How much estimated tax should I pay each quarter?
Work out what to send the IRS on each 2026 due date to avoid the underpayment penalty, and what missing a date would cost.
Filing status
Tax withheld from your paycheck
Assumes withholding equals the tax on your wages alone, which is what a standard W-4 aims for.
Where you are in the year
Planning ahead: all four dates are still to come.
ESTIMATED TAX EACH QUARTERON PLAN
$1,596each
Your tax for the year is about $32,082 ($27,843 income tax and $4,239 self-employment tax), with $22,490 withheld. To avoid the penalty, payments must reach 90% of this year’s tax ($28,874), so pay $6,384 in estimated tax: $1,596 on each of April 15, June 15, September 15 and January 15, 2027.
Tax for the year
$32,082
Withheld
$22,490
Estimated, in all
$6,384
If unpaid to filing
~$293
UNDERSTAND YOUR RESULT
What to pay on each 2026 due date
| Due date | Amount | Status |
|---|---|---|
| April 15, 2026 | $1,596 | Next |
| June 15, 2026 | $1,596 | Later |
| September 15, 2026 | $1,596 | Later |
| January 15, 2027 | $1,596 | Later |
Each installment is one quarter of $6,384, or $1,596, due April 15, June 15, September 15 and January 15, 2027. A payment sent on the next business day after a weekend or holiday is on time.
How the year’s payments are worked out
Tax for the yearincome tax plus self-employment tax
$32k
90% of this year’s tax
$29k
Withheld from your pay
$22k
Estimated payments needed
$6k
Payments must reach 90% of this year’s tax: $28,874. Withholding supplies $22,490 of it and estimated payments the other $6,384.
What missing payments would cost
Nothing more paid until April 15, 2027
$293
The penalty is the IRS underpayment rate, 7% in the fourth quarter of 2026, on each installment you leave unpaid, for the days from its due date to the date you pay or April 15, 2027. Leaving all of it unpaid until then would cost about $293; paying late shrinks it in proportion. The April 15 installment carries 6.8% of its amount in penalty, the January 15 one 1.7%.
What moves the needle
Each row re-runs the calculation with one change. Click to apply.How it's computed
FORMULA
Tax for the year = federal income tax on (pay − 401(k) + profit − half of self-employment tax − standard deduction − QBI deduction) + self-employment tax
Required payments = the smaller of 90% × this year’s tax and 100% × last year’s tax (110% if last year’s AGI was over $150,000)
Estimated payments = required payments − tax withheld; each installment = one quarter of that
Penalty on an installment ≈ its unpaid amount × underpayment rate × days from its due date to the date paid (or April 15, 2027) ÷ 365
- Tax is computed for single filers on the 2026 federal brackets and standard deduction, with the self-employment tax on 92.35% of profit (the Social Security part stops at the $184,500 base, shared with your pay) and the 20% qualified business income deduction while taxable income is at or under its threshold. Above it the deduction depends on the kind of business and is left out, so the tax shown is a ceiling.
- Withholding is assumed to equal the federal income tax on your wages alone, which is what a standard W-4 aims for. If your employer withholds less, or you had a second job, enter the number from your pay stubs.
- The IRS underpayment rates for 2026 are 7%, 6%, 7%, 7% for the four quarters; the 2027 rate is not yet set and 7% is assumed. The penalty is figured per installment, and payments are applied to the earliest installment first.
- Federal tax only. State estimated tax, credits, farming and fishing income, and the annualized installment method for uneven income are not modelled; if your income arrives unevenly, Form 2210 lets you lower the early payments.
- Payments are due April 15, June 15, September 15 and January 15, 2027. The 2026 return, and any balance on it, is due April 15, 2027.
WORKED EXAMPLE · SAMPLE NUMBERS
Tax for the year: $27,843 income tax + $4,239 self-employment tax = $32,082. The target is $28,874 (90% of this year’s). Less $22,490 withheld, that is $6,384 in estimated payments, $1,596 a quarter.
SOURCES
[1]Topic no. 306, Penalty for underpayment of estimated taxInternal Revenue Service[2]Publication 505, Tax Withholding and Estimated Tax (2026): when to pay, the general rule and the higher-income ruleInternal Revenue Service[3]Estimated taxesInternal Revenue Service[4]Quarterly interest rates (underpayment rates for 2026)Internal Revenue Service[5]About Form 2210, Underpayment of Estimated Tax by Individuals, Estates, and TrustsInternal Revenue Service[6]Topic no. 554, Self-employment taxInternal Revenue Service[7]Rev. Proc. 2025-32: 2026 inflation-adjusted tax items (brackets, standard deduction)Internal Revenue Service, 2025HSBuilt by Hussain Sehorewala · checked against worked examples · Sep 29, 2026
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Questions about this result
Anyone who expects to owe $1,000 or more in federal tax for the year after subtracting withholding and refundable credits, which includes most freelancers, business owners and people with substantial investment income. If your job’s withholding covers your tax, you do not need to.
Withholding plus estimated payments must reach the smaller of 90% of this year’s tax and 100% of the tax on last year’s return. If last year’s adjusted gross income was over $150,000, the second figure is 110% of last year’s tax. Using last year’s tax is safer when your income is rising, because you know the number in advance.
April 15, June 15 and September 15, 2026, and January 15, 2027. The periods are uneven: the first covers January through March, the second only April and May, the third June through August, and the fourth September through December. When a date falls on a weekend or holiday, the next business day counts.
The IRS charges an underpayment penalty on each installment you fall short of, at its underpayment rate for the days until you pay or file: 7% a year for the fourth quarter of 2026. Because it grows with each day, paying late is better than not paying, and a catch-up payment stops it from growing. If you file your return and pay the balance by January 31, 2027, you owe no penalty for the January 15 payment.
Yes. If you have a job, you can give your employer a new Form W-4 with extra withholding each paycheck. Unless you choose the dates it was actually withheld, the IRS treats withholding as paid evenly on the four due dates, so extra withholding late in the year still counts toward the earlier dates.
No. It covers federal income tax and self-employment tax. Most states with an income tax have their own estimated payments and due dates, and the state comparison page shows how much each state taxes.
Equal installments assume income arrives evenly. If yours is bunched into a few months, the IRS annualized installment method on Form 2210 lets you pay less early in the year and avoid or lower the penalty. This page does not compute it.
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