Quarterly Estimated Taxes 2026: Due Dates, Safe Harbors and How to Pay Online
Quick answer
You must pay quarterly estimated taxes if you expect to owe $1,000 or more when you file, after withholding and credits. For the 2026 tax year the deadlines are April 15, June 15 and September 15, 2026, and January 15, 2027. Paying 100% of last year's tax (110% for higher earners) avoids any penalty.
Estimated tax rules and 2026 due dates
| Rule or deadline | Detail |
|---|---|
| Who must pay | Individuals expecting to owe $1,000 or more for the year after withholding and refundable credits |
| Who is exempt | No tax liability last year, a US citizen or resident for the whole year, and a prior tax year covering 12 months (all three required) |
| First payment (income Jan 1 to March 31) | April 15, 2026 |
| Second payment (income April 1 to May 31) | June 15, 2026 |
| Third payment (income June 1 to Aug 31) | September 15, 2026 |
| Fourth payment (income Sept 1 to Dec 31) | January 15, 2027 |
| Weekend rule | A deadline falling on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday moves to the next business day (none shift in 2026) |
| Safe harbor: current year | Pay at least 90% of your 2026 tax |
| Safe harbor: prior year | 100% of your 2025 tax, or 110% if your 2025 AGI was over $150,000 ($75,000 married filing separately) |
| Underpayment penalty | Figured per installment on Form 2210 at the IRS interest rate on underpayments |
| Corporations | Must pay estimated tax if they expect to owe $500 or more |
Step by step
- 1
Check whether you must pay
If you expect to owe $1,000 or more when you file, after withholding and refundable credits, quarterly payments are generally required. Self-employment income, investment income and rent are the usual triggers, because nothing is withheld from them.
- 2
Pick a target: estimate or safe harbor
Either estimate your 2026 tax with the Form 1040-ES worksheet, or lean on the prior-year safe harbor: pay 100% of your 2025 tax (110% if your 2025 AGI was over $150,000) and no penalty applies however the year turns out.
- 3
Divide by four and diarise the dates
Split the annual target into four installments due April 15, June 15 and September 15, 2026, and January 15, 2027. The periods are uneven (the second covers only two months), but the default expectation is four equal payments.
- 4
Pay online
IRS Direct Pay takes payments from a bank account free of charge with no registration, and a payment can be changed or cancelled up to two days before it runs. EFTPS does the same after a one-off enrolment and suits scheduling all four dates in advance. Your IRS Online Account and the IRS2Go app also work, as does mailing the 1040-ES voucher.
- 5
Adjust if income is uneven
If the money arrives late in the year, you can pay as you earn and use the annualised income method on Form 2210 to match penalty-free payments to when the income actually landed, rather than pretending it arrived evenly.
- 6
Reconcile on your return
The four payments are credited against the tax on your 2026 Form 1040. Underpay an installment and Form 2210 works out the charge; the IRS can waive it after a casualty or disaster, or if you retired after 62 or became disabled and the shortfall had reasonable cause.
Estimated taxes exist because the US system is pay-as-you-go: tax is due as income arrives, not once a year in April. Employees never notice, since withholding does the job invoice by invoice. Work for yourself and nobody withholds anything, so the IRS expects you to send the money in four installments across the year. The trigger is the $1,000 rule: expect to owe $1,000 or more at filing, after withholding and credits, and quarterly payments are generally required. The bill being estimated is both layers at once, self-employment tax and income tax on the profit from your Schedule C.
The system is more forgiving than it first looks, because of the safe harbors. Match 100% of last year's tax (110% if your AGI topped $150,000) or 90% of this year's, whichever is smaller, and no penalty can touch you even if the final bill comes in higher. That prior-year number is the practical route for anyone with lumpy income: it is known in advance, divides neatly by four, and turns estimation into a diary exercise. The dates above are the 2026 set; the pattern repeats every year, but deadlines that land on weekends or holidays shift, so check the current Form 1040-ES each January. Farmers and fishermen have their own gentler timetable under Publication 505.
Underpayment is charged like interest, not like a fine: Form 2210 tests each installment against its own due date, which is why a big January catch-up payment does not undo a missed June. It also means the fix is always the same - pay what you can as soon as you can. Setting aside a slice of every payment as it arrives, in the spirit of our UK guide on how much to set aside for tax, beats reconstructing a quarter after the deadline. What is left after the tax is set aside can then work harder, starting with the shelter in solo 401(k) contribution limits for 2026. The rest of our US reference shelf is at /us/guides.
This is general information for US readers, not personal tax advice. Figures and dates are the IRS's published rules for the 2026 tax year; state estimated-tax regimes run separately with their own dates.
Frequently asked questions
What are the due dates for estimated taxes in 2026?
April 15, June 15 and September 15, 2026, then January 15, 2027 for the final installment. None of the four falls on a weekend or holiday, so there are no shifted deadlines for the 2026 tax year. Payments cover the income periods ending March 31, May 31, August 31 and December 31.
How do I pay estimated taxes online?
IRS Direct Pay is the quickest route: free, straight from a bank account, no account registration, individual payments up to $10 million. EFTPS requires enrolment but lets you schedule payments ahead. You can also pay through your IRS Online Account, the IRS2Go app, or by card via IRS-approved processors, which charge fees.
What happens if I miss a quarterly estimated tax payment?
An underpayment charge starts accruing on that installment from its due date, calculated at the IRS interest rate on underpayments via Form 2210. Pay as soon as you notice; the charge runs on time as well as amount, and catching up at the next deadline does not erase the weeks in between.
What is the safe harbor rule for estimated taxes?
No penalty applies if you owe under $1,000 at filing, or if your withholding and estimated payments reach the smaller of 90% of the current year's tax or 100% of the prior year's. The prior-year leg rises to 110% when prior-year AGI exceeded $150,000 ($75,000 if married filing separately).
Do I need to pay estimated taxes if I also have a W-2 job?
Often not, if you raise the withholding on your paycheck instead: file a new Form W-4 and the extra tax collected covers the side income. Withholding is treated as paid evenly through the year regardless of timing, which makes it a tidy late-year fix that estimated payments cannot match.
Can I pay all my estimated taxes at once instead of quarterly?
You can pay the whole year with the April installment, and no penalty arises because every later deadline is already covered. Waiting and paying it all in January does not work: each installment is tested against its own due date, so the first three would still accrue underpayment charges.
Sources
General information, not financial advice. Tax rules and figures can change; check the current position on irs.gov or ssa.gov before acting.