What is the self-employment tax rate for 2026?
15.3% for 2026 — 12.4% for social security plus 2.9% for Medicare — but it is charged on 92.35% of net profit rather than on all of it, which makes the effective rate 14.13% of profit up to the social security ceiling. It starts once net earnings reach $400, and 50% of what you pay comes back as an income tax deduction.
United States · federal · tax year 2026 · every figure from an open dataset with its source
The figures
| Figure | Amount |
|---|---|
| Social security (OASDI) rate | 12.4% |
| Medicare rate | 2.9% |
| Both rates together computed | 15.3% |
| Share of profit that counts as net earnings | 92.35% |
| Effective rate on profit below the wage base computed | 14.13% |
| Net earnings below which no self-employment tax is due | $400 |
| Share of the tax that is deductible against income tax | 50% |
The 92.35% step is the one most summaries drop. Schedule SE multiplies profit by 92.35% before any rate is applied, which is why 15.3% of profit is always an overstatement of the bill. Below the social security ceiling the real bite is 14.13% of profit; above it only the Medicare part continues, so the effective rate falls as profit rises rather than climbing.
$400 is a floor on net earnings, not on profit, and it is a cliff rather than an allowance: below it there is no self-employment tax at all, at or above it the tax applies from the first dollar and not only to the excess. The 50% share you deduct reduces income tax, not this tax — it never reduces the self-employment tax itself.
Where these figures come from
Each row below is one line of our open dataset: the primary document the figure was read out of, the date it was read, and a link to the document itself. Nothing here was copied from a summary of a summary.
| constant | basis | source document | verified on |
|---|---|---|---|
oasdi_rate |
statutory | Schedule SE (Form 1040), rev. 2025 — the latest revision published, line 10 | ✓ verified |
medicare_rate |
statutory | Schedule SE (Form 1040), rev. 2025 — the latest revision published, line 11 | ✓ verified |
se_net_earnings_factor |
statutory | Schedule SE (Form 1040), rev. 2025 — the latest revision published, Part I line 4a | ✓ verified |
se_minimum |
statutory | Schedule SE (Form 1040), rev. 2025 — the latest revision published, line 4c | ✓ verified |
se_deductible_half |
statutory | Schedule SE (Form 1040), rev. 2025 — the latest revision published, line 13 | ✓ verified |
Work out your own
Knowing the limit is half of it. These calculators apply the same figures to your numbers, in your browser, and show the working line by line.
The whole dataset
Every figure on this page, and everything around it, as a table you can read and as CSV and JSON you can download. Public domain, no attribution required.
Nearby answers
This is a reference table, not tax advice. Verify any figure against the linked primary document before relying on it.
