{
  "slug": "1099-vs-w2",
  "title": "1099 vs W-2 Calculator",
  "heading": "1099 vs W-2 Calculator",
  "category": "financial",
  "url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/1099-vs-w2",
  "summary": "The contractor rate you need to match a salaried job.",
  "description": "A 1099 rate has to cover the employer half of FICA, your own health insurance, retirement, unpaid time off, and business costs. Matching a salary usually takes a 25–40% higher headline number.",
  "formula": "Required 1099 income = Salary + benefits value + employer FICA, spread over billable weeks.",
  "dateModified": "2026-09-30",
  "run_url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/api/public/calc?tool=1099-vs-w2",
  "inputs": [
    {
      "id": "salary",
      "label": "W-2 salary",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 110000,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "benefits",
      "label": "Employer benefits value",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 12000,
      "unit": "$/yr",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "ptoWeeks",
      "label": "Paid time off",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 4,
      "unit": "weeks",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 12
    },
    {
      "id": "billableHours",
      "label": "Billable hours per week",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 32,
      "unit": null,
      "min": 1,
      "max": 80
    },
    {
      "id": "expenses",
      "label": "Annual business expenses",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 6000,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    }
  ],
  "outputs": [
    {
      "id": "hourly",
      "label": "Equivalent 1099 hourly rate",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": true
    },
    {
      "id": "dayRate",
      "label": "Equivalent day rate",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "target",
      "label": "Gross revenue you need",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "premium",
      "label": "Premium over the W-2 hourly rate",
      "format": "percent",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "w2Hourly",
      "label": "W-2 salary as hourly",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    }
  ],
  "worked_example": {
    "inputs": [
      "W-2 salary: 110000 $",
      "Employer benefits value: 12000 $/yr",
      "Paid time off: 4 weeks",
      "Billable hours per week: 32",
      "Annual business expenses: 6000 $"
    ],
    "outputs": [
      "Equivalent 1099 hourly rate: $88.81",
      "Equivalent day rate: $710.49",
      "Gross revenue you need: $136,415.00",
      "Premium over the W-2 hourly rate: 67.9%",
      "W-2 salary as hourly: $52.88"
    ]
  },
  "how_to": {
    "title": "How to use this",
    "steps": [
      "Enter w-2 salary ($).",
      "Enter employer benefits value ($/yr).",
      "Enter paid time off (weeks).",
      "Enter billable hours per week.",
      "Enter annual business expenses ($).",
      "Read your equivalent 1099 hourly rate on the right — it updates as you type.",
      "Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone."
    ]
  },
  "scenarios": [
    {
      "name": "Conservative",
      "description": "Lower-end numbers — what if things land soft?",
      "values": {
        "salary": 66000,
        "benefits": 7000,
        "ptoWeeks": 2,
        "billableHours": 19,
        "expenses": 3500
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Typical",
      "description": "Defaults — the most common real-world setup.",
      "values": {
        "salary": 110000,
        "benefits": 12000,
        "ptoWeeks": 4,
        "billableHours": 32,
        "expenses": 6000
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Ambitious",
      "description": "Higher-end numbers — what if things really pop?",
      "values": {
        "salary": 176000,
        "benefits": 19000,
        "ptoWeeks": 6,
        "billableHours": 51,
        "expenses": 9500
      }
    }
  ],
  "limitations": [
    "Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.",
    "Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.",
    "This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant."
  ],
  "faq": [
    {
      "q": "How does the 1099 vs w-2 calculator work?",
      "a": "A 1099 rate has to cover the employer half of FICA, your own health insurance, retirement, unpaid time off, and business costs. Matching a salary usually takes a 25–40% higher headline number. The underlying maths is: Required 1099 income = Salary + benefits value + employer FICA, spread over billable weeks."
    },
    {
      "q": "What do I need to enter?",
      "a": "5 values: w-2 salary, employer benefits value, paid time off, billable hours per week, and annual business expenses. Each field starts with a sensible default, so you can change one number at a time and watch the result move."
    },
    {
      "q": "What does the equivalent 1099 hourly rate result mean?",
      "a": "It is returned as a money amount in US dollars and updates live as you edit the inputs, so you can compare two or three versions of a scenario in a few seconds."
    },
    {
      "q": "Is this calculator free, and do I need an account?",
      "a": "Yes, it's free, and no account is required. Nothing you type is stored on our servers — the maths runs entirely in your browser."
    },
    {
      "q": "How accurate is the result?",
      "a": "It applies the standard formula exactly, so the arithmetic is precise. Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them."
    },
    {
      "q": "Who is this tool for?",
      "a": "It's built for anyone comparing money scenarios before committing — budgeting a payment, sanity-checking a quote, or seeing what a change in rate or term actually costs."
    }
  ],
  "related": [
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/self-employment-tax",
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/hourly-to-salary"
  ],
  "license": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "citation": "RevenueLab — 1099 vs W-2 Calculator (https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/1099-vs-w2)"
}