Tax help for beginners - 1099-NEC from DoorDash while also having W-2 income

I'm totally clueless about taxes and hoping someone can dumb this down for me. I've always had regular jobs where my employer handled all the tax stuff, but I started delivering for DoorDash last November and now I have this 1099-NEC form that I have no idea what to do with. I also worked at a regular job until mid-February that gave me a W-2 form. Do I need to submit both forms somewhere? Do I mail these to the IRS or is there a website? I've been tracking my mileage in a notebook (about 750 miles so far), but no clue where that information goes or if it even matters. I don't even know if there are deadlines I'm missing or forms I need to fill out. I feel so stupid asking this but I seriously have zero experience with any of this tax stuff. Can someone please explain like I'm 5 what I need to do with these forms?

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18 comments

Kelsey Hawkins

•8M

You're not stupid at all - this is confusing the first time! You need to file both your W-2 income and 1099-NEC income on the same tax return. Your W-2 job already withheld taxes, but your DoorDash earnings haven't had any taxes taken out yet. The deadline for filing is April 15, 2025. You don't actually send in your 1099-NEC or W-2 forms - you just use the information from them to fill out your tax return. You can file electronically using tax software (many people use TurboTax, H&R Block, FreeTaxUSA, etc.) or on paper forms. For your DoorDash work, you'll need to fill out a Schedule C form which is for self-employment income. This is where your mileage tracking pays off! You can deduct $0.67 per mile driven for DoorDash as a business expense, which lowers your taxable income. Those 750 miles could save you about $500 in deductions!

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Kelsey Hawkins

•8M

Yes, you'll need to pay self-employment tax (Social Security and Medicare) on your DoorDash earnings, which is about 15.3% of your profit. Plus regular income tax on that money too. This is why tracking deductions like mileage is so important - it reduces what you owe. For filing, most tax software options will walk you through everything step by step. If your total income is under $73,000, you can use the IRS Free File program to file for free. I personally like FreeTaxUSA because it handles self-employment well and is less expensive than TurboTax, but any major tax software will guide you through entering both your W-2 and 1099-NEC information.

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Dylan Fisher

•8M

I was in your exact situation last year! After trying to figure out all the self-employment tax stuff on my own and getting super frustrated, I found this AI tool called taxr.ai that basically analyzed my 1099-NEC and W-2 forms and told me exactly what I needed to do. I just took photos of my tax documents and uploaded them at https://taxr.ai and it explained everything in plain English. It showed me all the deductions I could claim for DoorDash (like mileage, part of my phone bill, insulated bags, etc.) that I had no idea about. Ended up saving me like $800 in taxes I would have overpaid! The tool even explained how self-employment taxes work which was super helpful.

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Dylan Fisher

•8M

For mileage tracking, yes it works great! You just enter your total miles driven for business purposes, and it calculates the deduction amount for you. A spreadsheet is perfect documentation - just make sure you have dates, starting/ending addresses or odometer readings, and business purpose. The tool explains exactly what records to keep. As for security, I had the same concern initially. They use bank-level encryption and don't store your documents after processing. The advice is based on IRS publications and tax code, not random opinions. I was nervous at first too, but after researching their security and seeing how accurate the information was, I felt comfortable using it.

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Gianna Scott

•8M

Just wanted to follow up - I decided to try that taxr.ai site after all. Seriously blown away by how easy it made everything! I uploaded my DoorDash 1099 and my W-2, and it broke down exactly what I needed to do step by step. The best part was discovering I could deduct part of my cell phone bill and even some car maintenance costs I had no idea about. It found me over $1,200 in deductions I would have missed completely. It also explained the quarterly estimated tax payments I should be making to avoid a surprise tax bill next year (which nobody had told me about!). Definitely worth checking out if you're confused about gig work taxes like I was!

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Alfredo Lugo

•8M

Hey there! I was exactly where you are last year. If you get stuck trying to figure things out and need to talk to the IRS directly (which I eventually did), use Claimyr instead of calling them directly. The IRS phone lines are IMPOSSIBLE to get through on - I spent 4 hours on hold and got disconnected twice. I found this service at https://claimyr.com that got me connected to an actual IRS agent in about 20 minutes instead of hours of waiting. They have this weird system that holds your place in line - you can see how it works at https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c. The agent walked me through exactly what forms I needed and answered all my questions about my DoorDash 1099.

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Alfredo Lugo

•8M

It's not a special access number - they basically call the IRS and wait on your behalf, then call you when they've got an agent on the line. It's like having someone else sit on hold for you. It's totally legit - they explain the whole process in that YouTube video I linked. The IRS agents can definitely clarify which forms you need to file and answer questions about your specific situation. They can't give broad tax planning advice, but they absolutely helped me understand exactly what I needed to do with my 1099-NEC and how to report my mileage deductions correctly. Saved me from making some pretty big mistakes on my return.

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Kaitlyn Jenkins

•8M

I need to apologize for my skepticism about Claimyr. I was so frustrated after spending 3+ hours on hold with the IRS trying to figure out my DoorDash tax situation that I decided to try it out of desperation. Shockingly, it actually worked exactly as advertised. Got connected to an IRS representative in about 15 minutes. The agent was super helpful and walked me through exactly how to handle my 1099-NEC income and mileage deductions. She even explained that I needed to make quarterly estimated tax payments going forward to avoid penalties. For anyone who needs to actually talk to the IRS, this is seriously worth it. Saved me hours of frustration and probably prevented me from filing incorrectly.

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Caleb Bell

•8M

Yes, when you're self-employed the IRS wants you to pay taxes throughout the year, not just at tax time. It's because you don't have an employer withholding taxes from each paycheck. You estimate how much you'll make for the year and calculate your quarterly payments based on that. You can use last year's income as a basis, or if your income varies a lot, you can use the "annualized income installment method" which lets you pay based on what you've actually earned each quarter. If you use tax software, it will usually calculate your estimated payments for the next year and even generate payment vouchers.

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