TN · Tax year 2026
LLC vs S-Corp in Tennessee. A localized number.
At $100,000 net profit with a $50,000 W-2 salary, the federal payroll tax delta is $7,680. Adjusted for Tennessee's $300 annual franchise/report fee, the estimated net modeled benefit (yr 1) is $7,380.
LLC Filing Fee
$300
one-time, Tennessee Secretary of State
Annual Franchise / Report
$300
recurring, every year
State Income Tax
No
no individual state-level income tax
Estimated Net Modeled Benefit (yr 1)
$7,380
federal delta minus the annual fee
01 · Tennessee model
Tune the inputs. Numbers update live.
Tennessee annual fee (deducted from savings)
$300
LLC
Federal payroll tax
$14,130
S-CORP
Federal payroll tax
$6,450
Estimated Net Modeled Benefit (yr 1)
$7,380
Federal SE tax saved (LLC vs S-Corp) minus Tennessee's $300 annual fee. The $300 filing fee is not included — it's a one-time setup cost. Income tax, QBI, health insurance, and retirement contributions are not modeled.
02 · Why Tennessee specifically
The state-level numbers that move the answer.
An S-Corp election only pencils out when the federal payroll tax saved outpaces the recurring cost of running a corporate entity. Tennesseecharges $300per year to keep your entity in good standing and does not layer an individual income tax on top of your pass-through income.
At the calculator's default $100K / $50K inputs, the federal delta ($7,680) is what an LLC owner gives up in self-employment tax on net profit. After the Tennessee annual fee, the estimated net modeled benefit is$7,380.
State-specific note: Tennessee repealed its Hall income tax on stock/dividends in 2021. The $300 minimum franchise tax is required for LLCs with taxable net worth over $1M; smaller LLCs may pay a reduced fee of $100. This estimate uses the $300 figure as a conservative default for LLCs subject to the minimum tax.
Localized formula
// Tennessee adjusted
llcTax = netProfit × 0.9235 × 0.153
scorpTax = salary × 0.153 − 1200
savings = llcTax − scorpTax − 300- LLC filing: one-time $300 to form the entity in Tennessee.
- Annual franchise / report: $300/yr to maintain good standing.
- State income tax: not assessed on individual income.