Income Tax Calculator

A single filer earning $85,000 in 2026 owes about $9,870 in federal income tax: a 22% marginal rate but only an 11.6% effective rate, because the $16,100 standard deduction leaves $68,900 taxable and most of that is taxed at 10% and 12%. This income tax calculator applies the IRS brackets progressively and shows the tax band by band, for the 2026 return filed in early 2027 or, with one click, the 2025 return filed in 2026.

Not sure this is the right tool? Use the Tax Bracket Calculator if you only need to know your marginal band, the Effective Tax Rate Calculator for the overall percentage you actually pay, the Paycheck Calculator for take-home pay after FICA and withholding, and the Tax Refund Calculator to see whether you will owe or get money back in April. This page calculates the full federal income tax bill itself.

The 2026 federal income tax brackets

The U.S. uses a progressive system: each rate applies only to income within its band. The taxable-income thresholds for 2026 (IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32) are:

Head of household has its own 2026 thresholds: 10% up to $17,700, 12% up to $67,450, 22% up to $105,700, 24% up to $201,750, 32% up to $256,200, 35% up to $640,600 and 37% above. Married filing separately uses the single thresholds except that 37% starts at $384,350. The formula for the tax in any one band is simple:

2025 brackets for the return due in 2026

If you are still filing a 2025 return (the extended deadline is October 15, 2026) or amending one, switch the calculator to 2025. The 2025 brackets were not changed by the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act; only the standard deduction was raised, to $15,750, $31,500 and $23,625.

How much tax is owed at the top of each 2026 bracket?

A useful shortcut: if you know the cumulative tax at the top of the bracket below yours, you only have to add your rate on the rest. The table shows the total federal income tax owed exactly at each 2026 bracket ceiling (taxable income, rounded to the nearest dollar; these match the base amounts in the IRS rate schedules).

Example: a single filer with $130,000 of taxable income takes the $17,966 owed at the 22% ceiling ($105,700) and adds 24% of the remaining $24,300 (about $5,832), for roughly $23,798 total.

Taxable income vs. gross income

You are not taxed on your gross pay. Taxable income = gross income − pre-tax contributions (like a traditional 401(k)) − your deduction. For 2026 the standard deduction is $16,100 (single), $32,200 (married filing jointly), $24,150 (head of household) and $16,100 (married filing separately); for 2025 it is $15,750, $31,500, $23,625 and $15,750. You itemize instead only if your deductible expenses add up to more: state and local taxes (capped at $40,000 for 2025 and $40,400 for 2026, with the cap reduced at incomes above $500,000 and $505,000), mortgage interest and charitable gifts.

Effective vs. marginal rate

Your marginal rate is the bracket your next dollar lands in: it tells you the tax on your next dollar of income or the savings from your next deduction. Your effective rate (total tax ÷ gross income) is what you actually pay overall, and it is always lower because the deduction and the first chunks of income taxed at 10% and 12% pull the average down. Earning more never lowers your take-home pay; only the income inside a higher band is taxed at the higher rate. If you want to drill into just one of these numbers, the Tax Bracket Calculator isolates your marginal band and the Effective Tax Rate Calculator focuses on the overall percentage.

Marginal vs. effective rate at $60,000, $100,000, and $180,000

Here is how the gap between the two rates plays out at three common salaries for a single filer taking the $16,100 standard deduction in 2026 (tax rounded to the nearest dollar):

Even at $180,000, three times the $60,000 salary, the effective rate is 17.7%, well under the 24% marginal bracket, because the first $50,400 of taxable income is still taxed at only 10% and 12%.

Federal income tax on $30,000 to $400,000 (2026, single)

Searching for the federal income tax on a specific salary? The table below assumes a single filer taking only the $16,100 standard deduction, with no 401(k), credits or other adjustments. Effective rate is tax divided by gross income.

Remember these figures are federal income tax only. FICA and any state income tax come out on top, so run the same salary through the Paycheck Calculator for actual take-home pay.

New deductions for 2025 to 2028: tips, overtime, seniors and car loans

The One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act (P.L. 119-21) added four temporary deductions that you claim on Schedule 1-A, on top of the standard or itemized deduction, for tax years 2025 through 2028:

• Qualified tips: up to $25,000 a year, reduced by $100 for each full $1,000 of modified AGI above $150,000 ($300,000 joint).
• Qualified overtime: the premium part of FLSA overtime (the extra half of time and a half), up to $12,500 ($25,000 joint), with the same income reduction.
• Car loan interest: up to $10,000 of interest on a loan for a new passenger vehicle assembled in the United States and bought for personal use, reduced by $200 for each $1,000 (or part) of modified AGI above $100,000 ($200,000 joint).
• Seniors: an extra $6,000 for each taxpayer aged 65 or older, reduced by 6% of modified AGI above $75,000 ($150,000 joint).

Married taxpayers must file jointly to claim the tips, overtime and senior deductions. Starting with tax year 2026, people who take the standard deduction can also deduct up to $1,000 ($2,000 joint) of cash gifts to charity. Work out your amount and enter it in the calculator's Other deductions field; at a 12% marginal rate, a $5,000 overtime deduction saves about $600 of federal income tax.

Lower your taxable income

• Traditional 401(k): up to $24,500 in 2026 ($23,500 in 2025), plus $8,000 catch-up at 50 or older ($11,250 at ages 60 to 63), comes out pre-tax.
• Traditional IRA: up to $7,500 in 2026 (+$1,100 catch-up at 50 or older), deductible subject to income rules.
• HSA: up to $4,400 self-only or $8,750 family in 2026 (+$1,000 catch-up at 55 or older) if you have a qualifying high-deductible plan.
• Itemize when it helps: compare your total itemized deductions to the standard deduction and take the larger.

How to use this calculator

You only need three or four numbers to get a realistic federal estimate. Work through the fields in order:

1. Tax year: keep 2026 for the return you file in 2027, or pick 2025 for the return due in 2026.
2. Filing status: choose single, married filing jointly, head of household, or married filing separately. This sets both your standard deduction and which bracket thresholds apply.
3. Gross income: enter your total annual income before any taxes or deductions: salary, wages and other taxable earnings.
4. Deduction: the calculator applies the standard deduction for your status by default. If your itemized deductions are larger, enter that amount instead.
5. Pre-tax 401(k) and other deductions (optional): add any traditional 401(k) contribution, plus deductions you take on top of the standard amount, such as Schedule 1-A.

The result updates instantly. Read your total federal income tax, your after-tax income, and your effective and marginal rates at the top, then scroll the per-bracket breakdown to see exactly how much tax each band of income generated.

A second worked example: married filing jointly

Take a married couple filing jointly with $140,000 in combined gross income in 2026 and a $10,000 traditional 401(k) contribution. Subtract the 401(k) and the $32,200 standard deduction, and taxable income is $97,800. Applying the 2026 married-filing-jointly brackets in slices: 10% on the first $24,800 ($2,480.00) and 12% on the remaining $73,000 ($8,760.00). That totals about $11,240 in federal income tax: a 12% marginal rate and an 8.0% effective rate on gross income. Without the 401(k) contribution, taxable income would be $107,800 and the tax about $13,140, so the contribution saves about $1,900: $7,000 of it would have been taxed at 22% and the other $3,000 at 12%.

Who this calculator is for

This tool is built for anyone who wants a fast, accurate federal estimate without filling out a full return. That includes:

• Employees checking whether their paycheck withholding looks roughly right for the year.
• Job seekers and negotiators comparing offers by translating a salary into actual federal tax.
• Side-hustlers and freelancers estimating what they may owe so they can set money aside for quarterly payments.
• Retirement savers testing how a larger 401(k), IRA or HSA contribution changes their tax bill.
• Anyone planning ahead who wants a ballpark before tax season rather than a surprise in April.

What changes the result the most

If you adjust the inputs and watch the tax move, a few factors dominate the outcome:

• Gross income: the single biggest driver. Because the system is progressive, each additional dollar is taxed at your marginal rate, not your effective rate.
• Filing status: married-filing-jointly brackets and the $32,200 standard deduction are wider than single, so the same income often owes less.
• Pre-tax contributions: every dollar into a traditional 401(k), IRA or HSA reduces taxable income dollar for dollar.
• Deduction choice: taking the larger of the standard or itemized deduction, plus any Schedule 1-A deductions, can shift thousands of dollars out of the taxed amount.
• Crossing a bracket line: only the income above each threshold is taxed at the higher rate, so crossing a line raises only your marginal rate, never your whole bill.

How this estimate is used in real life

The numbers from this calculator are a planning baseline, not your filed return. People use the estimate to check paycheck withholding: if your projected tax is far above or below what is being withheld, you can adjust your Form W-4 to avoid a large balance due or an oversized refund. Self-employed filers use it to size quarterly estimated payments so they are not penalized for underpaying. And anyone weighing a raise, a bonus or a bigger retirement contribution can use the marginal rate to see the true after-tax value of that decision before committing to it.

Key income tax terms explained

A handful of terms come up again and again on tax forms and in this calculator. Knowing them makes every result easier to read:

• Gross income: everything you earn before any taxes or deductions: wages, salary, tips, bonuses and most other taxable earnings.
• Adjusted gross income (AGI): gross income minus specific "above-the-line" adjustments such as deductible IRA and HSA contributions. Many credits and deduction limits are based on your AGI, not your gross pay.
• Taxable income: AGI minus your standard or itemized deduction (and any Schedule 1-A deductions). This is the number the brackets are actually applied to, usually well below your gross income.
• Standard deduction: a flat amount the IRS lets you subtract with no receipts required ($16,100 single and $32,200 married filing jointly for 2026). Most filers take it because it beats their itemized total.
• Itemized deductions: specific expenses you can subtract instead of the standard amount: state and local taxes (capped at $40,400 for 2026), mortgage interest and charitable gifts. You take whichever is larger.
• Tax bracket: a band of taxable income taxed at one rate. The U.S. has seven brackets from 10% to 37%, and the rate applies only to the income inside that band.
• Withholding: the income tax your employer takes out of each paycheck and sends to the IRS on your behalf, based on the Form W-4 you filed. Your refund or balance due at filing is the gap between withholding and your actual tax.
• Tax credit: a dollar-for-dollar reduction of the tax itself (for example, the $2,200 Child Tax Credit), as opposed to a deduction, which only reduces taxable income.

Scenario comparison: how each choice moves your tax

Using a single filer with $85,000 of gross income as the baseline, here is how a few common decisions change the 2026 federal income tax (all other inputs held constant for illustration):

• Baseline (single, standard deduction, no 401(k)): $68,900 taxable income and about $9,870 in federal income tax, an 11.6% effective rate.
• Add a $10,000 traditional 401(k): taxable income drops to $58,900 and the tax falls to about $7,670. The contribution saves $2,200 because all of it comes off the top, in the 22% band.
• Same income, head of household: the larger $24,150 standard deduction and wider brackets cut the tax to about $6,948, showing how much filing status alone can matter.
• Income rises to $110,000, single: taxable income of $93,900 stays inside the 22% band, raising the tax to about $15,370, while the first $68,900 is still taxed exactly as in the baseline.

The pattern holds across incomes: pre-tax contributions and filing status move your bill the most below six figures, while crossing into a new bracket only changes the rate on the new dollars, never the whole amount.

Limitations and assumptions

This calculator estimates federal income tax only. Keep these assumptions in mind:

• It does not include FICA (Social Security and Medicare), which is withheld separately on top of income tax; estimate it with the FICA Calculator.
• It does not include state or local income tax, which ranges from 0% to over 10% depending on where you live.
• It applies the standard deduction (or an amount you enter) but does not work out individual itemized deductions, Schedule 1-A phase-outs, credits like the Child Tax Credit or Earned Income Tax Credit, or the alternative minimum tax.
• It assumes ordinary income taxed at the regular brackets; long-term capital gains and qualified dividends use separate, lower rates not modeled here.
• Figures are the IRS amounts for 2026 and 2025; confirm the latest numbers on irs.gov before filing.

How it compares to related calculators

This page answers "what is my federal income tax on this income?" If your question is different, a sister tool fits better:

• For full take-home pay after income tax and FICA, use the Paycheck Calculator.
• To turn an annual salary into hourly, weekly or biweekly figures, use the Salary Calculator.
• To estimate whether you will owe or get money back at filing time, use the Tax Refund Calculator.
• To see which bracket your last dollar lands in, use the Tax Bracket Calculator.
• To focus on the share of income you actually pay, use the Effective Tax Rate Calculator.
• For Social Security and Medicare alone, use the FICA Calculator; freelancers should add the Self-Employment Tax Calculator.
• To check how much should come out of each paycheck, use the Tax Withholding Calculator.