Self-Employed in Every State: The Part That Actually Varies

A freelancer’s tax bill has one fixed part and one variable part. Fixed: self-employment tax, 15.3% on 92.35% of net profit, plus federal income tax on the same brackets everywhere. Variable: the state income tax. That is the only line that changes when you cross a state border — and it is the only reason a “freelance tax calculator” that asks for your state is doing anything more than a W-2 calculator with a different label.

Why the state line is smaller than a wage estimate suggests

Two things make the state charge on 1099 income smaller than the same gross as a salary. First, the state taxes net profit, so every legitimate business expense reduces both the self-employment tax base and the state base. Second, and more often missed: the payroll programmes that states levy on wages — disability insurance, paid family leave — do not apply to self-employment income. California’s 1.3% SDI, Massachusetts’ 0.46% PFML and Washington’s 0.58% Cares fund are all wage deductions. A freelancer in those states pays none of them by default — Washington does allow voluntary self-employed participation in the Cares fund, which is an opt-in, not a withholding — while a W-2 employee at the same gross pays all of them.

The result is a comparison that misleads in a specific direction: naive calculators show California and Washington as expensive for a freelancer because they add the payroll premium. They are not. The income tax is what it is; the payroll premium belongs to the employed.

All 51 jurisdictions at $75,000 of net 1099 income

Sorted by total state charge, cheapest first. “Total tax” adds the federal self-employment tax and federal income tax ($15,495) to the state line, so the spread between the top and bottom row is the real relocation difference for a freelancer.

What the table cannot show

• Where your clients are. Several states tax services based on where the customer receives the benefit, not where you sit. A freelancer in a no-tax state with all clients in New York can still owe New York tax on that income.
• Local taxes. City and county income taxes exist in a number of states and are not modelled here; they can add a percent or more on top of the state line.
• Business taxes that are not income taxes. Gross receipts taxes, franchise taxes and minimum taxes hit some self-employed people regardless of profit — those are a different question from “what does my income cost me”.
• The QBI interaction. The 20% qualified business income deduction is federal and identical everywhere at this income level; above roughly $200,000 of taxable income it starts to be limited for service businesses, which is beyond these pages.

Related

FAQ

Do I pay state tax where I live or where my client is?

Usually where you live, for your own service income — but states with a market-based sourcing rule can tax services by where the customer is located. That is the exception worth checking before a move.

Is self-employment tax deductible on the state return?

Some states allow a deduction for the federal self-employment tax; most start from federal AGI and do not. The state figures above follow each state’s own published schedule, so they already reflect the treatment that state uses.

Why is the total at $75,000 higher than 15.3% plus income tax?

Because the 15.3% applies to 92.35% of net profit, then the federal income tax applies on top of what is left after the half-tax deduction, the standard deduction and the 20% QBI allowance. The two are stacked, not alternatives.

Tax year 2026 · $75,000 net self-employment income, single filer, no itemized deductions · Financial disclaimer