Set aside each quarter
$419
A quarter of the federal total. Your state may add to it.
Instacart taxes
Instacart tax calculator for shoppers
Batch pay and tips are both income, and no one is withholding tax from them. Enter your earnings, miles, and costs to estimate what you'll owe for 2026.
Interactive estimator
Instacart Tax Calculator
The tax rules here come from the IRS. For your form, check your Instacart shopper account.
Net profit: $11,875, after a $7,425 mileage deduction. Total federal tax: $1,678, about 14% of profit.
Self-employment tax
$1,678
Social Security and Medicare. It's the same for any filing status.
Federal income tax
$0
For a single filer with no other income, after the standard deduction.
Before you rely on it
This is a federal estimate for a single filer with no other income. A spouse's income, a W-2 job, or credits would change it.
State income tax isn't included. See our state tax guides, or add a few percentage points to be safe.
It's a planning estimate, not tax advice, and it doesn't prepare or file a return.
What counts as Instacart income
If you shop as an independent contractor, your batch pay, tips, and any bonuses are all income. The IRS says you must report gig income even if it's part-time and even if it isn't on a Form 1099.
Don't count what you spend on a customer's order with the Instacart payment card. That's the customer's money, so it's neither your income nor your expense.
The IRS minimum for reporting on Form 1099-NEC rises to $2,000 for payments made in 2026, so you may not get a form next January for income that would have triggered one before. You still have to report all of it.
Common Instacart write-offs
The IRS business standard mileage rates are 72.5 cents per mile for January 1–June 30, 2026, and 76 cents per mile for July 1–December 31, 2026.
| Cost | How it's usually handled |
|---|---|
| Miles between stores and customers | Multiply by the IRS rate, or use actual car costs instead |
| Store and delivery parking | Deductible on top of the standard rate |
| Insulated bags and coolers | Business supplies when you buy them for shopping |
| Phone bill | The business share only, since the app runs on your phone |
| Your own groceries on a shopping trip | Personal, so not deductible |
Keep the log per batch
Shoppers often make many short trips in a day, and those are the miles that are easiest to lose. IRS Publication 463 says you can't deduct amounts you approximate or estimate, so log each trip's date, destination, purpose, and miles as you go.
Whether the drive from home to your first store counts depends on your facts. If those miles add up, ask a tax professional.
A worked example
Here's one example year for a shopper, using the same math as the calculator above.
| Line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Earnings from the app | $24,000 |
| Mileage deduction (6,000 miles, then 6,000 miles) | -$8,910 |
| Other business expenses | -$900 |
| Net profit on Schedule C | $14,190 |
| Self-employment tax | $2,005 |
| Federal income tax | $0 |
| Total federal tax | $2,005 |
| About each quarter | $501 |
This assumes a single filer with no other income, the standard deduction, and the qualified business income deduction. State income tax isn't included.
When the 2026 payments are due
No app withholds tax from your payouts, so if you expect to owe enough you pay the IRS four times a year. The periods aren't equal.
| Income earned | Payment due |
|---|---|
| January 1 to March 31 | April 15, 2026 |
| April 1 to May 31 | June 15, 2026 |
| June 1 to August 31 | September 15, 2026 |
| September 1 to December 31 | January 15, 2027 |
You can skip the January 15, 2027 payment if you file your 2026 return by January 31, 2027 and pay the rest of what you owe with it.
What this tool uses
Mileage is figured at the 2026 IRS rates for each half of the year.
Self-employment tax is 15.3% of net earnings, with the 12.4% Social Security part stopping at the 2026 wage base.
Income tax uses 2026 single-filer brackets, the standard deduction, and the qualified business income deduction.
Best for
Full-service shoppers working as independent contractors.
Shoppers doing Instacart next to a W-2 job who want to see the extra tax.
Anyone who hasn't kept track of store-to-customer miles yet.
How to use the estimate
Enter what the app pays
Use what you expect to earn for the full year, including tips.
Add miles and costs
Enter business miles for each half of the year and any other business costs you can document.
Set money aside
Treat the quarterly figure as a planning number, and check it again when your earnings change.
Why Cadus helps after the calculator
Estimates are useful, but records win tax season
The estimate is only as good as the numbers you put in. Cadus tracks mileage and keeps app income, receipts, and expenses together through the year, with a Free plan to start.
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