Income tax & brackets
The marginal tax rate calculator behind every planning decision
A marginal tax rate calculator that shows clients the bracket of their next dollar and the federal tax on the next $1,000, so bonus, deduction and Roth questions start from the right number.
Included on every plan, even the free Practitioner plan. No card needed.
What is my marginal tax rate?
Your marginal tax rate is the federal rate applied to your next dollar of taxable income: the bracket your income currently reaches. It differs from your effective rate, which is total tax divided by income. Planning choices such as deductions, bonuses and Roth conversions are valued at the marginal rate, using the 2026 brackets (2026 brackets and standard deductions (Rev. Proc. 2025-32)2026 · IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32).
December, when a bonus or a year-end move is on the table
The question comes with a decision attached. A year-end bonus, a consulting invoice that could be billed in January instead, a Roth conversion, a large charitable gift. Clients have heard that 'moving into a higher bracket' is bad and want to know how much of the extra income would actually be taxed at the higher rate. The honest answer is usually reassuring, and it builds trust when they see it themselves.
What the client types into a search box
“what tax bracket am I in and what happens if I earn more”
How a client works through it
Pick a filing status
The bracket thresholds differ for single, joint, separate and head-of-household filers.
Enter taxable income
Income after deductions, the figure on the taxable-income line of a prior return is a good starting point.
See both rates
The marginal rate, the effective rate and the federal tax appear together, with the tax on the next $1,000 of income.
Send it for a projection
Clients weighing a decision can forward the result to your firm and ask for the full picture.
What lands in your inbox
When a client asks your firm to review the result, the request arrives as a contact record with their inputs and results attached, by email and, on paid plans, by webhook to your CRM.
Received
A request shows filing status and taxable income. Income just below a bracket boundary flags a client for whom timing income or deductions matters this year. High taxable income with no other context often means a business owner or executive who has not had proactive planning.
Marginal or effective: which rate should a client use?
Use the marginal rate to value a change: extra income, a deduction, a pre-tax contribution. Use the effective rate to describe the overall burden. The calculator shows both because clients routinely confuse them, and the gap between them is the clearest way to explain progressive brackets.
Tax on Next $1,000 makes the marginal rate concrete. If it crosses into the next bracket, part of that $1,000 is taxed at the higher rate and the figure reflects the blend, which answers the 'will a raise cost me money?' question directly.
Results shown: Marginal Tax Rate · Effective Tax Rate · Federal Tax · Taxable Income · Tax on Next $1,000.
The raise that 'pushes you into a higher bracket'
Suppose a client's taxable income sits $400 below the top of the 22% bracket and a $1,000 raise arrives. Only the last $600 is taxed at 24%: $400 × 22% = $88, plus $600 × 24% = $144, so the extra tax is $232 and the client keeps $768 of the raise before payroll taxes. The rest of their income is taxed exactly as before.
Why does a firm want clients to understand their marginal rate?
Because most planning advice is priced in marginal dollars, and clients who misunderstand brackets make poor decisions: refusing a raise, or overpaying for a deduction. A client who has seen the 'tax on next $1,000' figure understands why a firm recommends deferring income or bunching deductions, and is easier to advise.
It is also the quickest calculator to run, which makes it good for social posts and newsletters. Two inputs, a clear answer, and a link back to your site.
Follow-ups this request opens
- Model the timing of a bonus or invoice across two tax years
- Estimate the tax cost of a partial Roth conversion that stays in the current bracket
- Review deduction bunching for clients near the standard deduction
- Check estimated payments after a mid-year income change
What this calculator leaves out
- Starts from taxable income, so deductions must already be subtracted.
- Ordinary income brackets only; capital gains rates, the net investment income tax and AMT are not included.
- No phase-outs of credits or deductions, which can raise a real marginal rate above the bracket rate.
- Federal only; state marginal rates are not added.
Platform disclaimer shown under the calculator: Estimates only. Uses 2026 federal brackets (IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32, as amended by the 2025 tax law) on taxable income; excludes state tax, payroll tax, capital-gains rates, credits and phase-outs. Not tax advice.
Compliance note for firms
Telling a client 'you are in the 24% bracket' is simple, but recommending an action based on it is tax advice. Under Circular 230 §10.37, advice should rest on reasonable assumptions, and a bracket rate can understate the true marginal rate when phase-outs or the NIIT apply. When you reply to a request from this calculator, say which effects your answer includes.
Not legal advice. See our disclaimer and the guide to compliance for client calculators.
2026 figures this page relies on
| Figure | Value | Tax year | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Federal income tax brackets and standard deduction | 2026 brackets and standard deductions (Rev. Proc. 2025-32) | 2026 | IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32, as amended by the 2025 tax law |
The same values drive the calculator. Full list on the 2026 figures page.
Terms your client sees in the calculator
These definitions appear in the calculator's collapsible Definitions block, so clients don't have to call to ask what a label means.
- Marginal tax rate
- The federal rate applied to your last dollar of taxable income, which is the rate of the highest bracket your income reaches. It tells you how much tax an extra dollar of income costs, or a deduction saves. It is not the share of your whole income paid in tax; that is the effective rate.
- Effective tax rate
- Total federal income tax divided by taxable income. Because lower slices of income are taxed at lower bracket rates, the effective rate is always below the marginal rate once income reaches a second bracket. It is the better measure of your overall tax burden, while the marginal rate is the better guide for decisions at the margin.
- Tax bracket
- A range of taxable income taxed at one rate. This calculator uses the 2026 federal brackets (IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32, as amended by the 2025 tax law). Moving into a higher bracket raises the rate only on the dollars inside that bracket, not on all your income, so a raise never lowers your after-tax pay through bracket changes.
- Taxable income
- Income left after subtracting adjustments and either the standard deduction or itemized deductions. It is the figure the brackets apply to, and it is usually well below gross salary. Enter taxable income here, not gross pay; entering gross pay will overstate both your marginal and effective rates.
- Filing status
- The category you file under on your federal return, such as single, married filing jointly, married filing separately or head of household. Each status has its own bracket thresholds, so the same taxable income can land in different brackets depending on status. Your status is generally set by your situation on the last day of the tax year.
- Progressive tax
- A tax system in which rates rise as income rises, applied in layers. The federal income tax works this way: each bracket’s rate applies only to the slice of income within it. That layering is why this calculator reports two rates, marginal and effective, and why the effective rate is lower.
In our glossary: Marginal tax rate · Effective tax rate · Taxable income · Tax bracket
Marginal Tax Rate calculator: questions from firms and clients
Does being in a higher bracket mean all my income is taxed at that rate?
No. Only the income inside each bracket is taxed at that bracket's rate. That is why the effective rate is always lower than the marginal rate, and why a raise never reduces take-home pay through income tax alone.
Which brackets does the calculator use?
The 2026 federal brackets from IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32 as amended by the 2025 tax law, for the filing status the client picks. Sources are on the figures page.
Should clients enter gross income or taxable income?
Taxable income, after deductions. Clients who only know gross income should use the 1040 calculator, which works from gross income.
Why might my real marginal rate be higher than the bracket?
Phase-outs of credits and deductions, the net investment income tax and state tax all add to the cost of the next dollar. The calculator shows the federal bracket rate only and says so.
Is this useful for Roth conversion planning?
Yes. The first question in a conversion is how much room remains in the current bracket. The Roth conversion calculator then estimates the cost of converting.
Can we put this calculator in a newsletter?
Link to its page on your site. It is a good December topic because bonus and year-end decisions depend on it.
Does it include payroll taxes?
No. Social Security and Medicare are separate taxes on wages. The take-home paycheck calculator includes them.
Which plan includes it?
Every plan, including the free Practitioner plan, which runs up to 5 calculators at once alongside the other tax tools. Firm (up to 50) and Network (no cap) add webhooks and white-label. See pricing.
No question matches that filter. Clear it to see them all, search the whole site, or ask us directly; we reply within one business day.
Clients who ask this usually ask next
1040 Federal Income Tax
how much federal tax will I owe this year
Roth Conversion
should I do a roth conversion this year
Charitable Giving Tax Savings
how much will my donation save me on taxes this year
All “Income tax & brackets” calculators · Everything in Taxes
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