FREE FEDERAL TAX PLANNING TOOL

Tax Refund Calculator

See whether you're on track for a federal refund—or a balance due.

Start with a pay stub or annual W-2 totals. Add other income, payments and confirmed deductions or credits to see the calculation behind your estimate.

2025 & 2026 tax yearsNo signupRuns in your browser

A planning estimate, not a tax return. Federal only. Child tax credit, its refundable portion and earned income credit are estimated automatically from your household answers. Other credits require their own eligibility review. EITC uses continuous rates, so IRS filing-table amounts can differ by several dollars. We use progressive rate schedules; IRS filing tax-table rounding can produce a different final amount.

1 Your tax year & household

Tax year (when income was earned)

Filing status

Start with

Use your eligible filing status. A joint return includes both spouses. A separate return includes only your own income. Check your filing status with the IRS.

Check whether this tool fits your situation

Designed for U.S. resident filers with ordinary wages and simple sole-proprietor income. Not supported: someone can claim you as a dependent; nonresident/dual-status or territory returns; capital gains or qualified dividends; taxable Social Security benefits; business losses, partnerships, farming or clergy income; foreign exclusions; AMT, NIIT or Marketplace premium-tax-credit reconciliation; or married-separate community-property allocations. Use fuller tax software for these situations.

One of these unsupported situations applies to me.

2 Income & withholding

Your income

Federal taxable wages ($)Annual: total W-2 Box 1. Pay stub: year-to-date federal taxable wages, including the latest paycheck. Do not use gross pay or take-home pay.

Federal income tax withheld ($)Annual: total W-2 Box 2. Pay stub: YTD federal income-tax withholding. Exclude Social Security, Medicare and state tax.

My annual Social Security and Medicare wages equal my annual federal taxable wages.

1099 / sole-proprietor income

Use annual business totals, including income not reported on a 1099. This estimates regular Schedule SE tax separately for each spouse. Business losses, partnerships, farm income and optional SE methods are outside this tool.

Annual business receipts ($)

Allowable business expenses ($)Do not include personal expenses, income taxes, or deductions entered elsewhere.

Other ordinary taxable income ($)Annual taxable bank interest, unemployment or other ordinary income. Exclude capital gains, qualified dividends and Social Security benefits.

Other federal income-tax withholding ($)Annual withholding on income outside the W-2 totals above. Do not count the same withholding twice.

3 Deductions & credits

The standard deduction is included automatically. Automatic credit questions follow the deductions. Optional deduction amounts below must already meet the tax-year eligibility and phaseout rules.

Deductions and age / blindness additions

Age / blindness additions to standard deductionAdd 1 for each filer age 65 or older and 1 for each legally blind filer. Joint: maximum 4; other statuses: maximum 2. This is separate from the Schedule 1-A senior deduction.

Allowable itemized deduction total ($)Enter your Schedule A total after its limits. We use the larger of this and the standard deduction, unless a separate-filing spouse itemizes.

Other allowable adjustments to income ($)Eligible Schedule 1 adjustments only, after limits. The deductible half of regular SE tax is already included; do not enter it again.

Allowed Schedule 1-A deductions ($)Enter the final eligible total for qualified tips, overtime, car-loan interest and seniors after limits and phaseouts. Do not enter gross tips or gross overtime.

Allowed QBI deduction ($)Use the final deduction from Form 8995 or 8995-A. QBI eligibility and its income/wage/property limits are not calculated here.

Standard deduction rules · Schedule 1-A · QBI worksheet

Automatic child tax credit & earned income credit

Answer the questions below. We calculate the credit amounts, income phaseouts and refundable child credit for you. Use the selected income year for every answer. No SSNs or names are collected.

Do any special credit situations listed below apply?

Special situations: a prior IRS credit denial or ban; disputed child claims or a tie-breaker you have not resolved; a custody release (Form 8332); foreign or territory income exclusions; combat pay, Medicaid waiver payments, prison wages, statutory-employee income, disability pension before retirement age, railroad taxes or unreported payroll taxes; adoption-credit interactions; or claiming the credit for other dependents. These require additional worksheets beyond this estimator. Also use a fuller calculation if someone can claim you or your spouse as a dependent.

Child tax credit

Count children who meet all these conditions:

Under 17 at the end of the tax year; your child, stepchild, eligible foster child, sibling, half/step sibling, or a descendant of one of them.
Lived with you for more than half the year (count qualifying temporary absences and the time a newborn was alive); did not provide more than half of their own support.
You will claim them as a dependent; they did not file a joint return except solely to recover withheld or estimated tax.
A U.S. citizen, national or resident alien, with an employment-valid SSN issued by the return due date, including extensions.

Children meeting every child tax credit conditionEnter 0 if none. Do not include children age 17 or older.

Do you meet the taxpayer ID rule for child tax credit?

You need an employment-valid SSN issued by the return due date, including extensions. For a joint return, at least one spouse needs that SSN and the other needs a timely SSN or ITIN.

Earned income credit (EITC)

Children can qualify for EITC at older ages than for child tax credit. Count children who meet all these conditions:

The same family relationships listed above; under 19, or a full-time student under 24 for at least five months, and younger than you (or your joint-filing spouse). A permanently and totally disabled child can be any age.
Lived with you in the United States for more than half the year, including qualifying temporary absences and newborn rules.
Has a timely employment-valid SSN; did not file a joint return except solely to recover withheld or estimated tax; and you are entitled to claim this child for EITC under the IRS tie-breaker rules.

Children meeting every EITC conditionCount each child once. This count may differ from the child tax credit count. Enter 0 if none.

Do you (and your spouse on a joint return) have timely employment-valid SSNs?

Were you (and your joint-filing spouse) U.S. citizens or resident aliens all year?

Are you (or your joint-filing spouse) another taxpayer’s qualifying child for EITC?

Annual investment income for the EITC limit ($)Include taxable and tax-exempt interest, dividends, net capital gains and applicable rental/passive investment income. This is an eligibility check, not added to income again. Enter taxable amounts in income above; capital gains and complex investments need fuller tax software.

Without a qualifying child, EITC has additional age and residence rules.

Are you (or a joint-filing spouse) age 25–64, and did both filers live in the U.S. more than half the year?

For a single filer, answer about yourself. Neither filer can be someone else’s dependent. Use the IRS birthday rules if born January 1.

IRS child credit rules · IRS EITC eligibility assistant

Other credits (optional)

Child tax credit, additional child tax credit and EITC are already calculated. Do not enter those credits here. Other-dependent and adoption credits need a fuller calculation. Enter only eligible amounts after their own limits.

Other nonrefundable credits applied before child credit ($)Only credits on Schedule 8812 Credit Limit Worksheet A before child credit, such as eligible education or dependent-care credits. Later-order credits need fuller tax software.

Other refundable credits ($)Exclude EITC, additional child tax credit and any excess Social Security credit entered above.

I reviewed other credit eligibility and entered applicable amounts (or confirmed none apply).

4 Payments & final details

Federal estimated tax payments ($)Annual payments already made or expected for this tax year, plus any prior-year refund applied to this year. Do not include state payments.

Additional Medicare withholding & other taxes

The calculator includes 0.9% Additional Medicare tax above the filing-status threshold. Ordinary employee Social Security and Medicare withholding are not federal income-tax payments.

Additional Medicare tax withheld ($)Only the additional 0.9% portion, as determined on Form 8959—not all W-2 Box 6 withholding.

Other federal taxes ($)Known additional federal taxes from your worksheets, excluding income tax, regular SE tax and Additional Medicare tax already calculated here.

No names, SSNs or uploads. This calculator does not send or save your entries. Reloading clears them.

How to estimate your federal tax refund

A refund generally results when federal payments and refundable credits exceed your total federal tax. If the tax is greater, the difference is an estimated balance due.

Add annual federal taxable wages, ordinary income and net business profit.
Subtract eligible income adjustments, including the deductible half of regular self-employment tax.
Apply the standard or eligible itemized deduction and any entered, allowed Schedule 1-A and QBI deductions.
Apply the selected year's progressive rates, then eligible nonrefundable credits, SE tax and applicable Additional Medicare tax.
Compare total tax with federal withholding, estimated payments and automatic plus entered refundable credits.

A reproducible 2026 example

A single filer under 65 has $60,000 of federal taxable wages, $6,000 withheld, no other income and no credits. The $16,100 standard deduction leaves $43,900 taxable. Tax is $1,240 on the first $12,400 plus $3,780 on the next $31,500: $5,020 estimated income tax and a $980 estimated refund. This uses the rate schedule; filing tax tables may differ slightly. The example button loads these fictional figures.

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2026 calculator for my 2025 return?

No. Select the year the income was earned. Income earned in 2025 generally goes on a return filed in 2026; 2026 income generally goes on a return filed in 2027. Do not mix one year's income with another year's brackets.

Does it automatically include child tax credit or EITC?

Yes. Complete the eligibility questions and child counts; the calculator applies the selected year’s income limits and estimates child tax credit, additional child tax credit and EITC automatically. EITC can apply without children. Other credits and special situations may require fuller tax software.

Can I use my latest pay stub?

Yes. Select the pay-stub projection option, enter YTD federal taxable wages and withholding, then expected taxable wages, withholding and the number of remaining paychecks. Use separate spouse figures on a joint return. Adjust for bonuses, job changes or unpaid weeks.

Can a 1099 contractor use this?

For simple sole-proprietor profit, yes. Enter annual business receipts and allowable expenses. Regular self-employment tax and its deductible half are calculated separately for each spouse. Enter any allowed QBI deduction from the applicable worksheet. Business losses and more complex business returns are outside this calculator.

Will this file my taxes or tell me when my refund arrives?

No. This is a free planning calculator. It does not prepare or file a return, check an IRS account, or predict a deposit date. Use the IRS refund-status service after filing.

Sources & calculation limits

Rules checked October 23, 2026. Uses 2025 and 2026 federal rate schedules and standard deductions; the 92.35% Schedule SE earnings factor, $400 SE threshold, annual Social Security limits, and Additional Medicare thresholds. Automatic child and earned income credits use your eligibility answers, Schedule 8812 limits and published EITC phase-in/phaseout parameters. Other credits, QBI, Schedule 1-A and other entered deductions require separate eligibility review. Results are rounded to cents for planning and can differ from whole-dollar filing forms and IRS tax tables.