Standard deduction

What It Means

The standard deduction is a set amount you can subtract from your income before your federal income tax is figured, without listing any expenses. Its size depends on your filing statusFiling statusThe category you file your federal return under, one of five the IRS sets, which decides your tax rates and standard deduction and depends on your marital status at year end. See more, and also on your age, whether you're blind, and whether someone else can claim you as a dependent. The IRS adjusts it every year for inflationInflationA general rise in the prices of goods and services over time, so the same amount of money buys less than it did before. See more, and you take either it or your itemized deductionsItemized deductionA specific expense the IRS lets you subtract on Schedule A, such as mortgage interest, state and local taxes, charity or large medical bills, instead of the standard deduction. See more, whichever is larger.

How People Say It

• "We just take the standard deduction."
• "The standard deduction went up again, so itemizing doesn't make sense for us."
• "Is it worth keeping receipts if I'm taking the standard?"

The Breakdown

The amounts

Worked example. Priya files single for 2026 and earns $60,000 (an example). Her mortgageMortgageA loan used to buy or refinance a home, secured by the home itself and repaid in monthly installments over a set term. See more interestInterest rateThe yearly percentage a lender charges for borrowing money, not counting fees; the APR adds certain fees to show a fuller cost. See more, state taxes and gifts to charity add up to $9,000.

What the result means. Priya's itemized total falls $7,100 short of the standard deduction, so taking the standard deduction leaves her less income to be taxed and saves her listing every expense on Schedule A. If her itemized total grew past $16,100, itemizing would come out ahead.

Good to Know

For 2026, the IRS's inflation release sets the standard deduction at $16,100 for single filers and married people filing separately, $32,200 for married couples filing jointly, and $24,150 for heads of household. The July 2025 law set the 2025 amounts at $15,750, $31,500 and $23,625. Your amount is different if you're 65 or older, blind, or someone else's dependent, so look yours up on the IRS standard deduction page, Topic 551. Check the current figures, or ask a tax professional, before you decide how to file.

Related Terms and Categories

• Itemized deduction

  A specific expense the IRS lets you subtract on Schedule A, such as mortgage interest, state and local taxes, charity or large medical bills, instead of the standard deduction.

• Filing status

  The category you file your federal return under, one of five the IRS sets, which decides your tax rates and standard deduction and depends on your marital status at year end.

• Head of household

  An IRS filing status for an unmarried person who pays more than half the cost of a home where a qualifying person lives for more than half the year.

• Tax credit vs deduction

  A deduction lowers the income your tax is figured on, while a credit cuts the tax itself dollar for dollar, so a credit of the same size is usually worth more.

• Gross income

  The full amount you earn before taxes and other deductions come out. For federal taxes, it's all income you receive unless a law exempts it.

• Property tax

  A yearly tax your local government charges on real estate you own, worked out from the property's assessed value and the local tax rate.

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