How to calculate quarterly taxes for a single-member LLC when you have a full-time job?

This is a really common question! You need to consider both self-employment tax AND income tax for your quarterly payments. For self-employment tax: Yes, you multiply your net earnings by 0.9235 × 0.153. This gives you the Social Security and Medicare taxes you owe on your self-employment income. For income tax: Since you already have W2 income, your consulting income is essentially "stacked" on top of your W2 earnings, meaning it's taxed at your highest marginal rate. With your household income, you're likely in the 32% or 35% federal tax bracket. The simplest approach is to set aside about 40-45% of your consulting income for quarterly payments. This covers both the self-employment tax and income tax. If you want to be more precise, you could use the IRS Form 1040-ES worksheet to calculate the exact amount.

I was in a similar situation last year with my design consultancy. After spending hours trying to figure out quarterly payments, I found taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) which was a game changer for my LLC taxes. It basically analyzed my situation (W2 job + side business) and calculated exactly what I needed to pay each quarter. The tool handled all the complex calculations, including figuring out my effective tax rate based on our joint income and determining business deductions I was missing. What I liked most was that it showed me how much I needed to set aside from each LLC payment I received, which made budgeting way easier than trying to come up with lump sums every quarter.

Just wanted to update that I tried taxr.ai after seeing it mentioned here, and it was exactly what I needed! I've been doing photography on the side while working full-time, and the quarterly tax confusion was giving me a headache. The system walked me through everything and showed me I was actually setting aside WAY more than necessary because I wasn't accounting for all my legitimate business deductions. It turns out I was eligible for a home office deduction and could write off a portion of my camera equipment that I hadn't considered. The quarterly payment calculator adjusted for my W2 withholdings too, which none of the generic calculators online seemed to do properly. Definitely recommend for anyone juggling W2 and self-employment income!

If you're trying to get specific guidance for your LLC tax situation, good luck getting through to the IRS these days. I spent 3 weeks calling repeatedly just to get a basic question answered about my quarterly payments. Finally found Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) which got me through to an actual IRS agent in about 15 minutes. Check out how it works: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The agent walked me through exactly how to calculate my quarterly payments considering both my day job and LLC income. They also explained how to avoid underpayment penalties by meeting "safe harbor" thresholds. Was absolutely worth it to get personalized advice directly from the IRS instead of guessing.

Ok I need to eat crow here. After complaining that Claimyr sounded like BS, I was desperate enough to try it because I've been calculating my LLC taxes wrong for 2 years according to my CPA. It actually worked exactly as described. Got a call back in about 45 minutes, and was connected to an IRS tax specialist who explained that I'd been double-counting my self-employment tax. For quarterly payments, they confirmed I should be using the method in Pub 505 where you account for both the SE tax and the additional income tax based on my tax bracket. The agent even helped me understand how my W2 withholding affects my quarterly requirements. No tax pro I talked to explained it as clearly as the IRS agent did. Consider me converted.

Quick tip from a fellow LLC owner: Use the "safe harbor" rule to avoid penalties. If you pay 100% of last year's tax liability (or 110% if your AGI was over $150k), you won't face underpayment penalties even if you end up owing more when you file. For your first year with the LLC, it's often easiest to increase withholding from your W2 job instead of making separate quarterly payments. Just submit a new W-4 to your employer requesting additional withholding to cover your self-employment income.

dont forget about state taxes too!! I got hit with a $900 penalty because I only did federal quarterlies my first year :

Great question! I went through this exact situation last year with my freelance writing business. Here's what I learned: You're on the right track with the self-employment tax calculation, but you'll also need to calculate the income tax portion. Since your household income is $310k, your consulting income will be taxed at your marginal rate (likely 32% federal). A simple formula I use: Take your net LLC profit × 0.9235 × 0.153 for SE tax, then add your net profit × your marginal tax rate for income tax. Don't forget state taxes if applicable. One thing that helped me was making the safe harbor payment - since your AGI is over $150k, pay 110% of last year's total tax liability divided by 4 quarters. This protects you from penalties even if you underpay slightly. Also consider maxing out business deductions: home office, business meals (50%), professional development, equipment, etc. Every dollar in legitimate expenses reduces your taxable income. The key is staying organized and setting aside money from each payment you receive rather than scrambling each quarter!