Free Owner Pay Calculator: How Much to Pay Yourself
Paying yourself from whatever is in the account each month makes it easy to come up short at tax time. Start from profit instead: take out a share for taxes, leave a cushion in the business, and pay yourself what's left.
It runs in your browser. Nothing you type is saved or sent anywhere. The numbers filled in below are a made-up example; change them to yours.
How the math works
- Profit = sales − business expenses. Use an average of the last 3 months so one big or slow month doesn't throw it off.
- Tax set-aside = profit × your tax %. The right % depends on your income, state and business type; a tax preparer can tell you yours.
- Cushion = profit × the % you keep in the business for slow months and upcoming costs.
- Your pay = profit − tax set-aside − cushion.
Example (made up): $6,000 in sales and $2,200 in expenses is $3,800 profit. Setting aside 25% ($950) for taxes and keeping 10% ($380) in the business leaves $2,470 a month to pay yourself, or $1,235 twice a month.
How you're allowed to pay yourself (owner draws or a salary through payroll) depends on how your business is set up. This is an estimate for planning, not tax or legal advice.
Want the profit number filled in for you?
The Small Business Bookkeeping Spreadsheet ($12) lets you log each sale or expense once, and your profit and loss, dashboard and deductible-expense summary fill in automatically. Works in Excel and Google Sheets.
Get the spreadsheet on Gumroad – $12
This template is also in the Self-Employed & Small Business Bundle (what's inside): all 9 business tools for $29 (about $80 if bought one by one).
We make this template, so take that into account. The calculator above is free to use either way.
Related free guides
- How to Track Owner Draws in a Small Business
- Simple Profit and Loss Statement for a Small Business
- How Much to Set Aside for Side Hustle Taxes
- Weekly Bookkeeping Routine for a Small Business (20 Minutes)
More free tools: all calculators.
See all Cedar & Ledger templates