themselves.
The IRS knows that self-employed income isn’t always the same every year. That’s why they allow taxpayers to make estimated payments every quarter. These payments will only have to be made if the tax owed crosses $1,000.
This is also why freelancers, small business owners, gig workers and independent contractors use an estimated taxes calculator to find their earned income for the year rather than try to calculate it themselves.
How to calculate quarterly taxes?
So you know that estimated taxes have to be paid if the tax amount is over $1,000. But you might be wondering, “How much are estimated quarterly taxes?”, and if there’s a limit to how much tax you’ll have to pay.
Unfortunately, there is not. If your income is over the threshold limit, you’ll have to pay SECA tax. And if you think you’ll make enough to owe over $1,000, you have to make the estimated tax payments.
Apart from just calculating your owed tax, an estimated tax calculator can also find deductions you can claim. To calculate estimated tax, you’ll need to either enter the number of business expenses you’re writing off or choose what you are eligible to write off from a list of deductions.
A 1099 quarterly tax calculator can find deductions like health insurance premiums, advertising costs and internet expenses. To make the most of your tax savings, it's crucial to know which deductions apply to you as a 1099 employee. Explore a detailed breakdown below of deductible expenses across key categories such as Personal Vehicle Deductions, Travel Deductions, and Utility Deductions to ensure you're not leaving any money on the table.
Top Deductions for 1099 Employees
Landline bill
Phone bill
Electricity bill
Landline bill
Phone bill
Electricity bill
Car insurance
Bike & accessories
Seat cover
Car insurance
Bike & accessories
Seat cover
Travel meals
Transportation Services
Travel lodging
Travel meals
Transportation Services
Travel lodging
Landline bill
Phone bill
Electricity bill
Landline bill
Phone bill
Electricity bill
Car insurance
Bike & accessories
Seat cover
Car insurance
Bike & accessories
Seat cover
For example, you’re a part-time photographer who earned $8,000 in the months of January to April 2024, and expect to earn this amount each quarter throughout the year. You also spent $2,500 on travel expenses, equipment and vehicle mileage. This means your taxable income is $5,500 for the first quarter of 2024.
You decide to use an estimated taxes calculator and find that your income for the whole year is approximately $27,500. Your total owed tax for 2024 is $4,208, or so you have to make estimated tax payments of $1,052 for 2024. Using your tax deductions has saved you $778. That’s the power of a quarterly tax calculator!
Tax Tip of the Week :
Be aware that when self-employed, you're responsible for Social Security and Medicare taxes. Incorporate these amounts into your tax calculations to avoid surprises.
How to use an estimated tax calculator?
A quarterly tax calculator only needs a few pieces of information from you to estimate your tax amount. Think tax info like the state you live in, your filing status, your job, all the business expenses you want to write off and your income for the year.
Certain estimated tax calculators (like FlyFin) can even find your tax deductions for you (like retirement contributions), making that step so much easier. If you live in New Jersey all year but are moving to another state at the end of the year, you should still enter your state as New Jersey because that is where all your income comes from.
If you’re a full-time 1099 employee, you’ll need to total all your income sources to get your gross income. This means any money earned from gig work, freelancing, operating as a small business or an independent contractor.
So, how do you find your estimated tax payments 2024? Use a quarterly tax calculator, enter all the basic tax information required and get a tax breakdown of your total liability and quarterly payments. Then, you just fill out Form 1040-ES and make your payments. If you’re paying estimated taxes online, you don’t need to file this form.
When is the deadline to pay quarterly taxes?
Usually, estimated taxes are paid on a quarterly basis. The payment deadline for each quarter falls on the 15th of the month (or the next working day). If you can't pay your taxes by the deadline, you will be fined by the IRS.
You can face two types of penalties: the late penalty and/or the underpayment penalty. It’s pretty easy to avoid the late penalty fees. All you need to do is just pay your taxes on time. To avoid the underpayment penalty, you can do a couple of things.
The first option is to use a quarterly tax calculator to pay 100% of the tax you owed last year. This is an easy way to avoid penalty fees, especially useful if your income does not fluctuate as often.
The second option is to pay at least 90% of your tax liability for this year if you think you’ll make less than you did last year. As this is an estimated payment, you can pay a little over 90% as a safety net to avoid an underpayment penalty. This is known as the “safe harbor” rule.
If your AGI (adjusted gross income) was over $75,000 as a single filer, you’d need to pay 110% of last year’s tax liability to fulfill the safe harbor rule. The last option is to pay 100% of your current year’s tax liability if you think your income is going to be more than what you made last year.
A tax penalty calculator is a good tool to check whether you owe the IRS any penalties. You can also use this to calculate IRS payment plans. The penalties usually get higher the longer you put off paying your tax liability, so it’s a good idea to pay them off as soon as you can.
Consider the example of Olivia, a self-employed photographer who overlooked the deadline to file her returns and did not make the required quarterly payments on time. In the months that followed, Olivia found herself facing rising penalties and interest charges. Understanding the financial repercussions of these delays is important to prevent such circumstances. Below is a detailed table showcasing the penalties incurred at different intervals after failing to file and pay taxes on time.
Penalty on Unpaid Taxes of $4,000
How to make estimated quarterly tax payments?
So you now know how to use an estimated tax calculator to make estimated tax payments 2024. Now let’s talk about how to pay estimated taxes. The easiest way to do this is to pay directly on the website.
You can also use the IRS app, in both Spanish and English, IRS2Go to make your estimated tax payment. Another way to use the information you got from a quarterly tax calculator is to pay using the EFTPS.
Also known as the “Electronic Federal Tax Payment System,” this method allows you to view all your previous tax payments and tax returns. You’ll need to make an account to register (don’t worry, it’s free), and you can start making your payments.
If you’re looking to make these payments the old-fashioned way, you can still send the IRS checks. All you have to do is attach them to Form 1040-ES, which you’ll use to make these quarterly payments. Make sure to add your social security number or tax ID, mention the year of payment on the check and send it in without stapling it to the form.
If you’re really old school, you can even call in and pay the IRS over the phone. You’ll need an EFTPS account to do this, and you’ll also have to pay them a small fee. If you don’t have an EFTPS account, you can still pay over the phone, but you’ll have to call a third-party provider.
The last way to pay the IRS after calculating quarterly taxes is to increase your W-2 withholding amount. Now obviously, this will require you to already have W-2 income. So, W-2 employees have their income tax withheld from their employer. You can ask to have this amount increased to cover your quarterly tax payments with the help of Form W-4.
Content Reviewed By
FlyFin CPA Team
With a combined 150 years of experience, FlyFin's CPA tax team includes tax CPAs, IRS Enrolled Agents and other tax professionals, offering users the most comprehensive tax advice and preparation.
Frequently asked questions
FAQs
Should I pay self-employment taxes quarterly or yearly?
Who has to pay quarterly taxes?
How much is quarterly taxes?
What are the benefits of automating my quarterly taxes?
When are the deadlines for estimated quarterly taxes?
What form should I use to pay quarterly taxes?
What safe harbor percentage should I pay for estimated taxes?
Is there a penalty for not paying estimated quarterly taxes?
How to request a reduction of the tax penalty?
How to increase W-2 withholding for estimated taxes?
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What’s FlyFin?
FlyFin caters to the tax needs of gig workers, freelancers, independent contractors and sole proprietors. This tax tool is especially helpful for gig workers, who don't have tax support from an employer like W-2 employees do.
FlyFin tracks all your business expenses using A.I. to find every possible tax deduction. You can also consult our expert CPA team to file a guaranteed 100% accurate tax return. It saves you a couple of thousand dollars and a ton of time on your taxes.
Download the FlyFin app and have your 1099 taxes filed in less than fifteen minutes, saving you time and more money on your taxes than last year, guaranteed.
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