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How Self-Employment Tax Works in Tennessee (2026)
Self-employment tax is 15.3% — 12.4% Social Security plus 2.9% Medicare — applied to 92.35% of your net self-employment income, on top of federal and Tennessee income tax. Half of the SE tax (7.65% equivalent) is an above-the-line deduction against your federal taxable income.
| Piece | Rate / rule |
|---|---|
| Net earnings subject to SE tax | 92.35% of net profit |
| Social Security portion | 12.4% (up to $184,500 of net earnings) |
| Medicare portion | 2.9% · +0.9% above $200,000 |
| Deductible half of SE tax | 50%, above-the-line on your federal return |
Estimated payments are due quarterly (roughly mid-April, mid-June, mid-September, and mid-January). The 20% Qualified Business Income deduction (§199A) is not modeled here — it depends on your income level and business type. If you also have W-2 wages, the Social Security cap is measured against your combined earnings, so this estimate runs high.
Tennessee Self-Employment Tax by Income (2026)
Single filer, 1099 income is the only earnings for the year. The quarterly figure is an even 4-way split of the annual total.
| Net 1099 income | SE tax | Federal tax | Tennessee tax | Quarterly payment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $20,000 | $2,826 | $249 | $0 | $769 |
| $40,000 | $5,652 | $2,281 | $0 | $1,983 |
| $60,000 | $8,478 | $4,511 | $0 | $3,247 |
| $80,000 | $11,304 | $7,527 | $0 | $4,708 |
| $100,000 | $14,130 | $11,616 | $0 | $6,436 |
Tennessee Self-Employment Tax FAQ
How much is self-employment tax in Tennessee?
15.3% federal SE tax on 92.35% of net profit (12.4% Social Security up to $184,500, 2.9% Medicare), plus federal income tax - and no Tennessee state income tax on your profit. Half the SE tax is deductible federally.
Do 1099 workers in Tennessee pay quarterly taxes?
Yes, federal ones - estimated payments mid-April, mid-June, mid-September and mid-January if you expect to owe $1,000 or more. There is no Tennessee state estimated payment on earned income.
Does Tennessee still have the Hall income tax?
No - Tennessee's Hall tax on interest and dividends was fully repealed in 2021. There is no state tax on self-employment earnings.
Methodology & Source
Tennessee state tax figures sourced from Tennessee Department of Revenue (https://www.tn.gov/revenue), citing Hall Tax (on interest/dividends) fully repealed 2021-01-01 — no tax on any personal income including wages. Federal brackets, standard deductions (single/MFJ/HoH), and FICA constants sourced from the IRS (Revenue Procedure 2025-32; married-filing-jointly Additional Medicare threshold of $250,000 is a separate, unindexed statutory figure). Tennessee's married-filing-jointly and head-of-household figures are not yet independently verified and currently fall back to single-filer brackets — see the caveat in the formula section above.
Self-employment tax uses the statutory 15.3% rate (12.4% Social Security + 2.9% Medicare) on 92.35% of net self-employment income, with half of the SE tax deducted from federal taxable income above-the-line — per IRS Schedule SE (Form 1040) instructions, IRC §1401 and §164(f), 2026 edition. The 20% Qualified Business Income deduction (IRC §199A) is not modeled — it phases out by income and business type and is too state/entity-dependent to compute generically. This assumes the self-employment income is your only earnings for the year; if you also have W-2 wages, the Social Security wage-base cap and Additional Medicare threshold are actually based on your combined earnings, so this will overstate SE tax if you have significant wage income too.
This is an estimate based on standard single-filer federal, FICA, and TN state calculations. Actual withholding may differ based on your W-4 elections, pre-tax deductions, and other factors.
Guideline version: 2026-TN-v1 · Effective: 2021-01-01 · Last verified: 2026-07-26