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What will my federal tax refund be?

Estimate your federal tax refund or tax liability before you file. Enter your income, withholdings, and deductions to see your estimated refund.

What This Calculator Is

A tax refund calculator estimates your federal tax refund (or amount owed) based on your income, withholdings, filing status, and deductions. It helps you understand whether you're having too much or too little withheld from your paycheck, so you can adjust your W-4 if needed.

Who This Calculator Is For

Employees wanting to predict their refund, people considering W-4 adjustments, those planning major financial decisions around expected refunds, and anyone curious about their tax situation before filing. Tax professionals use it for quick estimates.

When to Use This Calculator

Use this calculator in January to estimate your refund before filing, when your income or withholding changes, when deciding whether to adjust your W-4, or when planning how to use an expected refund. It's an estimate—always consult a tax professional for final calculations.

Inputs

$75,000.00
$9,000.00
$0.00
0
0

Results

Estimated Refund

$886.00

Total Tax Liability$8,114.00
Effective Tax Rate10.819%
Taxable Income$60,000.00

This calculator provides estimates for informational purposes only.

Insights

You're getting a refund

You've overpaid by $886.00. Consider adjusting your W-4 to keep more money in each paycheck.

Effective rate

Your effective tax rate is 10.8%, meaning you pay $8,114.00 on $60,000.00 of taxable income.

How Tax Refund Is Calculated

The calculator applies current tax brackets to your taxable income (gross income minus deductions). It then subtracts credits like the Child Tax Credit. The difference between your total tax and withholdings determines your refund or amount owed.

deduction = itemizedDeductions if deductionType is itemized AND itemizedDeductions > standardDeduction[filingStatus], else standardDeduction[filingStatus] (2025 figures).
taxableIncome = max(0, grossIncome - deduction).
totalTax computed via progressive 2025 federal tax brackets for the filing status (7 brackets, 10%-37%), summing rate*amount-in-bracket; marginalRate = rate of highest bracket reached.
childTaxCredit = min(childrenUnder17*2000, totalTax); totalTax = max(0, totalTax - childTaxCredit).
refundOrOwed = federalWithholdings - totalTax; effectiveRate = totalTax/grossIncome*100.
Where: filingStatus, grossIncome, federalWithholdings, deductionType, itemizedDeductions, dependents (unused in calc), childrenUnder17.
Assumptions: federal income tax only (no state tax, FICA, or other credits/deductions besides standard/itemized and child tax credit); dependents (non-child) input collected but not applied to tax; uses 2025 IRS brackets/standard deductions hardcoded in code; no phase-outs for Child Tax Credit at high income.

Key Takeaways

  • •A large refund means you're giving the IRS an interest-free loan — consider adjusting your W-4
  • •The standard deduction for 2025: $15,000 (single), $30,000 (married filing jointly)
  • •Child Tax Credit provides up to $2,000 per qualifying child under 17
  • •Self-employed? Remember to account for self-employment tax (15.3% on top of income tax)
  • •State taxes are separate — this calculator estimates federal taxes only

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