Which French legal form leaves you the most in 2026?
One turnover, your expenses, your household: all five options are worked out side by side, taxes included.
Figures checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How we calculate
Household, company running costs, umbrella fees
accountant, bank, legal: your quotes
rate in your umbrella contract
Best take-home: Micro-enterprise
€3,498
a month, after contributions and taxes, on €70,000 of turnover
| Legal form | Take-home | Contributions | Corp. tax + dividends | Income tax | Pay mix |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Micro-enterprise | €3,498 | €1,505 | €0 | €580 | – |
| EI, real profit | €3,194 | €1,790 | €0 | €599 | – |
| EURL, corporate tax | €3,311 | €1,790 | €0 | €482 | all salary |
| SASU | €3,216 | €901 | €1,466 | €0 | 37 % of profit as pay |
| Umbrella (portage) | €2,648 | €2,216 | €0 | €252 | – |
EURL and SASU: all remaining profit is paid out as dividends under the 31.4 % flat tax. Zero pay earns no pension quarters.
Estimate only, using 2026 Urssaf rates and the 2026 tax scale, not tax advice: only the Urssaf and the tax office set your actual amounts. How we calculate
The comparison works out, for the same turnover, what you keep under five set-ups: micro-enterprise (contributions on turnover, 25.6 % for freelance professions), sole trader on real profit (EI, self-employed contributions on profit under the reformed 2026 scale with a 26 % allowance), EURL paying corporate tax with a self-employed manager, SASU with a president treated as an employee, and umbrella employment (portage salarial). For the EURL and SASU it searches for the salary and dividend split that leaves the most, with corporate tax at 15 % up to €42,500 then 25 %, and dividends under the 31.4 % flat tax. Example for a consultant billing €90,000 with €6,000 of expenses: €4,038 a month in an EURL and €3,979 in a SASU, while the micro-enterprise is closed above its €83,600 ceiling. Company accounting fees are entered separately.
What the comparison works out
For each legal form, take-home pay is what reaches your personal account after all social contributions, corporate tax, dividend levies and the income tax caused by the business. The table also shows contributions and taxes for each line, so you can see where the gap comes from. Scales are the 2026 ones: self-employed rates after the base reform, general scheme rates for a SASU president, corporate tax and the flat tax on dividends.
Assumptions to know
In the EURL and SASU, all profit left after pay and corporate tax is paid out the same year. The EURL manager holds the majority: dividends above 10 % of share capital bear contributions, and the comparison assumes €1,000 of capital. Umbrella employment uses the management fee you enter. For the micro-enterprise, the activity you pick sets the rate and allowance; above the ceiling the line is marked as not possible.
Each legal form is explained on its own page: SASU, EURL, sole trader (EI) and umbrella employment. For a head-to-head, see EURL or SASU and micro-enterprise or SASU.
| Turnover | Micro | EI | EURL | SASU | Umbrella |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| €50,000 | €2,591 | €2,430 | €2,514 | €2,276 | €2,080 |
| €90,000 | over ceiling | €3,890 | €4,038 | €3,979 | €3,150 |
What it does not do
It puts no value on social cover (pension, sick pay, unemployment rights under umbrella employment), on liability for your personal assets or on company set-up costs, and it does not replace an accountant’s advice for a specific case. Every formula is on how we calculate.