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IRS announces new federal income tax brackets for 2026
Income brackets and the standard deduction will increase slightly for the 2026 tax year, the Internal Revenue Service announced Thursday.
Tax brackets will rise by about 4% for lower-income ranges and roughly 2% for higher earners, according to the IRS’s annual inflation adjustments.
While tax rates remain unchanged, higher income thresholds mean taxpayers can earn more before moving into a higher bracket when they file in 2027.
You can see the tax rates single filers will pay on their taxable income below. Note that these are marginal rates, meaning income is taxed at lower rates until it moves into a new bracket, where only the amount above that threshold is taxed more.
Here are the 2026 federal income tax brackets for married couples filing jointly, according to the IRS.
In addition to adjusting the tax brackets, the IRS raised the standard deduction — a fixed amount subtracted from your income before your tax rate is applied.
Starting in 2026, the deduction increases from $15,750 to $16,100 for single filers. For married couple filing jointly, the standard deduction increases from $31,500 to $32,200.
Taxpayers can take the standard deduction or itemize — listing expenses such as mortgage interest or state and local taxes — but not both. Most taxpayers take the automatic standard deduction since the amount commonly exceeds what can be itemized.
The IRS also raised income thresholds for long-term capital gains taxes and made inflation adjustments to the estate and gift tax exemption and the earned income tax credit.
The IRS typically raises income thresholds each year to keep pace with inflation, usually by a few percentage points.
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