1099 vs W-2 Calculator: Match Your Salary
Compare a contract hourly rate against a salaried job once benefits, time off, and self-employment tax are counted
By the Monthly Income Booster editorial team · Updated · How we research and fact-check
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1099 vs W-2 Calculator: Match Your Salary
Printed 2026-10-27 from billorganizingapp.com/income/calculators/contractor-vs-employee/ — an estimate for planning, not financial or tax advice.
Contractors pay both halves of Social Security and Medicare and buy their own time off. This is an estimate, not tax advice.
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A contract rate that looks higher than your salary often isn't, once you buy your own health cover, pay both halves of Social Security and Medicare, and stop being paid for holidays. This tool converts one into the other.
What Changes When You Go 1099
You pick up the employer's share of payroll tax, your own insurance, unpaid time off, unbillable admin hours, and equipment. Those are real costs, not paperwork.
Billable Weeks Are the Hidden Number
Nobody bills 52 weeks. Gaps between contracts, holidays, and illness all come out of your own pocket, so setting billable weeks honestly matters more than the rate itself.
When Contracting Wins
It wins when the rate clears the break-even by a wide margin, when you can stack more than one client, or when the work builds a skill or portfolio that raises your future rate.
Official sources
Tax rules, limits and pay data change. Check the current figures with the primary source before acting on them.
Frequently Asked Questions
What hourly rate equals a $60,000 salary?+
Enter the salary and your benefits value — the tool shows the rate you'd need to match it after extra payroll tax and unpaid weeks. It is usually well above the simple salary-divided-by-2080 figure.
How much extra tax do 1099 workers pay?+
Self-employed people pay both halves of Social Security and Medicare, roughly 15.3% of net self-employment earnings, with half deductible against income tax.
Is contract work worth it?+
It depends on the rate, how steady the work is, and what you pay for insurance. Run both numbers before deciding — estimates only, not tax advice.
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