What Are the New Tax Brackets for 2026?

Tax Brackets for 2025 (Taxes Due April 2026)

Here are the tax brackets for 2025 that will impact your taxes due April 15, 2026.

Source: IRS

Tax Brackets for 2026 (Taxes Due April 2027)

Here are the newly adjusted tax brackets for 2026. Although the income ranges are updated, the seven marginal tax rates generally stay the same from year to year.

Source: IRS

How Do Tax Brackets Work?

The IRS uses tax brackets to apply progressively higher tax rates as your taxable income increases.

Here's what that means. Income is taxed at seven different marginal rates: 10%, 12%, 22%, 24%, 32%, 35% and 37%. Each rate applies to a range of incomes, or tax brackets. Brackets are adjusted every year for inflation. They also vary depending on your filing status (single, married filing jointly, married filing separately and head of household).

Tax Bracket Example

Here's an example of how tax brackets play out for a single person with $100,000 in taxable income after allowing for a standard deduction and tax credits.

In this example, the top marginal tax rate—or the top rate this taxpayer pays—is 22%. In other words, they're in the 22% tax bracket. This taxpayer's total tax bill for 2026 is $16,711.66.

How to Lower Your Tax Bracket

You can lower your tax bracket (or at least keep it as low as possible) by lowering your taxable income. Because tax brackets are broad, reducing your taxable income doesn't always land you in a different tax bracket.

Example: Lowering your taxable income from $106,000 to $103,350 would lower your tax bracket from 24% to 22%. But reducing your taxable income another $1,650 to $101,700 wouldn't come close to taking you out of the 22% bracket.

Either way, lowering your taxable income still lowers your income tax—and keeps your tax bracket low. Here are a few ideas for reducing your taxable income:

• Maximize your tax deductions. Most people get a bigger tax break using the standard deduction versus itemizing individual deductions like home mortgage interest or medical expenses. Still, it doesn't hurt to calculate your deductions both ways to see whether you have enough itemized deductions to save money.
• Contribute to a 401(k), IRA or HSA. Money you put into a traditional 401(k), an individual retirement account (IRA) or a health savings account (HSA) is excluded from your taxable income, which may help keep you out of a higher tax bracket.
• Manage investment gains and losses. Selling investments at a loss can help lower your taxable income for the year. You might also consider postponing the sale of assets to the following year to put off capital gains.

To lower your tax bill, also look for tax credits you're eligible to claim. Tax credits lower your tax bill dollar for dollar, but they're figured in after you total up your taxable income and calculate your tax, so they don't affect your tax bracket. A few tax credits to consider: the child tax credit, earned income tax credit and the child and dependent care credit.

The Bottom Line

Annual inflation adjustments help ensure that the marginal tax rates and tax brackets used to calculate your tax bill accurately reflect current economic realities. If your income is worth less due to inflation, lower income brackets should help bring your tax bill in line.

While you're getting your taxes in order, consider revisiting your monthly budget and checking up on your credit report and score to make sure you're on track to meet your financial goals, maintain your financial health and make good use of any tax savings you'll see.