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What is self-employment tax actually costing you?

As a sole prop or single-member LLC, 15.3% self-employment tax applies to your full net profit. An S-corp election lets you pay FICA on a salary only — not on every dollar. See the numbers for your income.

2026 rates · Illustrative estimate · Not tax advice

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Tax strategy & retirement

Self-Employment Tax Explained: Rates, Calculation, and How to Reduce It

Self-employment tax is 15.3% on net profit — on top of income tax. How SE tax is calculated, what the deductible half actually saves, and the three ways to reduce it.

Entity & S-corp

When to Convert Your LLC to an S-Corp: The Income Threshold and the Timing

An S-corp election saves self-employment tax, but it adds payroll and compliance costs. Here's the net-profit level where the savings usually win, and the March 15 election deadline.

Entity & S-corp

LLC vs S-Corp: Which Business Structure Is Right for You?

An LLC is a legal structure; an S-corp is a tax election — and most S-corp owners have both. When the S-corp election saves money, when it doesn't, and what the compliance costs actually are.

Entity & S-corp

S-Corp Reasonable Compensation: What the IRS Actually Requires and How to Set Your Salary

The IRS requires S-corp owners to pay themselves a 'reasonable salary' — and has audit procedures to enforce it. What factors the IRS considers, how auditors typically approach S-corp compensation cases, and a practical method for setting a defensible number.

California tax

Case Study: A Custom Framing Shop Finds Out Labor Isn't Exempt

A one-room custom framing shop in Nevada City assumed sales tax only applied to the frame markup, not the hours spent fitting the piece. California disagrees — and the same growth that made the mistake bigger also opened up an S-corp election worth about $6,100 a year.

Tax deductions

Case Study: A Growing Therapy Practice Loses the QBI Deduction It Was Counting On

A solo therapist in Boulder built a thriving private-pay practice, elected S-corp status, and assumed she'd get the same 20% pass-through deduction her business-owner friends talk about. Being a licensed health provider quietly took it away — and no amount of salary planning brings it back.