Child Tax Credit Calculator

The Child Tax Credit is worth up to $2,200 per qualifying child under 17 for the 2026 tax year (and for 2025), with up to $1,700 per child refundable. A married couple filing jointly with two children and a MAGI of $120,000 gets the full $4,400 with no phase-out, and because their estimated 2026 income tax before credits ($10,040) is larger than the credit, all of it cuts their tax bill. This child tax credit calculator computes your CTC, the $500 other-dependent credit, and the refundable Additional Child Tax Credit instantly.

The Child Tax Credit is one piece of your return. Use the Income Tax Calculator for your full federal bill, the Tax Refund Calculator to fold this credit into your expected refund, the Paycheck Calculator to see how it changes withholding per check, and the Salary Calculator to convert an hourly or annual figure into the earned income that drives the refundable ACTC.

How the Child Tax Credit is calculated

Start with the base credit, then apply the income phase-out:

The phase-out reduces the credit by $50 for every $1,000 (or part of $1,000) of MAGI above your threshold. Whatever is left first cancels your income tax; only the unused part can come back as the refundable ACTC. The phase-out thresholds are the same for 2025 and 2026:

How much Child Tax Credit will I get? 2026 scenarios

This matrix shows your total credit after the MAGI phase-out for married couples filing jointly (threshold $400,000), the same for 2026 and 2025. Each qualifying child is worth $2,200, and the credit drops $50 for every $1,000 of MAGI over the threshold. How much of each amount cuts your tax and how much comes back as a refund depends on your income tax and earned income, which the calculator works out for you.

For single, head-of-household and married-filing-separately filers the phase-out starts at $200,000, so the reductions kick in $200,000 sooner. At a $225,000 MAGI, for example, the same 1-4 child amounts fall to $950 / $3,150 / $5,350 / $7,550. One child's credit is gone completely once MAGI is more than $243,000 ($443,000 for joint filers).

Refundable vs. non-refundable

The Child Tax Credit is partly refundable. The credit first cancels the income tax you owe. If some of it is left over, up to $1,700 per qualifying child of that leftover can be paid to you as the Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC), limited to 15% of your earned income over $2,500. Anything beyond those limits is lost for the year. The $500 Credit for Other Dependents is always non-refundable. For example, a head of household with two children and $25,000 of wages in 2026 has a $4,400 credit but only $85 of income tax: $85 of the credit cancels that tax, $3,375 comes back as the ACTC (15% of $22,500), and $940 goes unused. To see how the refundable portion folds into your overall refund alongside withholding and other credits, run the numbers through the Tax Refund Calculator.

Refundable Additional Child Tax Credit by earned income

The refundable ACTC equals 15% of earned income over $2,500, capped at $1,700 per child. This table shows the maximum refundable amount at each earned-income level, assuming no income tax uses up the credit first (the same for 2026 and 2025).

Notice that the per-child $1,700 ceiling caps the refund once earned income is high enough: a one-child family maxes out at $1,700, two children at $3,400, and three at $5,100. Below those points, the 15% earned-income limit is what holds the refund down.

Qualifying child vs. other dependent

A qualifying child must be under 17 at the end of the year, be your dependent, have a Social Security number valid for employment issued by your return's due date, and meet IRS residency and support tests - each one is worth up to $2,200. Since 2025 you (or, on a joint return, at least one spouse) also need a valid SSN. Dependents who don't fit these rules, such as a 17-year-old, a college student, a dependent parent, or a child with an ITIN instead of an SSN, may instead qualify for the $500 Credit for Other Dependents. Figures on this page are for the 2026 tax year (returns filed in 2027) unless noted; the 2025 amounts are the same.

Child Tax Credit by tax year (2020-2026)

The credit amount and refundable cap have changed over time. This calculator uses the 2026 rules by default and can switch to 2025; the earlier figures below are for reference if you are looking at a prior-year return.

The 2021 expansion under the American Rescue Plan raised the credit to $3,600 for children under 6 and $3,000 for ages 6 to 17, made it fully refundable, and paid half in advance monthly installments from July to December 2021. That expansion was temporary; for 2022 through 2024 the credit returned to $2,000 per child with a partial refundable cap that rose with inflation. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed in July 2025, raised the credit to $2,200 starting with 2025, made it permanent, and indexed it for inflation after 2025.

Get the most from your credit

• Check SSNs: a qualifying child needs a Social Security number valid for employment issued by the filing deadline (including extensions), and so do you (on a joint return, at least one spouse).
• Watch the age cutoff: a child who turns 17 during the year moves to the $500 credit, not $2,200.
• Report earned income: the refundable ACTC depends on 15% of earned income over $2,500.
• Mind the phase-out: high earners lose $50 of credit per $1,000 of MAGI over the threshold.

How to use this calculator

You only need a few numbers to get a realistic estimate. Work through the fields in order:

1. Tax year: 2026 is the default; choose 2025 if you are still filing last year's return.
2. Number of qualifying children: count only dependents who will be under 17 at the end of the tax year, have a valid SSN and meet the IRS tests. Each one is worth up to $2,200.
3. Other dependents: add dependents who don't meet the under-17 rule - a 17- or 18-year-old, a full-time student, or a qualifying relative such as a dependent parent. Each is worth up to $500.
4. Filing status: choose married filing jointly, single, head of household, or married filing separately. This sets your phase-out threshold ($400,000 joint, $200,000 everyone else).
5. Modified adjusted gross income (MAGI): enter your expected MAGI for the year. For most families this is the same as the AGI on your Form 1040.
6. Earned income: enter wages, salary, and self-employment income. This drives the refundable Additional Child Tax Credit (15% of earned income over $2,500).
7. Income tax before credits (optional): the calculator estimates it from your MAGI with the standard deduction. If you itemize or claim other credits, open this section and type your own figure from your return or tax software.

The result updates instantly. The big number is what the credit is worth to you: the part that cuts your income tax plus the part refunded as the ACTC. The step-by-step table shows each Schedule 8812 line, including any credit you can't use.

Who this calculator is for

This tool helps anyone who wants to know what the Child Tax Credit is actually worth on their return - before they file. That includes:

• Parents estimating their refund or tax bill while there is still time to adjust withholding.
• New parents checking how a baby born during the year changes the credit (a child born any time in the year can qualify for the full amount).
• Higher earners who want to see exactly where the phase-out starts to eat into the credit.
• Lower- and middle-income families trying to gauge how much is refundable through the ACTC.
• Caregivers supporting older children or relatives who may qualify for the $500 Credit for Other Dependents.

A second worked example: phase-out and a mixed household

Consider a single head of household with three qualifying children under 17, one dependent college student, and a 2026 MAGI of $215,000, all from wages. The base credit is (3 × $2,200) + (1 × $500) = $7,100. Because the $200,000 threshold applies, MAGI is $15,000 over the limit. The reduction is $50 for each $1,000 (rounded up) over the threshold: $15,000 ÷ $1,000 = 15 increments × $50 = $750. The credit after phase-out is $7,100 − $750 = $6,350. With the $24,150 standard deduction, this filer's estimated income tax before credits is about $36,591, far more than the credit, so the whole $6,350 cuts the tax bill and nothing is refunded. The refundable ACTC only matters when the credit is larger than your tax, as in the $25,000 example above. The calculator handles each of these steps for you.

Factors that change your result

If you change the inputs and watch the credit move, a few factors do most of the work:

• Number of qualifying children: the single biggest driver, since each adds up to $2,200.
• MAGI: once you pass $200,000 (or $400,000 joint), every extra $1,000 trims $50 off the credit.
• Your income tax: the credit first cancels tax you owe; only a credit larger than your tax can turn into a refund.
• Earned income: a low earned income caps how much of the credit is refundable, even if the total credit is large.
• Dependent age: a 17th birthday shifts a child from the $2,200 credit to the $500 credit.
• Filing status: married couples filing jointly get a phase-out threshold twice as high as everyone else.

Key terms explained

• Child Tax Credit (CTC): the up-to-$2,200 credit for each qualifying child under 17.
• Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC): the refundable part of the CTC, up to $1,700 per child, paid even if it exceeds the tax you owe.
• Credit for Other Dependents (ODC): a non-refundable $500 credit for dependents who don't qualify for the CTC.
• Refundable credit: a credit that can be paid to you as a refund beyond what you owe in tax.
• Non-refundable credit: a credit that can only reduce your tax bill to zero, with no payout beyond that.
• MAGI (modified adjusted gross income): your AGI plus certain add-backs, mainly foreign-income exclusions; for most families it equals AGI.
• Earned income: wages, salary, tips, and net self-employment income - the basis for the refundable ACTC.

How the credit shows up on your return

In real life the Child Tax Credit flows through Schedule 8812, which attaches to your Form 1040. The non-refundable portion lowers your tax on Form 1040 line 19; the refundable Additional Child Tax Credit goes on line 28 and is added to your payments, so it can increase your refund. Because it is a credit and not a deduction, it is worth the same to families in every tax bracket - a dollar of credit cuts your tax by a full dollar. If you adjust your W-4 withholding during the year, the credit is one reason your year-end refund can be larger than your paycheck math alone suggests; the Paycheck Calculator shows how a withholding change ripples through each check, and the Income Tax Calculator shows the full federal bill the credit applies against.

Limitations and assumptions

This calculator is a planning estimate, not tax advice or a guarantee of your credit. Keep these points in mind:

• It does not run the full IRS dependent-eligibility tests (relationship, residency, support, citizenship, and SSN), which ultimately decide whether each dependent qualifies.
• It estimates only the federal credit; many states offer separate child tax credits with their own rules.
• It assumes your MAGI and earned-income figures are accurate; small changes near a threshold can shift the result.
• It estimates your income tax before credits from MAGI with the standard deduction unless you enter your own figure, and it does not model other credits (such as the Earned Income Tax Credit) or Part II-B of Schedule 8812 for three or more children.
• Figures reflect the 2026 (default) or 2025 tax year; the $2,200 amount is indexed for inflation after 2025, so later years can differ.

How it compares to related credits and tools

This page answers "how much Child Tax Credit can I claim?" If your question is different, a related tool fits better:

• To estimate your overall federal tax, use the Income Tax Calculator.
• To see your expected refund after credits and withholding, use the Tax Refund Calculator.
• To check your take-home pay and withholding, use the Paycheck Calculator.
• To find your marginal bracket, use the Tax Bracket Calculator, or see your average rate with the Effective Tax Rate Calculator.
• The Credit for Other Dependents ($500) is built into this calculator - just enter dependents who don't meet the under-17 rule.