Comprehensive Guide
2025 & 2026 Federal Tax Brackets
Complete guide to federal income tax brackets. See rates for every filing status, compare 2025 vs 2026 projections, and learn how marginal vs effective rates work with real examples.
2025 Tax Brackets by Filing Status
The IRS has published the official 2025 tax brackets in Revenue Procedure 2024-45. These brackets apply to income earned in the 2025 calendar year, which you will report on your tax return filed in early 2026. All brackets are adjusted upward from 2024 levels based on the Chained Consumer Price Index (C-CPI-U) inflation measure, with an average adjustment of approximately 2.8%.
Use our free tax refund calculator to see how these brackets apply to your specific income and filing situation.
2025 Tax Brackets — Single Filers
| Taxable Income Range | Tax Rate | Tax on This Bracket |
|---|---|---|
| $0 – $11,925 | 10% | 10% of taxable income |
| $11,925 – $48,475 | 12% | $1,192.50 plus 12% of the amount over $11,925 |
| $48,475 – $103,350 | 22% | $5,578.50 plus 22% of the amount over $48,475 |
| $103,350 – $197,300 | 24% | $17,651.50 plus 24% of the amount over $103,350 |
| $197,300 – $250,525 | 32% | $40,199.50 plus 32% of the amount over $197,300 |
| $250,525 – $626,350 | 35% | $57,231.50 plus 35% of the amount over $250,525 |
| Over $626,350 | 37% | $188,760.25 plus 37% of the amount over $626,350 |
2025 Tax Brackets — Married Filing Jointly
| Taxable Income Range | Tax Rate | Tax on This Bracket |
|---|---|---|
| $0 – $23,850 | 10% | 10% of taxable income |
| $23,850 – $96,950 | 12% | $2,385.00 plus 12% of the amount over $23,850 |
| $96,950 – $206,700 | 22% | $11,157.00 plus 22% of the amount over $96,950 |
| $206,700 – $394,600 | 24% | $35,302.00 plus 24% of the amount over $206,700 |
| $394,600 – $501,050 | 32% | $80,398.00 plus 32% of the amount over $394,600 |
| $501,050 – $751,600 | 35% | $114,462.00 plus 35% of the amount over $501,050 |
| Over $751,600 | 37% | $202,154.50 plus 37% of the amount over $751,600 |
2025 Tax Brackets — Head of Household
| Taxable Income Range | Tax Rate | Tax on This Bracket |
|---|---|---|
| $0 – $17,000 | 10% | 10% of taxable income |
| $17,000 – $65,000 | 12% | $1,700.00 plus 12% of the amount over $17,000 |
| $65,000 – $103,350 | 22% | $7,460.00 plus 22% of the amount over $65,000 |
| $103,350 – $197,300 | 24% | $15,897.00 plus 24% of the amount over $103,350 |
| $197,300 – $250,525 | 32% | $38,445.00 plus 32% of the amount over $197,300 |
| $250,525 – $626,350 | 35% | $55,477.00 plus 35% of the amount over $250,525 |
| Over $626,350 | 37% | $187,015.75 plus 37% of the amount over $626,350 |
For 2026, the standard deduction for Head of Household filers is $21,900, and their tax brackets are wider than Single filers, providing meaningful tax savings.
For married taxpayers who file separately, the 2025 brackets are exactly half of the married filing jointly brackets. The 10% bracket covers $0 to $11,925, identical to single filer ranges. Use our married filing calculator to compare both statuses and see which gives you the lower tax bill.
Calculate your exact 2025 tax bill with our free tax refund calculator. It applies these brackets automatically to your income.
2026 Tax Brackets (Projected)
Important: The 2026 tax brackets shown below are preliminary estimates based on current inflation projections and the One Big Beautiful Bill Act framework. The IRS has not yet published official 2026 brackets — those will appear in Revenue Procedure 2025-45, typically released in late 2025. These estimates assume approximately 2.3% inflation adjustment from 2025 levels. Actual brackets may differ based on final inflation data.
Under current law, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) rate structure is scheduled to expire after 2025, but the One Big Beautiful Bill Act is expected to extend most provisions. We will update this page as soon as the IRS publishes official figures.
2026 Tax Brackets — Single Filers (Estimated)
| Taxable Income Range | Tax Rate | Tax on This Bracket |
|---|---|---|
| $0 – $12,200 | 10% | 10% of taxable income |
| $12,200 – $49,600 | 12% | $1,220.00 plus 12% of the amount over $12,200 |
| $49,600 – $105,800 | 22% | $5,708.00 plus 22% of the amount over $49,600 |
| $105,800 – $202,000 | 24% | $18,072.00 plus 24% of the amount over $105,800 |
| $202,000 – $256,600 | 32% | $41,160.00 plus 32% of the amount over $202,000 |
| $256,600 – $641,000 | 35% | $58,632.00 plus 35% of the amount over $256,600 |
| Over $641,000 | 37% | $193,172.00 plus 37% of the amount over $641,000 |
For married filing jointly in 2026, brackets are expected to be approximately double the single thresholds. The top 37% bracket for MFJ would start around $751,600+, with similar proportional adjustments across all brackets. Check back after the IRS publishes Revenue Procedure 2025-45 for the official numbers.
Marginal Rate vs Effective Rate
One of the most common misconceptions about tax brackets is the belief that moving into a higher bracket means all of your income is taxed at that higher rate. This is incorrect. The US uses a progressive marginal tax system, meaning only the portion of your income that falls within each bracket is taxed at that bracket's rate.
Worked Example
Consider a single filer earning $80,000 in 2025 after deductions:
- $0 – $11,925 is taxed at 10% = $1,192.50
- $11,925 – $48,475 (which is $36,550 of income) is taxed at 12% = $4,386.00
- $48,475 – $80,000 (which is $31,525 of income) is taxed at 22% = $6,935.50
Total tax bill: $1,192.50 + $4,386.00 + $6,935.50 = $12,514.00
Marginal rate: 22% — the rate on the last dollar earned
Effective rate: $12,514 / $80,000 = ~15.6% — the actual percentage of total income paid in taxes
Even though this taxpayer is "in the 22% bracket," their effective tax rate is only about 15.6%. For lower earners, the gap between marginal and effective rates is even larger. A single filer earning $50,000 is in the 22% bracket but has an effective rate of only approximately 13.5%.
Understanding the difference between marginal and effective rates helps you make better financial decisions. When you hear someone say they "don't want a raise because it will push them into a higher tax bracket," they are misunderstanding how progressive taxation works. Only the additional income above the bracket threshold is taxed at the higher rate — you always keep more money with a raise.
How Tax Brackets Work
The United States federal income tax system is a progressive tax system. This means that as your income increases, the tax rate applied to each additional dollar also increases. The system is designed so that higher-income earners pay a larger percentage of their income in taxes than lower-income earners, while ensuring that everyone benefits from the lower rates on their initial earnings.
Think of tax brackets like a series of buckets. Your income fills the first bucket (the 10% bracket) first. Once that bucket is full, any additional income spills into the next bucket (the 12% bracket), and so on. Each bucket has a different tax rate, but you only pay that rate on the income that lands in that specific bucket — not on all of your income.
- Calculate your taxable income — Start with your gross income, subtract the standard deduction (or itemized deductions). For 2025, the standard deduction is $15,000 for single filers, $30,000 for married couples, and $22,500 for heads of household. Learn more on our standard deduction guide.
- Apply the brackets — Your taxable income is layered across the bracket thresholds. Each layer is taxed at its corresponding rate.
- Sum the layers — Add the tax from each bracket to get your total income tax liability.
- Subtract credits — Apply any tax credits (Child Tax Credit, Earned Income Tax Credit, etc.) to reduce your final bill dollar-for-dollar.
For example, the standard deduction alone ensures that the first $15,000 of a single filer's 2025 income is completely tax-free. This means a single filer earning $50,000 actually starts with $15,000 at 0%, then only the remaining $35,000 is subject to bracket rates. See our tax data page for more detailed distribution statistics.
Try our tax refund calculator to see exactly how the brackets apply to your income — it calculates each bracket layer automatically and shows your full tax breakdown.
Tax Bracket History 2020-2026
Federal income tax brackets have seen significant inflation adjustments over the past several years. The table below shows how the top threshold of the 10%, 12%, and 22% brackets for single filers has changed, along with the standard deduction. The 37% bracket top threshold is also shown for reference.
| Year | 10% Bracket Top | 12% Bracket Top | 22% Bracket Top | 37% Starts At | Standard Deduction (Single) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $9,875 | $40,125 | $85,525 | $518,400 | $12,400 |
| 2021 | $9,950 | $40,525 | $86,375 | $523,600 | $12,550 |
| 2022 | $10,275 | $41,775 | $89,075 | $539,900 | $12,950 |
| 2023 | $11,000 | $44,725 | $95,375 | $578,125 | $13,850 |
| 2024 | $11,600 | $47,150 | $100,525 | $609,350 | $14,600 |
| 2025 | $11,925 | $48,475 | $103,350 | $626,350 | $15,000 |
| 2026 (est.) | $12,200 | $49,600 | $105,800 | $641,000 | $15,350 |
The cumulative inflation adjustment from 2020 to 2025 has been approximately 20.8% for the top of the 10% bracket and 20.9% for the start of the 37% bracket. These adjustments ensure that "bracket creep" — where inflation pushes taxpayers into higher brackets without real income increases — is mitigated. The Chained CPI (C-CPI-U) used for inflation indexing has resulted in slightly smaller adjustments than the traditional CPI would have provided.
For more historical data and detailed statistics, visit our tax data and statistics page.
Related guides: If you are self-employed, see our Self-Employment Tax Rate guide for the applicable SE tax rate and wage base limits. US citizens living abroad should also review the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion guide to understand how foreign income is treated for US tax purposes.
Planning your retirement contributions is also key to tax planning. Check our 2026 retirement contribution limits for 401(k), IRA, and Roth IRA maximums.
If your income exceeds certain thresholds, you may be subject to the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT), a parallel tax system designed to ensure high-income taxpayers pay a minimum amount of tax regardless of deductions and credits.
For historical tax bracket data going back to 2017, along with AMT exemptions, standard deduction history, and more, see our Tax Data & Statistics Hub.
Frequently Asked Questions
As a tax content specialist, I verify every bracket figure in this guide against the official IRS Revenue Procedure 2024-45 and cross-reference with IRS Publication 17. Tax brackets are one of the most commonly misunderstood aspects of the US tax system — the distinction between marginal and effective rates is something every taxpayer should understand. I update this guide annually when the IRS releases new brackets and whenever tax legislation affecting bracket rates is enacted.
— Lead Tax Content Strategist, TaxCalcHQ