Resident · Tax Essentials
Your 1099 rate is not your take-home
2 min read
Moonlighting pay can arrive without withholding. Map self-employment tax and your W-2 wages before treating the deposit as take-home pay.
THE CORE NUMBERS
15.3%self-employment tax
$184,5002026 Social Security wage base
12.4% + 2.9%OASDI + Medicare/HI
0.9%additional Medicare tax over threshold
The 12.4% Social Security portion applies up to the wage base; the 2.9% Medicare portion has no cap. The additional 0.9% Medicare threshold is $200,000 for single filers and $250,000 for MFJ.
W-2 wages and self-employment earnings share one Social Security wage base. The research example: a resident with an $80,000 W-2 salary plus moonlighting income pays the 15.3% self-employment tax on the moonlighting net earnings while still below the wage base.
Your next steps
- Separate W-2 wages from net self-employment earnings.
- Track combined earnings against the wage base.
- Account for self-employment tax before treating moonlighting cash as spendable.
Check your understanding
Select each question to reveal the answer.
✓ 15.3%.
✓ No. They share one wage base.
✓ No. It has no cap.
✓ $184,500.
Planning questions
- How much W-2 income and net moonlighting income do you expect in 2026?
- What portion of each moonlighting payment will you reserve until your tax estimate is complete?