Federal Income Tax Calculator
Enter your adjusted gross income, filing status and deductions. The calculator applies the year's brackets, the child tax credit and the senior deduction, and compares the tax with what has been withheld.
Federal Income Tax
$7,670.00
Refund (+) or Balance Due (−)
$330.00
Result
Refund
Standard or Itemized Deduction
$16,100.00
Senior Deduction
$0.00
Taxable Income
$58,900.00
Tax Before Credits
$7,670.00
Child Tax Credit Used
$0.00
Child Tax Credit Not Used Against Tax
$0.00
Of Which Possibly Refundable (Not Included)
$0.00
Marginal Tax Rate
22%
Effective Tax Rate (on AGI)
10.23%
Estimated State Tax
$0.00
Federal Plus State Tax
$7,670.00
How it works
Federal income tax is charged on taxable income: your adjusted gross income (AGI) less either the standard deduction or your itemized deductions, whichever you choose. Each slice of taxable income is taxed at its bracket's rate, so moving into a higher bracket raises the tax only on the dollars inside it.
For 2026 the standard deduction is $16,100 single or married filing separately, $32,200 married filing jointly or qualifying surviving spouse, and $24,150 head of household, plus $2,050 (unmarried) or $1,650 (married) for each person who is 65 or older or blind. From 2025 to 2028 each person 65 or older can also take a senior deduction of up to $6,000, whether or not they itemize, reduced by 6% of income over $75,000 ($150,000 joint); it is not available on a separate return.
The child tax credit ($2,200 per child under 17 for 2026) comes off the tax itself, after the brackets, and shrinks by $50 per $1,000 of income over $200,000 ($400,000 joint). The tax left is compared with what you have had withheld or paid: more withheld means a refund, less means a balance due.
The marginal rate is the rate on your next dollar of taxable income. The effective rate is your tax after credits divided by AGI, the share of your income that actually goes in federal income tax.
Formula
deduction = standard (with 65+/blind additions) or itemized taxable income = max(0, AGI − deduction − senior deduction) tax = Σ rate_k × (income in bracket k) child credit = max(0, children × per-child amount − $50 × ⌈(AGI − threshold) ÷ 1,000⌉) tax after credits = tax − min(child credit, tax) refund (+) / balance due (−) = withheld − tax after credits effective rate = tax after credits ÷ AGI state estimate = state rate × AGI
Example
A single filer in 2026 with $75,000 of AGI takes the $16,100 standard deduction, leaving $58,900 of taxable income. Tax is $1,240 on the first $12,400 at 10%, $4,560 on the next $38,000 at 12% and $1,870 on the last $8,500 at 22%: $7,670. The marginal rate is 22% and the effective rate 10.23%. With $8,000 withheld, the refund is $330.
A married couple filing jointly with $120,000 of AGI and two children under 17 has $87,800 of taxable income after the $32,200 standard deduction, and $10,040 of tax before credits. The $4,400 child tax credit brings that to $5,640, an effective rate of 4.70%.
Assumptions and limitations
- Brackets, standard deductions and the child tax credit come from the shared federal tax data for the year you choose: for 2026, IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32; for 2025, Rev. Proc. 2024-40 as amended by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (P.L. 119-21), which also created the 2025–2028 senior deduction.
- Income is entered as AGI and is all taxed at ordinary rates. Qualified dividends and long-term capital gains are taxed at lower rates; use the capital gains calculator for those. The alternative minimum tax, net investment income tax, self-employment tax and the tips and overtime deductions are not included.
- Modified AGI for the senior deduction and child credit phase-outs is taken to equal AGI. Each person 65 or older is assumed to meet the senior deduction's requirements (a valid SSN, and a joint return if married).
- Itemized deductions are taken as entered: apply the SALT cap and the other Schedule A limits (including the new limit on itemized deductions in the top bracket from 2026) yourself.
- Only the part of the child tax credit that offsets tax is counted. Up to the refundable amount per child may be paid to you as the additional child tax credit, depending on your earned income (Schedule 8812); it is shown but not added to the refund. The credit for other dependents and all other credits are not modelled. Dependents who can be claimed by someone else are not supported.
- State tax is a single flat rate on AGI, not your state's actual rules.
- Results are estimates for planning and are for informational and educational purposes only. They are not financial, tax or legal advice.
Frequently asked questions
Will a raise push me into a higher bracket and cut my take-home pay?
No. Only the dollars above the bracket boundary are taxed at the higher rate; the income below it is taxed exactly as before. Moving into a higher bracket never by itself reduces your after-tax income, though a credit phase-out can: the child tax credit drops $50 for each $1,000 (or part of $1,000) of income over the threshold.
Why is my effective rate so much lower than my bracket?
The deduction means part of your income is not taxed at all, and the rest is taxed in layers starting at 10%. Your bracket is the rate on your last dollar; the effective rate averages over every dollar of AGI.
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