Quarterly Estimated Tax Calculator

2026 estimated tax due dates

Estimated tax for 2026 is paid in four installments. The next one is due January 15, 2027.

• You can also pay the whole year's estimated tax at once by April 15, 2026, instead of in four parts.
• The periods aren't equal quarters: the second covers only two months and the fourth covers four.
• If a due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, the payment is on time if made on the next business day.
• You can skip the January 15, 2027 payment if you file your 2026 return by February 1, 2027 and pay the full balance with it.
• The dates for 2027 payments will be on the 2027 Form 1040-ES; the IRS hasn't released it yet.

Do you need to pay estimated tax?

Estimated payments are for income with no withholding, such as self-employment, gig and freelance profit, interest and dividends. You generally need to pay if both of these are true:

1. you expect to owe at least $1,000 for 2026 after subtracting withholding and refundable credits; and
2. your withholding and refundable credits will be less than the smaller of 90% of your 2026 tax or 100% of your 2025 tax (110% if your 2025 AGI was over $150,000, or $75,000 married filing separately).

Farmers and fishermen use 66⅔% instead of 90%. Your "tax" here includes self-employment tax, not just income tax; the self-employment tax calculator shows both.

How much to pay: the safe harbors

Smaller of: 90% of 2026 tax, or 100% of 2025 tax (110% if 2025 AGI was over $150,000) = minimum to pay through withholding and estimates

Each installment is a quarter of the amount still needed after withholding.

You can aim for either one:

• Last year's tax (the prior-year safe harbor) is certain: you already know the number from your 2025 return. It's the better choice when income is rising, because you can pay based on last year and settle the rest in April without a penalty.
• 90% of this year's tax is better when income is falling, but it's a moving target: if you underestimate, you can fall short.

Paying the safe-harbor amount prevents the penalty. It doesn't mean you owe nothing more: whatever is left is due with your return.

Worked examples

A single freelancer expects $90,000 of profit in 2026, with no withholding and the standard deduction. The calculator puts the 2026 federal tax (income tax plus self-employment tax) at $19,316, so 90% is $17,384. What they must pay depends on last year:

• Income grew a lot: with last year's tax at $6,000, paying $1,500.00 a quarter keeps them penalty-free, but they'll owe $13,316 with the return. Save for it.
• High earner last year: with 2025 AGI over $150,000, the prior-year option is 110% of $25,000 = $27,500. That's more than 90% of this year's tax, so the smaller figure ($17,384) applies.
• No prior-year figure entered: the calculator falls back to 90% of this year's tax, $4,346.09 a quarter.

Working out your payment, step by step

1. Estimate 2026 income. Start from your profit so far and project the rest of the year. Use profit after business expenses, not gross receipts.
2. Estimate the total federal tax. Income tax plus self-employment tax, minus credits. The calculator does this from the same engine as the refund calculator.
3. Find last year's total tax and AGI on your 2025 return, if you filed one.
4. Pick the required amount: the smaller of 90% of this year's tax and 100% (or 110%) of last year's.
5. Subtract withholding from any W-2 job, a spouse's job on a joint return, or pensions.
6. Divide what's left by four and pay each installment by its due date.

If your income changes during the year

Rerun the numbers whenever your forecast moves, and adjust the payments that are still to come. Say the freelancer above started 2026 expecting $60,000 of profit and paid three installments of $2,708.37 (90% of that year's tax, no prior-year figure). By autumn the forecast is $90,000. The 90% target is now $17,384, so the last installment needs to be $9,259 to reach it. Catching up stops further penalty from building, but an earlier installment that was too small can still carry a penalty for the time it was short, unless the annualized method below shows that less was due at the time.

Uneven income: the annualized method

Equal installments assume income arrives evenly. If yours doesn't (a seasonal business, or one big contract late in the year), the annualized income installment method on Form 2210, Schedule AI, bases each payment on the income you'd actually earned by then. It can reduce or eliminate early installments. If you use it for one due date, you have to use it for all of them, and attach Form 2210 to your return.

The calculator uses equal installments. If your income is very uneven, use it for a total-year figure and Schedule AI for the timing.

Have a W-2 job too? Use withholding

Withholding counts toward the same safe harbors. A single worker earning $70,000 with $8,000 of side-gig profit has $6,570 withheld by their employer. Their 2026 tax is $9,009, leaving $2,439 uncovered. That's over the $1,000 line, so they'd need $1,538 more for the year ($384.51 a quarter) to reach 90%.

An easier option is to add the amount to their withholding through Step 4(c) of Form W-4. The W-4 calculator spreads it over the paychecks left this year. See the paycheck calculator for the effect on take-home pay.

The underpayment penalty

The penalty works like interest on each installment that was paid late or short, from its due date until it's paid. The rate is the federal short-term rate plus 3 percentage points, reset every quarter. For October 1 to December 31, 2026, it's 7% a year, compounded daily. Form 2210 works out whether you owe it and how much.

For a rough idea: if the freelancer above skipped the $4,346.09 installment due September 15, 2026 and paid it with the January 15, 2027 installment (122 days late), the penalty would be about $101.69 at a 7% simple rate, if the rate stays at 7%. That's small, but it adds up across missed installments and over longer periods, and the rate can change each quarter.

The IRS can waive the penalty if the underpayment was due to a casualty, disaster or other unusual circumstance, or if you retired after age 62 or became disabled and the underpayment had a reasonable cause.

How to pay

• IRS Online Account: pay from your account on IRS.gov.
• IRS Direct Pay: free transfers from a checking or savings account, no enrollment needed.
• EFTPS: the Treasury's payment system; you need to enroll first.
• Debit or credit card, a digital wallet, cash at participating retailers, or the IRS2Go app.

What this calculator doesn't cover

• State estimated tax. Most states with an income tax have their own estimated-payment rules and dates. Check your state's revenue department.
• The annualized installment method (it uses equal payments) and the penalty calculation itself.
• Capital gains rates, the alternative minimum tax and education credits.
• QBI above the income threshold.

The EITC is a formula estimate assuming investment income of $12,200 or less.

Common questions

When are 2026 estimated taxes due?

April 15, 2026, June 15, 2026, September 15, 2026, January 15, 2027.

Do I have to make the January 15, 2027 payment?

Not if you file your 2026 return by February 1, 2027 and pay everything you owe with it.

What is the safe harbor for estimated taxes?

Pay at least the smaller of 90% of this year's tax or 100% of last year's, through withholding and estimates. Use 110% of last year's if your prior-year AGI was over $150,000 ($75,000 married filing separately).

Who has to pay estimated tax?

Generally anyone who expects to owe $1,000 or more after withholding and refundable credits, unless withholding alone meets a safe harbor.

What is the IRS underpayment interest rate right now?

7% a year, compounded daily, for October through December 2026. The IRS resets it each quarter.

My income is seasonal. Do I still pay four equal amounts?

Not necessarily. The annualized income installment method (Form 2210, Schedule AI) bases each payment on income earned so far. You must use it for all four periods and attach Form 2210.

What if a due date falls on a weekend?

The payment is on time if made on the next day that isn't a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday.

How do I pay estimated taxes?

Through your IRS Online Account, IRS Direct Pay or EFTPS, or by card, digital wallet, cash at a retailer or the IRS2Go app.

Sources

1. Form 1040-ES (2026), Estimated Tax for Individuals — Internal Revenue Service. Accessed October 13, 2026.
2. Estimated tax (FAQs) — Internal Revenue Service. Accessed October 13, 2026.
3. Topic no. 306, Penalty for underpayment of estimated tax — Internal Revenue Service. Accessed October 13, 2026.
4. About Form 2210, Underpayment of Estimated Tax by Individuals — Internal Revenue Service. Accessed October 13, 2026.
5. Instructions for Form 2210 — Internal Revenue Service. Accessed October 13, 2026.
6. Form 2210 (2025), including Schedule AI — Internal Revenue Service. Accessed October 13, 2026.
7. Interest rates remain the same for the fourth quarter of 2026 (IR-2026-98) — Internal Revenue Service. Accessed October 13, 2026.