LLC Tax Calculator United States

Forming a single-member LLC gives you limited liability, but on its own it does not change how the profit is taxed. By default the IRS treats a single-member LLC as a disregarded entity, so its net profit goes on your personal return as if you were a sole proprietor, and the same profit is subject to both self-employment tax and ordinary income tax. This calculator estimates both, applies the deduction for half the self-employment tax, and shows the total bill and the profit left after tax.

How LLC profit is taxed

Both taxes start from net profit: business revenue minus deductible business expenses, not gross receipts. Self-employment tax comes first and is the same SECA tax any sole proprietor pays. The taxable base is 92.35 percent of net profit. The 12.4 percent Social Security rate applies to that base up to the annual wage base of $184,500, and the 2.9 percent Medicare rate applies to the whole base with no ceiling, for 15.3 percent combined on earnings below the cap.

Income tax comes second. The calculator uses the marginal rate you enter instead of a full bracket schedule, because LLC profit is added on top of your other income and is taxed at your top bracket. It first subtracts half of the self-employment tax from profit, reflecting the above-the-line deduction for the employer-equivalent share, then multiplies the remainder by your marginal rate.

The self-employment tax layer

Employees see only half of Social Security and Medicare tax withheld from their pay, and the employer pays the other half. When you own the business, you pay both halves. Below the wage base every extra dollar of profit carries the full 15.3 percent, which is why self-employment tax is usually the bigger part of the bill for a small LLC. Above the wage base the Social Security portion stops and only the 2.9 percent Medicare rate continues, so the extra self-employment tax on each additional dollar drops sharply for high earners.

Why the marginal rate matters

Your LLC profit is added to your existing taxable income on one return. If your other income already fills the lower brackets, the profit is taxed at the higher bracket it reaches. The marginal rate shows the tax each additional dollar of profit adds, which is what you need when deciding how much to set aside or whether to grow the business. The default is 22 percent; replace it with the rate your own return reaches.

A worked example

Suppose your LLC earns $100,000 of net profit and your marginal federal rate is 22 percent. The self-employment base is 92.35 percent of profit, or $92,350. That is below the wage base, so all of it is subject to Social Security: 12.4 percent is about $11,451, and Medicare at 2.9 percent adds about $2,678, for self-employment tax of about $14,130. Half of that, about $7,065, is deducted from profit, leaving taxable income of about $92,935. Income tax at 22 percent is about $20,446. Total federal tax is about $34,575, leaving about $65,425 of profit after tax.

Planning quarterly payments

No one withholds tax from LLC profit, so you normally pay it through quarterly estimated payments that cover both self-employment and income tax. Underpaying during the year can lead to penalties, so many owners set aside a fixed share of every payment the business receives. Run your projected annual profit through the calculator, divide the total across the four quarters, and update it as profit changes.

Assumptions and limitations

This is a planning estimate, not tax advice. It models the default disregarded-entity treatment of a single-member LLC using the 2026 Social Security and Medicare rates and the Social Security wage base, stored as parameters sourced from the IRS and SSA. It assumes the figure you enter is net profit after deductible expenses and that your marginal rate is correct. It does not model the qualified business income deduction, the Additional Medicare Tax, W-2 wages that already count toward the wage base, state and local taxes, or an S-corp or C-corp election. Multi-member LLCs are taxed as partnerships and are not covered. For more than a planning estimate, check current IRS guidance or speak with a tax professional.

About This LLC Tax Calculator

Use this LLC tax calculator to get an instant, accurate estimate. The figures follow official IRS guidance and every rate and threshold is kept up to date for 2026. Adjust the inputs above to match your situation, or browse all our calculators to plan your next step.