Micro-enterprise or real profit: the expense level where you should switch
Micro taxes what you receive, real profit taxes what you actually earn: your costs decide which is better.
Figures checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How we calculate
Micro or real profit with your expenses
Real profit leaves extra
€3,711
| Micro-enterprise take-home | €24,536 |
| Real-profit EI take-home | €28,247 |
| Contributions on real profit | €14,084 |
Excludes bookkeeping costs on real profit, to deduct from its figure.
Choosing between the French micro-enterprise scheme and the real-profit regime (régime réel) comes down to expenses. Under micro, contributions are a share of turnover, 25.6 % for freelance professions in 2026, and income tax applies to turnover after a flat allowance, whatever you spend. On real profit, as an entreprise individuelle (sole trader), contributions and income tax are based on profit: since the reform of the self-employed contribution base, contributions apply to that profit less 26 %. The break-even point comes sooner than most people expect. According to the site’s engine, for a single person with no other income, a freelance consultant receiving €70,000 keeps more on real profit once yearly costs reach €10,000, only 14 % of turnover and far below the 34 % tax allowance. A joiner on €50,000 switches at about €14,500 of purchases. An online shop, with its 12.3 % rate, stays better off in micro until costs are very high.
Two ways of measuring income
The micro scheme only looks at turnover received. Contributions are a fixed share of it, and income tax applies to it after a flat allowance of 71 %, 50 % or 34 % depending on the activity (service-public, sheet F23267). Your real costs appear nowhere.
The real-profit regime starts from profit: receipts minus costs. For social contributions, that profit is reduced by a 26 % allowance, kept between 1.76 % and 130 % of the Pass (the French social security ceiling), then run through the self-employed scale (Urssaf, contribution base reform; decree no. 2024-688). For income tax, profit joins household income. The key point: on real profit, every euro spent on the business lowers both contributions and tax; under micro it lowers neither.
The break-even point, job by job
For each profile the site’s engine searches for the yearly expense level above which a sole trader on real profit keeps more than a micro-entrepreneur, income tax included, for a single person with no other income.
| Profile | Turnover | Break-even costs | Share of turnover | Micro tax allowance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Copywriter (freelance) | €30,000 | €3,500 | 12 % | 34 % |
| Consultant (freelance) | €70,000 | €10,000 | 14 % | 34 % |
| Sales agent (BIC services) | €50,000 | €15,250 | 31 % | 50 % |
| Joiner (craft) | €50,000 | €14,500 | 29 % | 50 % |
| Online shop (goods) | €120,000 | €72,000 | 60 % | 71 % |
For freelancers the switch comes at a share of costs well below the 34 % allowance: the micro rate of 25.6 % is heavy, and real profit removes part of it with the very first costs. Selling goods works the other way: the 12.3 % rate and the 71 % allowance protect the micro scheme up to large expenses. Cipav professions are not in the table, because their real-profit contributions depend on their own fund and fall outside the calculator.
A joiner and his purchases
A self-employed joiner receives €50,000 a year. Depending on what he spends on timber, fittings and tools, here is what he keeps under each regime.
| Real costs | Net under micro | Net on real profit | Micro contributions | Real-profit contributions | Real profit minus micro |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| €0 | €37,766 | €30,516 | €10,990 | €15,798 | -€7,250 |
| €5,000 | €32,766 | €28,234 | €10,990 | €14,104 | -€4,532 |
| €10,000 | €27,766 | €25,772 | €10,990 | €12,438 | -€1,995 |
| €15,000 | €22,766 | €23,063 | €10,990 | €10,682 | €297 |
| €20,000 | €17,766 | €20,324 | €10,990 | €8,963 | €2,558 |
| €25,000 | €12,766 | €17,510 | €10,990 | €7,332 | €4,744 |
Micro contributions never move; real-profit contributions shrink as profit falls. With no purchases, real profit is expensive: the joiner would lose €7,250. At €20,000 of costs he gains €2,558. The break-even is near €14,500.
What the table leaves out
Real profit requires fuller bookkeeping, whose cost is not deducted here: weigh it against the gain. The timing also changes. Under micro, contributions paid with each return are final. On real profit, the Urssaf collects provisional contributions and adjusts them once your income is known (Urssaf, 2026 self-employed rates). And a blank year is not free: with zero profit the engine counts €1,255 of minimum contributions, including €967 for the basic pension, while micro charges nothing without turnover.
Details are on self-employed contributions (TNS) and the sole trader on real profit.
Making the switch
You can opt for a real-profit tax regime without waiting to exceed the micro ceiling (service-public, sheet F32353). Leaving becomes compulsory after two consecutive years above €83,600 for services or €203,100 for goods, as explained on the turnover ceiling page. Before deciding, run the mini-calculator at the top of this page with last year’s costs and with those you expect: a choice made on one exceptional year can cost you in the next ones. If a company appeals to you, micro-enterprise or SASU asks the same question about another legal form.
These comparisons are estimates made with the published 2026 scales, not personal advice; the Urssaf and the French tax office alone set what you owe.