If you’re self-employed or freelancing, the IRS doesn’t wait until April to get paid. Ignoring estimated quarterly taxes doesn’t make them disappear — they stack up, and interest compounds daily.
You can avoid stress and penalties by paying your federal income taxes as you go. Calculating what you owe is pretty straightforward, and once you understand the system, you can stay compliant and avoid fees.
Less stress at tax time sounds great, right? Here’s everything you need to know.
Estimated quarterly taxes are payments you make to the IRS throughout the year to cover income taxes that aren’t automatically withheld by an employer.
When you have a traditional W-2 job, taxes are handled for you. Your employer withholds federal income tax along with Social Security and Medicare taxes from each paycheck, then sends that money to the IRS on your behalf. The system is designed to meet what’s called the “safe harbor rule.”
But when you work for yourself, there’s no employer managing automatic withholding. That responsibility falls entirely on you.
Wages aren’t the only form of taxable income. You may also need to make quarterly payments if you earn meaningful income from sources such as:
If taxes aren’t withheld from your income and you expect to owe at least $1,000 in federal tax for the year, you’ll likely need to make estimated tax payments.
You typically need to pay estimated quarterly taxes if you fall into one or more of these categories:
Self-employed people: This includes freelancers, independent contractors, gig workers, and sole proprietors earning income reported on Form 1099-NEC.
Business owners: Partners in partnerships, S corporation shareholders, and LLC members often need to make estimated payments, depending on how the business is structured.
Investors with significant un-withheld income: If interest, dividends, or capital gains aren’t having enough tax withheld, quarterly payments may be required.
People with multiple income streams: Even W-2 employees may need to pay estimated taxes if side income pushes them beyond what withholding covers.
There are some exceptions for farmers and fishermen.
You can use this tool from the IRS to determine if you’re required to make estimated quarterly payments or if you meet an exemption.
Read more: How do self-employment taxes work?
There are two main ways to calculate estimated quarterly tax payments. One is easier, while the other is more precise.
This is the easiest approach. You base your payments on last year’s tax bill instead of trying to predict this year’s income.
Here’s how it works:
Take your total tax liability from last year’s return. (Look at Line 24 on Form 1040, or Form 1040-SR for seniors).
Divide it by four.
Pay that amount each quarter.
An important note: If your adjusted gross income was over $150,000 last year ($75,000 if married filing separately), the IRS generally requires you to pay 110% of last year’s tax instead of 100% to qualify for safe harbor.
As long as you meet the safe harbor threshold, you won’t owe underpayment penalties — even if you end up owing more when you file your return.
Read more: Here’s how to reduce your taxable income
This method estimates what you expect to earn this year and calculates taxes based on that projection.
You’ll need to estimate the following:
This approach is more accurate but riskier. If you underestimate your income, you can trigger penalties. It’s also a bit more time-consuming than the first method.
Read more: 18 small business tax deductions worth knowing about
If you pay too much in estimated quarterly taxes, the extra money comes back to you as a refund, or you can apply it to next year’s taxes.
If you pay too little, you may owe penalties — even if you pay everything by the April filing deadline. The IRS expects taxes to be paid throughout the year as income is earned. Each quarter is evaluated separately, so timing matters just as much as the total amount paid.
Estimated tax penalties are essentially interest charges, not flat fines. The IRS calculates them based on how much you underpaid and how long your taxes went unpaid. The rate is tied to the federal short-term rate plus 3%, and it can change quarterly. (The rate as of December 2025 was 7%.) Interest compounds daily, which is why small shortfalls can quietly snowball.
Here’s a simple example: Say you were supposed to pay $4,000 in estimated taxes for the April quarter but only paid $2,500. That leaves a $1,500 underpayment. The IRS starts charging 7% interest on $1,500 from the April due date forward.
If you don’t fix the shortfall until the next quarter — or worse, until you file your tax return — that interest keeps compounding. The longer it sits unpaid, the more it grows.
The simplest way to avoid penalties is consistency: Pay on time, pay enough, and adjust your payments if your income changes.
Read more: What if I can’t pay my taxes? 5 ways to manage your bill
If you expect to earn more later in the year, you can increase future payments.
By default, the IRS assumes you earned your income evenly throughout the year. If you owe $10,000 in total taxes, they expect $2,500 each quarter.
But let’s imagine your income is uneven throughout the year. If you pay $0 in quarters one, two, and three, then $10,000 in quarter four, the IRS system will automatically flag you for an underpayment penalty for the first three quarters — even if you paid your total bill in full by the end of the year.
To avoid that penalty, you must use the annualized income installment method on Form 2210. This allows you to “annualize” your tax calculations based on when the money actually hits your bank account, proving to the IRS that you didn’t owe those early-year payments.
Did you already file and receive a penalty? You can amend your return by submitting Form 2210 with Schedule AI, which may reduce or wipe out the penalty.
Estimated tax payments are due — as you might guess — four times a year. But the schedule isn’t evenly spaced out.
Here are the standard federal due dates:
April 15: For income earned Jan. 1 to March 31
June 15: For income earned April 1 to May 31
Sept. 15: For income earned June 1 to Aug. 31
Jan. 15 (following year): For income earned Sept. 1 to Dec. 31
If a due date falls on a weekend or federal holiday, it shifts to the next business day.
Most people pay estimated taxes online because it’s fast and gives you an instant receipt.
Here are the three most accessible ways to pay your quarterly taxes:
Direct Pay: This is the simplest option. Direct Pay is free, requires no sign-up, and pulls money straight from your bank account. You choose “Estimated Tax,” select the current tax year, verify your identity using a prior return, and submit.
IRS Online Account: This takes longer to set up because it runs through ID.me, but once you’re in, you can see payment history, balances, and scheduled payments in one place.
IRS2Go app: This offers the same functionality as Direct Pay but in mobile app form. You can also pay by credit or debit card, but expect fees to be around 2%.
