State income tax for the self-employed in 2026, state by state

A state does not tax self-employment income in a special way. The profit from Schedule C flows into federal adjusted gross income, after the deduction for half of self-employment tax described in the IRS self-employment tax page, and most states take that figure, or federal taxable income, as their starting point. From there each state applies its own standard deduction or exemption and its own rates. Since no employer withholds anything, the state share has to be paid in quarterly estimates like the federal one, and it changes how much of each invoice should be put aside.

The 9 states without a wage income tax

Alaska, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, Wyoming do not tax wages or business profit of individuals. That makes the comparison above look simple, but several of them tax the business by another route. Texas applies a franchise tax to LLCs, though an entity at or below the no-tax-due revenue threshold owes nothing (Texas Comptroller). Washington's business and occupation tax is levied on gross receipts with no deduction for expenses; service income is taxed at 1.5 % when prior-year gross receipts were under $1,000,000, and a small business credit cancels the tax for low earners (Washington DOR, B&O classifications). Tennessee reaches LLCs at the entity level through its franchise and excise taxes, and Nevada has a Commerce Tax for businesses above $4,000,000 of Nevada gross revenue (Nevada Department of Taxation). The state pages give the detail for each.

One rate for everyone: the flat-tax states

A flat tax applies one percentage to income above any deduction, so the share of profit taken rises only a little with income, through the deduction becoming smaller in relative terms. The confirmed 2026 flat rates are: Indiana 2.95 %, Louisiana 3 %, Pennsylvania 3.07 %, Kentucky 3.5 %, Iowa 3.8 %, North Carolina 3.99 %, Mississippi 4 %, Michigan 4.25 %, Colorado 4.4 %, Illinois 4.95 %, Georgia 4.99 %, Massachusetts 5 %.

The rate alone does not tell the whole story. Pennsylvania taxes at 3.07 % but allows no standard deduction or personal exemption, and a business loss cannot offset wages or other classes of income (Pennsylvania Department of Revenue). Michigan stays at 4.25 % for 2026 because the automatic rate cut was not triggered (Michigan Treasury). Flat is not the same as cheap: on $75,000, Illinois at 4.95 % takes $3,305, while South Carolina, with brackets, takes $1,268.

Brackets: the middle slices matter more than the top rate

A graduated schedule taxes each slice of income at its own rate. The highest confirmed top rates for 2026 are 12.3 % in California, 11 % in Hawaii, 10.9 % in New York, 10.75 % in the District of Columbia, but a freelancer earning $75,000 rarely reaches them. What decides the bill at ordinary incomes is the rate on the middle slices and the size of the standard deduction. New York cut its five lowest bracket rates for 2026 (New York instructions IT-2105), which lowers the tax of every resident a little, whatever the income.

States whose 2026 schedule is not shown

For Arizona, Arkansas, Idaho, Kansas, Missouri, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Utah, Vermont, the 2026 brackets or rate could not be confirmed on an official page on the day of reading, because the page was blocked, still showed 2025 figures or conflicted with a newer law. The calculator leaves their state tax out rather than guess, and the table shows n/a. Each state page links the revenue department where the schedule is posted.

The tax on $75,000 of profit, state by state

Single filer, no other income, 2026 rules, state standard deduction and exemptions applied; local income taxes are not included.

Working across state lines

Residents are taxed by their home state on all their income, wherever the clients are. A state where you physically work as a nonresident can tax the income earned there, and the home state then usually gives a credit for that tax so the same dollar is not taxed twice in full. Moving during the year means a part-year return in each state, each taxing the months of residence.

An LLC that elects S corporation status can, in many states, pay state tax at the entity level through a pass-through entity tax, which turns a personal state tax limited by the federal SALT cap into a business deduction. Oregon, for one, has extended its elective tax through tax year 2027 (Oregon DOR, PTE-E). Whether it saves anything depends on your federal itemized deductions, a question for a CPA.

Cities and counties on top

A state total is not always the full local bill. Maryland counties, Ohio and Michigan cities, Pennsylvania municipalities and school districts, New York City, Kansas City, Philadelphia and parts of Oregon tax income or business profit again. The local business taxes guide lists those read so far, and the LLC cost table adds what the state charges to keep the LLC itself.