Quarterly Estimated Taxes How to pay federal estimated taxes

The free ways to pay online

Your IRS online account. Sign in at irs.gov/account and pay from your checking or savings account. You can pay the same day or schedule a payment up to 365 days ahead. The account also shows up to five years of payment history, including your estimated payments, so you can check that each one arrived.

IRS Direct Pay. Direct Pay also takes the money from your bank account at no cost, and you don't have to sign in. Pick estimated tax as the reason for the payment, Form 1040-ES as the form and the tax year the payment is for. You can change or cancel a scheduled Direct Pay payment up to two days before it goes out.

With either one, save the confirmation number. It's your proof of payment until the payment shows up in your account.

Other ways to pay

When you e-file your return. Tax software and most tax preparers can schedule up to four Form 1040-ES payments from your bank account when you e-file last year's return. That sets up the whole year in one sitting.

By debit card, credit card or digital wallet. The IRS works with outside card processors, and they charge a fee. On the IRS payments page, the debit card fee was about $2.10 to $2.15, and the credit card fee was 1.75 to 1.85 percent, with a $2.50 minimum. None of the fee goes to the IRS. You can pay by card online, by phone or through the IRS2Go app.

By check or money order. Make it payable to U.S. Treasury and mail it with the Form 1040-ES payment voucher. Write your name, address, phone number, Social Security number, the tax year and 1040-ES on it. Mail it to the address in the Form 1040-ES instructions for where you live, which isn't always the address for your tax return. The IRS says to allow about two weeks for a mailed check to be processed, so mail it early.

In cash. Some retail stores take IRS payments in cash. The list is at irs.gov/paycash. Never mail cash.

EFTPS. If you already use the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System, you can keep using it for now. The IRS has stopped opening new EFTPS accounts for individuals and points them to the online account instead.

Details that keep a payment on the right year

Pick the right tax year. The January 15 payment belongs to the year that just ended. So the payment due January 15, 2027 is for tax year 2026, and that's the year you choose when you pay it.

Married and filing jointly? If you make joint estimated payments, enter both names and Social Security numbers in the same order they'll appear on your joint return.

Use last year's refund. If last year's return showed an overpayment, you can apply part or all of it to this year's estimated tax instead of taking the refund. If you file on time, the IRS treats that credit as paid on April 15. Once you choose it, you can't get the credited part back until you file next year's return.

Pay more often if it's easier. You can pay monthly or every time a client pays you, as long as enough is in by each due date.

A year of payments, worked out

Here's how a year of payments can look, with made-up numbers. Jordan is a freelance photographer. Last year's total tax was $14,000, and adjusted gross income was $88,000, so the safe harbor is $14,000, or $3,500 a payment.

Last year's return also showed a $1,000 overpayment, and Jordan applied it to this year instead of taking a refund. That credit counts as paid on April 15, so the April payment is $2,500.

Jordan signs in to the IRS online account once and schedules all four: $2,500 for April 15, 2026, then $3,500 each for June 15 and September 15, 2026 and January 15, 2027. All four are for tax year 2026.

Your amounts will be different. We work them out with you on the free 30-minute call, and then you schedule them yourself in a few minutes.

Questions owners ask about paying

Do I need to mail a voucher if I pay online? No. The voucher goes with a check or money order. An online payment carries the same details, so keep the confirmation number instead.

How do I check that a payment arrived? Sign in to your IRS online account. Your payment history lists your estimated payments.

Is my business's estimated tax paid the same way? A C corporation pays its own estimated tax as a business payment. If you own a partnership, an S corporation or a one-owner LLC, the estimated payments are usually yours, and you pay them as an individual. The page on who makes the payment explains the difference.

What if I can't pay the full amount? Pay what you can by the due date. The penalty is figured on the amount that's short and the days it stays unpaid, so a partial payment still keeps it smaller. See the quarterly estimated tax penalty.

How we help

Paying is the easy part. The hard part is the amount. On the free 30-minute call, we work out what to pay on each date from last year's return or your up-to-date books. Then you make the payment yourself, and the money goes from your bank account straight to the U.S. Treasury.

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