How To Pay Quarterly Taxes in 2024 and 2025

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If you’re self-employed, a freelancer or own a small business, the IRS expects you to pay taxes throughout the year — not just at filing time. This step-by-step guide will show you how to pay quarterly taxes in 2024 and 2025, helping you avoid IRS penalties.

Who Needs to Pay Quarterly Taxes?

If you’re enjoying the freedoms of self-employment, including setting your hours and managing your workflow, you’re also embracing additional tax responsibilities. You may need to pay quarterly taxes if you are:

• A freelancer or independent contractor.
• Anyone expecting to owe $1,000 or more in taxes after withholdings and credits.
• A sole proprietor.
• A small business owner.
• A member of a partnership.
• An individual who receives rental income.

Quarterly Tax Deadlines for 2024 and 2025

Here are the estimated quarterly deadlines for 2024 and 2025: 

Quarterly Tax Payment Estimated Deadlines 2024 

Quarterly Tax Payment Estimated Deadlines 2025

How To Calculate Your Quarterly Tax Payments

Learning how to pay quarterly taxes properly ensures you avoid penalties and stay compliant with IRS rules. Paying these taxes is a straightforward process once you understand the steps.

• Step 1. Estimate your total income for the year:
  • This includes W-2 income, freelance income, rental income, investment income or other miscellaneous income like unemployment benefits or taxable retirement income.
• Step 2. Subtract your deductions and credits:
  • You can reduce your taxable income by subtracting standard deductions, business expenses, IRA or HSA contributions, and qualified tax credits. 
• Step 3. Calculate your tax liability:
  • The basic formula is as follows: 
    • Total estimated income – Deductions = Taxable income
  • Apply federal tax brackets to determine your federal income tax.
  • Add 15.3% self-employment tax if you’re self-employed.
  • You can use the IRS 1040-ES or the tax withholding estimator for a more precise calculation. 
• Step 4. Calculate your quarterly payments:
  • Take your estimated annual tax liability and divide it by four to find out how much you owe each quarter.
  • For example, if your total estimated tax is $10,000, you will pay $2,500 each quarter. 
• Step 5. Submit your payment:
  • Choose your payment method and submit the amount due to the IRS.
  • You can use IRS Direct Pay or EFTPS.gov to make payments. 

How To File and Pay Quarterly Taxes

There are several options to file or pay your taxes. You can estimate your payment by using Form 1040-ES. Here are the ways you can pay:

• Pay online:
  • You can use IRS.gov/pay to make an online payment. 
  • You can also use the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System.
• Pay with a mobile app:
  • You can use the IRS2Go mobile app.
• Pay via mail: 
  • Mail a check with a 1040-ES voucher.

What Happens If You Miss a Payment?

If you miss a quarterly tax deadline, you’ll face fees and penalties from the IRS. 

Missed a Payment? Here’s What To Expect

• Late fee: 0.5% per month (up to 25%).
• Interest: Charged on unpaid balances.
• Penalty calculation: Use IRS Form 2210 to figure out the amount you owe.

How To Avoid Future Penalties

To avoid future penalties, consider setting up calendar reminders or using tax software so that you receive a message when your payment is coming due.

Better yet, set up auto-payments on the EFTPS website so that your tax payments are automatically transferred from your bank account to the IRS.

Tools and Tips to Stay on Track

If you want to remain consistent with your quarterly payments, you can follow these tools or tips to stay on track: 

• Automate your savings: Transfer funds weekly to a tax-dedicated account.
• Use tax software: Tools like QuickBooks or TurboTax can calculate and file for you.
• Consider monthly payments: You’re allowed to pay more frequently than quarterly.
• Hire a professional: CPAs can help optimize self-employment deductions and payment schedules.

Final Take 

Paying your quarterly taxes consistently will prevent any surprises when tax day appears in April. Here are key takeaways you need to know about quarterly taxes:

• You are required to pay quarterly taxes if you owe more than $1,000 after deductions and credits are applied.
• To help make the calculation, you can use Form 1040-ES to determine the amount. 
• Payments are due four times per year — make sure you meet your deadlines.
• You can use IRS.gov or EFTPS to make your payments.
• To stay penalty free, automate your payments or work with a tax professional. 

John Csiszar and Elizabeth Constantineau contributed to the reporting of this article.

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