The federal standard deduction is a flat dollar amount that reduces your taxable income based on your filing status. For the 2026 tax year, it is $16,100 for single filers, $32,200 for married couples filing jointly, $16,100 for married filing separately, and $24,150 for heads of household.1Internal Revenue Service. IRS Releases Tax Inflation Adjustments for Tax Year 2026, Including Amendments From the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Those figures climbed noticeably from 2025 after Congress raised the base amounts in the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act, signed July 4, 2025.
Amounts for the 2025 Tax Year
If you are preparing a 2025 return in early 2026, use the older figures:
- Single: $15,000
- Married filing jointly and surviving spouses: $30,000
- Married filing separately: $15,000
- Head of household: $22,500
For 2024, the amounts were $14,600 (single and married filing separately), $29,200 (married filing jointly), and $21,900 (head of household).3Internal Revenue Service. Revenue Procedure 2023-34 The One, Big, Beautiful Bill rewrote the base amounts in Internal Revenue Code Section 63(c)(7), and those higher bases now receive their own annual inflation adjustment starting in 2026.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 63 – Taxable Income Defined A joint-filing couple shields $2,200 more from tax in 2026 than in 2025; a single filer shields $1,100 more.
Extra Amount if You Are 65 or Older or Blind
Taxpayers who are 65 or older or legally blind add an extra amount on top of the base deduction. For 2026, the supplement is $2,050 for unmarried filers and $1,650 for married filers or a surviving spouse. For 2025 it is $2,000 and $1,600.2Internal Revenue Service. Rev. Proc. 2024-40
You claim the amount twice if you meet both conditions. A single filer who is 66 and legally blind adds $4,100 to the $16,100 base in 2026, for a total of $20,200. On a joint return, each spouse claims their own additions, so a couple where both are 65 or older adds $3,300 to the $32,200 base.
The IRS treats you as 65 on the day before your 65th birthday. That matters most if you were born on January 1: a January 1, 1962 birthday makes you 65 on December 31, 2026 for tax purposes, so you get the extra amount on your 2026 return.5Internal Revenue Service. Publication 554 – Tax Guide for Seniors
Legally blind, for tax purposes, means best corrected vision in your better eye of 20/200 or worse, or a field of vision of 20 degrees or less. Get a letter from your eye doctor confirming this and keep it with your records; you do not attach it to the return. If your doctor does not expect your vision to improve, having that noted in the letter helps in future years. To claim either amount, check the age or blindness boxes on Form 1040 or Form 1040-SR.6Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 551, Standard Deduction
If Someone Can Claim You as a Dependent
Being claimed as a dependent shrinks your deduction. It is the larger of a flat floor or your earned income plus a small addition, capped at the single-filer amount. For 2025, the floor is $1,350, the earned-income add-on is $450, and the cap is $15,000.2Internal Revenue Service. Rev. Proc. 2024-40 For 2026 the cap rises to $16,100, and the floor and add-on adjust for inflation.1Internal Revenue Service. IRS Releases Tax Inflation Adjustments for Tax Year 2026, Including Amendments From the One, Big, Beautiful Bill
A dependent with $3,000 in wages and nothing else gets a 2025 deduction of $3,450 ($3,000 plus $450), since that beats the $1,350 floor. A dependent whose only income is $800 in interest uses the $1,350 floor, because interest is unearned income and does not lift the calculation. Earned income means wages and self-employment; interest, dividends, and capital gains do not count for this formula.7Internal Revenue Service. Earned Income
When Itemizing Beats the Standard Deduction
Take the standard deduction only when it exceeds what you could deduct by listing individual expenses on Schedule A. With the 2026 joint amount at $32,200, most households come out ahead with the flat number. A few things can push itemized totals past that line.
The biggest are state and local taxes (SALT), mortgage interest, and charitable gifts. For 2026, the SALT cap rises to $40,400, a large jump from the $10,000 ceiling in place since 2018, though the cap phases down for higher earners and eventually drops back to $10,000 above a certain income threshold. Mortgage interest remains deductible on loans up to $750,000 for mortgages taken out after December 15, 2017, with the older $1 million limit still applying to loans from before that date. Medical expenses above 7.5% of your adjusted gross income are deductible if you itemize.8Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 502, Medical and Dental Expenses
A quick self-test: add your state and local taxes, mortgage interest, and significant charitable contributions. If that total tops $16,100 (single) or $32,200 (joint), work through Schedule A. If it falls short, take the standard deduction.9Internal Revenue Service. Tax Basics: Understanding the Difference Between Standard and Itemized Deductions
One narrow exception exists for people who take the standard deduction but suffer a loss from a federally declared disaster. A qualified disaster loss can be added on top of the standard deduction using Form 4684, without having to switch to itemizing everything.10Internal Revenue Service. Publication 547, Casualties, Disasters, and Thefts
Filers Who Cannot Take the Standard Deduction
For a few filers, the standard deduction is zero and there is no workaround.
If you are married filing separately and your spouse itemizes, you must itemize too, even if your itemized deductions come out to zero.11Internal Revenue Service. Other Deduction Questions
Nonresident aliens generally cannot claim the standard deduction and must itemize; the same applies to dual-status aliens for the nonresident portion of the year. Some tax treaties create narrow exceptions.12Internal Revenue Service. U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens
Returns covering fewer than 12 months because of a change in accounting period get no standard deduction.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 63 – Taxable Income Defined And estates and trusts do not get one either; they use a small exemption instead. A bankruptcy estate is the one exception.13Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 1041 and Schedules A, B, G, J, and K-1
How It Affects Whether You Have To File
The standard deduction sets your filing threshold. If your gross income is below the standard deduction for your filing status, you generally do not need to file a return. For 2026, a single filer under 65 with less than $16,100 in gross income has no filing obligation.1Internal Revenue Service. IRS Releases Tax Inflation Adjustments for Tax Year 2026, Including Amendments From the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Filers 65 or older get a higher threshold because their extra deduction raises the floor.
Self-employment is different. Net self-employment earnings of $400 or more require you to file so you can pay self-employment tax, even if your total income is well below the standard deduction.14Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 554, Self-Employment Tax File voluntarily if taxes were withheld from your paychecks or you qualify for a refundable credit like the Earned Income Tax Credit. The IRS does not issue those refunds unless you file for them.