Net earnings comparison between salaried employment and self-employment

Why Self-Employment Gross Needs Big Adjustments

A self-employed person earning 100,000 gross does not take home 100,000. Self-employment tax (15-30% depending on jurisdiction and structure) plus business overhead (15-30% typical for solo operations) typically consume 30-50% of gross revenue before the remainder lands in personal income. A 100,000 gross self-employment often nets 50,000-70,000 — much closer to an 80,000-100,000 salary job with benefits. The calculator surfaces this gap explicitly because salary-to-self-employment comparisons based on gross figures are systematically misleading.

What Self-Employment Tax Actually Covers

Self-employment tax covers both employer and employee portions of national pension system and public healthcare — approximately 15.3% on net business income. Employees normally only pay the employee half; their employer pays the other half. Self-employed workers pay both halves. Other jurisdictions have similar structures with different rates — payroll taxes Class 2 and 4, CPP on self-employment income, etc. The calculator takes self-employment tax percentage as a direct input — use the specific rate for the relevant jurisdiction and income level.

Realistic Overhead for Solo Self-Employment

Solo self-employed workers typically run 15-25% overhead. Software subscriptions (design tools, accounting, CRM, cloud storage) often 150-500 monthly. Equipment depreciation. Professional insurance and liability coverage. Home office or co-working costs. Accountant fees. Marketing and website costs. Professional development and training. Health insurance in jurisdictions where employers typically provide it. Overhead is the realistic cost of running a business independently — the calculator makes it explicit rather than hiding it in the gross-vs-net comparison.

What Employee Benefits Actually Cost to Replace

A typical full-time employee receives 25-35% of salary in benefits value. For a 70,000 salaried employee, that represents 17,500-24,500 annually. Healthcare typically consumes the largest share (8,000-18,000). Retirement match 2,100-4,200. Paid leave equivalent 5,400-8,100. Disability and life insurance 500-1,500. Training and development budget 1,000-3,000. Self-employed workers fund all of this directly or go without. The benefits value input lets the employee side of the comparison reflect true total compensation.

Worked Example Comparing Typical Options

Employee salary 70,000. Benefits 21,000 (30%). Self-employed gross 100,000. Self-employment tax 15%. Overhead 20%. Employee total: 91,000. Self-employed after overhead: 80,000. Self-employed after overhead and SE tax: 68,000. Employee earns 23,000 more than self-employed despite self-employment grossing 100,000 while salary is 70,000. This is the systematic gap between gross self-employment revenue and net take-home after tax and overhead. Sustainable self-employment typically requires gross revenues 40-60% above equivalent salary to produce equal net take-home.

When Self-Employment Wins Financially

High-margin consulting or specialised services where overhead stays low (10-15%) and premium rates sustain gross revenue well above salary equivalent. Portable careers where work location flexibility adds quality-of-life value beyond financial comparison. Careers with strong tax optimisation opportunities (business expense deductions, specific retirement accounts, jurisdiction-based structuring). Entrepreneurial ventures where the upside potential includes business equity value beyond current cashflow. Work that can be scaled through employees or contractors, breaking the single-person revenue ceiling.

When Employment Wins Financially

Roles where benefits (especially healthcare) are expensive to replace privately. Careers with strong promotion paths that compound over time. Positions providing substantial retirement match or stock compensation. Stable roles in industries with steady demand but modest self-employment equivalents. Early career positions that build skills and networks more efficiently through employment. Industries where self-employment revenue is highly variable and stability matters more than upside.

The Tax Optimisation Angle

Self-employment allows deduction of legitimate business expenses — home office (pro rata), vehicle use, equipment, professional development, software, marketing, some travel, and similar costs. Proper structure (sole proprietor vs LLC vs S-corp in terms; similar structures elsewhere) can reduce effective tax rate on self-employment income by 5-15 percentage points in some jurisdictions. The calculator does not model specific tax structures; professional tax advice is typically worth the fee for self-employed workers to optimise their structure.

Risk and Variability Considerations

Employee income is typically stable. Self-employment income often varies 20-50% year-to-year based on client demand, project timing, and economic cycles. The stability has economic value beyond the pure math — steady income supports mortgage qualification, insurance access, and financial planning in ways variable income does not. The calculator compares single-year averages; multi-year variability analysis would require adjusting the self-employment figure downward to account for down-year risk.

What the Calculator Does Not Model

Specific jurisdiction tax structures. Business equity value if the self-employment builds into a saleable business. Career trajectory differences over decades. Lifestyle and location flexibility value. Income variability and its implications for financial planning. Specific retirement account contribution limits by employment type. Healthcare coverage gaps or premiums for self-employed workers. Mortgage qualification challenges for self-employed applicants.

Common Self-Employed vs Employee Mistakes

Comparing gross self-employment to net salary. Ignoring benefits value when evaluating employee compensation. Underestimating overhead costs for solo self-employment. Forgetting self-employment tax entirely. Not accounting for income variability in self-employment. Treating one strong freelance year as representative of sustainable annual income. Ignoring career trajectory effects over 10-20 year horizons. The calculator gives single-year comparison; career decisions require broader analysis including risk, stability, and long-term trajectory.