Free S-corp salary calculator · 2026

What salary should your S-corp pay you?

Most S-corp owners pick a salary once and never revisit it. Answer a few questions and see the salary that keeps the most money in your family under 2026 tax law, counting payroll tax, the 20% QBI deduction, a solo 401(k) and your state's entity-tax election.

Built by Triton Lee, CPA, Director of Strategic Tax Planning
1Your numbers2Unlock3Your plan
Revenue minus expenses. A round number is fine.
Enter your profit to see a plan. A rough number is fine.
Lets us show the difference against today's salary.
Filing status
Fine-tune: age, kids, family payroll, 401(k), deductions
About 60 seconds. No business name or tax ID.

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A planning estimate, not a tax return and not tax, legal or investment advice. It assumes a non-service business that is your household's only income, and a solved salary is not a reasonable-compensation conclusion. What it doesn't model.

Common questions

Before you change your payroll.

What is reasonable compensation for an S-corp owner?
The IRS expects an S-corp owner who works in the business to take a W-2 salary that matches what the work is worth. The defensible salary depends on your role, hours and market. A calculator can show the lowest-tax salary, but it is not a reasonable-compensation conclusion.
What is the pass-through entity tax (PTET) election?
Most states let an S-corp pay state income tax at the entity level, where it is deductible on the federal return. That works around the federal cap on deducting state and local taxes.
How does salary affect the 20% QBI deduction?
Above a taxable-income threshold, the qualified business income deduction is limited to 50% of W-2 wages the business pays. A higher salary can raise the deduction even as it adds payroll tax, which is why there is a salary that minimizes total tax.
Can I put my children on payroll?
Only for real work at a fair rate, with records. Wages up to the standard deduction can be free of federal income tax for the child and can fund a Roth IRA.
What doesn't the calculator include?
  • It treats the business as the household's only income. Other wages, investment income, rentals and other K-1s all change the answer.
  • It assumes the business is not a specified service trade or business (medicine, law, accounting, consulting and similar), where the QBI deduction phases out.
  • The salary shown is solved for the lowest tax. It is not a reasonable-compensation conclusion, and the two are rarely the same number.
  • Not modeled: AMT, the net investment income tax, capital gains, local and city income taxes, state credits and addbacks, and estimated-tax timing. State tax is simplified.
  • Figures follow Rev. Proc. 2025-32, Notice 2025-67, the SSA 2026 wage base and P.L. 119-21.
  • An estimate for discussion, not tax, legal or investment advice.
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