Reckonary / Finance / 2026 Tax Brackets
Federal income tax
Your last dollar is taxed at 22%, but your overall rate is only 16.7% — most of your income is taxed in lower brackets.
| Bracket | Income in it | Tax |
|---|---|---|
| 10% on $0 – $12,400 | $12,400 | $1,240 |
| 12% on $12,400 – $50,400 | $38,000 | $4,560 |
| 22% on $50,400 – $105,700 | $49,600 | $10,912 |
| Total | $100,000 | $16,712 |
Each bracket's rate applies only to the slice of income inside it. Same math, shown.
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The IRS adjusts its tax brackets for inflation every year. For the 2026 tax year, the seven federal rates stay the same — 10%, 12%, 22%, 24%, 32%, 35%, and 37% — but the income thresholds where each one kicks in have moved up. This calculator takes your taxable income and shows three numbers that often get confused: your marginal rate (the bracket your top dollar sits in), your effective rate (what you actually pay overall), and your total federal income tax — then breaks it down bracket by bracket so you can see exactly where each dollar is taxed.
These are the 2026 brackets for the two most common filing statuses. Each rate applies only to taxable income within its range.
| Rate | Single — taxable income | Married filing jointly |
|---|---|---|
| 10% | $0 – $12,400 | $0 – $24,800 |
| 12% | $12,400 – $50,400 | $24,800 – $100,800 |
| 22% | $50,400 – $105,700 | $100,800 – $211,400 |
| 24% | $105,700 – $201,775 | $211,400 – $403,550 |
| 32% | $201,775 – $256,225 | $403,550 – $512,450 |
| 35% | $256,225 – $640,600 | $512,450 – $768,700 |
| 37% | $640,600 and up | $768,700 and up |
This is the single most common misunderstanding about taxes. Your marginal rate is the rate on your last dollar — the bracket you are "in." Your effective rate is your total tax divided by your taxable income, and it is always lower, because the dollars below your top bracket were taxed at lower rates. Take a single filer with $100,000 of taxable income. The last dollar is taxed at 22%, so that is their bracket. But the first $12,400 was taxed at 10%, the next chunk at 12%, and only the income above $50,400 at 22%. The total comes to $16,712 — an effective rate of about 16.7%, well below the 22% headline.
People often worry that earning a little more will push their whole income into a higher bracket and leave them with less. That cannot happen. The system is progressive and marginal: income is sliced at each threshold, and each slice is taxed at its own rate. When you cross into the next bracket, only the dollars above the line are taxed at the higher rate — never the ones below it. So a raise always leaves you with more money in your pocket. The "Show the work" panel on the calculator above lays out each slice and the tax on it, so the total is never a black box.
One important detail: brackets apply to taxable income, not your gross salary. Most people lower their gross pay by the standard deduction first. For 2026 the standard deduction is $16,100 for a single filer and $32,200 for a married couple filing jointly. So a single worker earning $70,000 who takes the standard deduction has taxable income of about $53,900 — that is the number to enter above. If you itemize instead, use your income after itemized deductions.
What tax bracket am I in for 2026?
Your bracket is the rate on your last dollar of taxable income. For a single filer in 2026, taxable income up to $12,400 is taxed at 10%, up to $50,400 at 12%, up to $105,700 at 22%, and so on. Enter your taxable income above to see exactly which bracket your top dollar lands in.
What's the difference between marginal and effective tax rate?
Your marginal rate is the rate on your highest dollar — your tax bracket. Your effective rate is your total tax divided by your taxable income, which is always lower because earlier dollars are taxed in lower brackets. A single filer with $100,000 of taxable income is in the 22% bracket but pays an effective rate of about 16.7%.
Does a higher bracket tax my whole income?
No. Brackets are marginal, so each rate applies only to the slice of income inside that bracket. Moving into a higher bracket only raises the tax on the dollars above the threshold, never on the income below it. A raise always leaves you with more after tax.
Is this taxable income or gross salary?
This uses taxable income — your income after the standard deduction or itemized deductions. For 2026 the standard deduction is $16,100 for single filers and $32,200 for married couples filing jointly, so subtract that from your gross pay first if you take the standard deduction.
Where do the 2026 numbers come from?
The bracket thresholds, rates, and standard deduction are the IRS inflation-adjusted figures for tax year 2026, published in IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32.
Last reviewed June 2026. A 2026-tax-year tool using the federal income tax brackets and standard deduction from the IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32. Federal figures only — this is not tax advice.