Taxes
Whatever your line of business, you can calculate the taxes you will owe and compare the options to find the best one for you.
How much tax does a self-employed person really pay under the standard scheme?
Enter your revenue and costs: TaxDemocracy calculates IRPEF by brackets, surtaxes and social security contributions (INPS) with the correct deductibility, and tells you straight away whether the flat-rate scheme would suit you better.
The standard scheme can't be worked out by eye
Under the standard scheme (regime ordinario) (and the simplified one, which works the same way for tax) you pay tax on profit: revenue minus deductible costs, minus the social security contributions (INPS) paid. The income tax brackets are applied to that taxable base — in 2026 these are 23% up to 28,000 euros, 33% from 28,000 to 50,000 and 43% above. Then come the regional and municipal surtaxes, which vary from city to city.
The result therefore depends on four variables that influence one another, which is why mental estimates are nearly always wrong. TaxDemocracy does the full calculation in a minute, free and without asking for your email: you see IRPEF bracket by bracket, the contributions, your municipality's surtaxes and a projection of the balance and advance payments.
How the tool works
- 1
Enter your revenue and costs
Indicate how much you bill, the deductible costs you incur and your pension fund (Separate scheme, Artisans, Traders or a professional fund).
- 2
The full calculation, line by line
The tool deducts the contributions from the taxable base, applies the 2026 income tax brackets and adds your region's and municipality's surtaxes.
- 3
Comparison and deadlines
You see the net you're left with, the direct comparison with the flat-rate scheme and how much you'll owe in June and November between balance and advance payments.
What you can do with Tax Democracy
Contributions
Whether you fall under INPS Traders, Artisans or the Separate scheme, or you pay into a private professional fund, you can run all your simulations here.
Personal expenses
Discover all the tax credits and deductions you might be entitled to and calculate your tax savings.
How tax is calculated under the standard scheme: a worked example
The path is always the same: from revenue you subtract deductible costs, from the profit you subtract the social security contributions (INPS) paid, and the income tax brackets plus surtaxes are applied to the taxable income that remains. Since 2022 IRAP no longer exists for individuals, so for professionals and sole traders the calculation ends here.
Take a professional in the Separate scheme with 60,000 euros of revenue and 12,000 euros of deductible costs:
- Profit: 60,000 − 12,000 = 48,000 euros
- Social security contributions (INPS) (Separate scheme, 26.07%): around 12,514 euros
- IRPEF taxable base: 48,000 − 12,514 = 35,486 euros
- IRPEF: 23% on the first 28,000 (6,440 €) + 33% on the remaining 7,486 (2,471 €) = 8,911 euros
- Regional and municipal surtaxes: around 700 euros, depending on where you live
Total of tax and contributions: around 22,100 euros, that is 46% of profit. Changing your pension fund, municipality of residence or cost structure shifts the number by thousands of euros, and that's exactly what the tool recalculates for your specific case.
Simplified scheme and standard scheme: same tax, different bookkeeping
A frequent confusion: "simplified" and "standard" are not two tax schemes with different rates. The tax is calculated in exactly the same way. What changes is the bookkeeping.
The simplified scheme is reserved for sole traders and partnerships up to 500,000 euros of revenue for services and 800,000 for other activities. It follows the cash principle (what counts is when you actually collect and pay) and exempts you from the day book, the inventory book and the financial statements. Standard bookkeeping kicks in above those thresholds or by choice, follows the accruals principle and requires all the accounting records.
For calculating tax, then, this page applies to both: profit, deductible contributions, income tax brackets, surtaxes. The choice between the two affects your accountant's fees and the handling of income straddling the year-end, not the rate.
Standard or flat-rate: when it pays to deduct real costs
The flat-rate scheme applies a substitute tax of 15% (5% for new activities) on income calculated as a flat rate, but it doesn't allow you to deduct real costs or use IRPEF tax credits. The standard scheme costs more in rates but deducts everything analytically.
In practice the standard scheme tends to win when:
- your real costs exceed the flat-rate coefficient: a professional with a profitability coefficient of 78% who spends 35% of revenue on costs is handing the difference to the taxman;
- you have significant tax credits: mortgage interest, medical expenses, dependent children, renovations. You don't use them in the flat-rate scheme;
- you exceed 85,000 euros of revenue, because at that point the flat-rate scheme is no longer a choice. Above 100,000 the exit is immediate, in the same year.
Short of these cases, the flat-rate scheme's straight 15% remains hard to beat. But the real answer depends on your numbers: the tool puts the two schemes side by side with your revenue and your costs, so the answer isn't a generic rule but a figure.
Frequently asked questions
How much tax does a self-employed person pay under the standard scheme?
It depends on profit, not on turnover. The income tax brackets are applied to the taxable base (revenue minus deductible costs and contributions): in 2026, 23% up to 28,000 euros, 33% up to 50,000 and 43% above, plus regional and municipal surtaxes and social security contributions (INPS). Between tax and contributions, the overall take often falls between 40% and 50% of profit. For a precise figure on your numbers, simulate your case.
What are the main deductible costs under the standard scheme?
All costs related to the activity: pension contributions (100% deductible), studio rent or the share of a home office, capital goods and depreciation, software, training, consultancy, collaborators, car and phone within the prescribed limits (typically 20% and 80% respectively). It's the big advantage over the flat-rate scheme, where costs are set as a flat rate by the profitability coefficient whatever you actually spend.
How do the balance and advance payments work?
By 30 June you pay the previous year's balance plus the first advance for the current year; by 30 November the second advance. The total advance equals 100% of the prior year's tax, split into two instalments (50% and 50% for ISA taxpayers, most VAT numbers). Watch out for your first year with a full profit: you pay the balance and advance together, almost two years' worth in a few months. The tool shows you this in advance, so you can set money aside month by month.
What's the difference between the simplified and standard schemes?
The tax is identical: same income tax brackets, same surtaxes, same deductibility of costs. What changes is the bookkeeping: the simplified scheme (up to 500,000 euros of revenue for services, 800,000 for other activities) uses the cash principle and exempts you from the day book and financial statements; the standard scheme uses accruals and requires all the records. To estimate how much you'll pay, the calculation is the same in both cases.
When is it worth moving from the flat-rate to the standard scheme?
When your real costs exceed those recognised as a flat rate by the profitability coefficient, when you have significant tax credits (mortgage, medical expenses, dependent children) that would be lost under the flat-rate scheme, or when you exceed 85,000 euros of revenue and the move becomes mandatory. The break-even point varies a lot from case to case: it's best to compare the two schemes with your real numbers — simulate your case and see the difference in euros.