Nicolas Straut
Personal and business finance writer, former Forbes contributor
About Nicolas
Nicolas Straut writes the guides and builds the calculators on Solvent. He has spent eight years writing about money and building content for fintech companies including NerdWallet and North One Business Banking, and was a contributor at Forbes. He holds a BA in Politics, Philosophy and Economics from The King's College.
He still files his own taxes as a freelancer, which is why the small details get checked rather than assumed. He is not a CPA, and Solvent is not meant to replace one.
How these pages stay accurate
Every rate, bracket and threshold here is checked against the IRS and the SSA rather than against other blogs, each page carries the date its figures were last verified, and a correction gets a dated note at the bottom of the page rather than a quiet edit.
Latest articles
Estimated taxes
How to pay quarterly taxes in 2026
Every IRS payment channel compared on fee, speed and limit, plus what to do when a payment does not show up.
Published · 9 min read
Tax software
6 best tax software options for the self-employed
FreeTaxUSA, Cash App Taxes, TurboTax Premium and three more, compared on real Schedule C pricing, free-tier limits and hidden fees, all read from vendor pages.
Published · 10 min read
Estimated taxes
How to make California estimated tax payments in 2026
California's front-loaded 30/40/0/30 schedule, the $500 threshold, and the three-tier safe harbor most guides leave out.
Published · 6 min read
Estimated taxes
How to make New York estimated tax payments in 2026
The $300 combined threshold, how state, city, Yonkers, and the MCTMT bundle onto one voucher, and the MCTMT self-employed threshold for 2026.
Published · 6 min read
LLC formation
How much does an LLC cost?
Formation and recurring fees for all 51 US jurisdictions, plus the minimum state taxes most comparison tables leave out entirely.
Published · 17 min read
Estimated taxes
What is Form 1040-ES?
The 15-line Estimated Tax Worksheet explained line by line, the two February 2026 corrections, and the 2026 due dates for all four vouchers.
Published · 9 min read
LLC formation
LLC vs sole proprietorship
An LLC changes nothing about federal income or self-employment tax. The 2026 figures side by side, and what the structure actually buys you.
Published · 5 min read
LLC formation
How to get an EIN
Current IRS application hours including weekends, the one-per-day limit, the CP 575 notice you cannot go back for, and who actually needs one.
Published · 6 min read
LLC formation
Do freelancers need an LLC?
Most freelancers don't need one. What the liability shield actually covers, when a free EIN is enough instead, and the four situations where forming one pays off.
Published · 7 min read
Tax software
Keeper Tax review 2026
What each Keeper Tax tier includes, why a third state return costs $200, and when a cheaper filing product does the same job.
Published · 13 min read
Estimated taxes
How to calculate quarterly taxes in 6 steps
A six-step worked example from $90,000 of net profit to one payment figure, plus whether you can pay estimated taxes all at once.
Published · 10 min read
Estimated taxes
How much to set aside for taxes when you're self-employed
The real federal reserve rate by income level, from roughly 17% of net profit at $40,000 up to roughly 26% at $200,000, plus state and safe harbor adjustments.
Published · 10 min read
Estimated taxes
What are safe harbor tax rules for IRS estimated taxes?
The 90%/100%/110% thresholds, why a lump-sum payment in December still fails, and the zero-prior-year-liability exemption most articles skip.
Published · 10 min read
Estimated taxes
How to avoid the IRS underpayment penalty
Why the penalty is simple interest, not daily compounding, plus a worked 2026 example using the actual mid-year rate change.
Published · 9 min read
Estimated taxes
When are estimated tax payment dates?
The 2026 and 2027 due dates, why none of the 2026 ones shift, and the double weekend/holiday shift that lands Q4 2027 on January 18, 2028.
Published · 9 min read
Estimated taxes
Estimated tax payments in 2026, federal and state
Federal due dates, safe harbor thresholds, and how California and New York each run their own schedule and threshold.
Published · 7 min read
Self-employment tax
What is self-employment tax?
The 15.3% rate, the Social Security wage base cap, the 50% deduction, and worked examples at three profit levels for 2026.
Published · 6 min read
Get in touch
Found an error or have a question? Corrections get a dated note at the bottom of the page rather than a quiet edit.