See whether getting married raises or lowers your federal income tax. Enter both partners' incomes and children to compare two unmarried returns with married filing jointly and separately, using 2026 brackets, deductions and the child tax credit.
Last updated:
Partner 1
$
Gross income after pre-tax 401(k)/health deductions (AGI)
Claimed by this partner if unmarried
Partner 2
$
Options
$
0 = standard deduction; joint return combines both
$
Enter your values to see the result.
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How to use the Marriage Tax Penalty Calculator
Enter each partner's income (adjusted gross income).
Add children each partner would claim if unmarried; parents file as head of household.
Optionally add itemized deductions if either of you itemizes; the larger of itemized or standard is used.
Press Calculate marriage penalty to compare all three ways of filing.
Review the split table to see how uneven incomes turn a penalty into a bonus.
How the comparison works
Unmarried tax = tax on partner 1's return (single, or head of household with children) + tax on partner 2's return.
Married tax = tax on one joint return with combined income, the $32,200 joint standard deduction and joint brackets.
Penalty (+) or bonus (−) = married tax − unmarried tax.
Example: two partners earning $150,000 each pay no Additional Medicare tax as singles, but married their combined $300,000 in wages is $50,000 over the $250,000 joint threshold, adding 0.9% × $50,000 = $450. Their income tax is the same either way because the joint brackets are double the single ones up to the 32% bracket, so the marriage penalty is $450.
2026 single vs joint bracket thresholds
Rate
Single: up to
Joint: up to
Joint ÷ single
10%
$12,400
$24,800
2.0
12%
$50,400
$100,800
2.0
22%
$105,700
$211,400
2.0
24%
$201,775
$403,550
2.0
32%
$256,225
$512,450
2.0
35%
$640,600
$768,700
1.2
37%
above
above
—
Where the ratio is 2.0, equal earners pay the same tax married or single. The 35% bracket is where the bracket-driven penalty appears.
Other sources of penalties and bonuses
Bonuses: one high and one low earner share the wide joint brackets, often saving thousands.
Earned income credit: two low earners can lose some or all of the credit when their incomes are combined.
SALT deduction cap: it is the same dollar cap for a single filer and a married couple.
Net investment income tax: 3.8% starts at $200,000 single but $250,000 joint.
State taxes: some states have their own marriage penalties; check your state's joint brackets.
Frequently asked questions
What is the marriage penalty?
A marriage penalty happens when a married couple pays more federal tax filing jointly than they would as two single people with the same incomes. A marriage bonus is the opposite: the joint return costs less. Most couples with very different incomes get a bonus.
Who pays a marriage penalty in 2026?
For 2026 the joint brackets are exactly double the single brackets up through the 32% bracket, so equal earners mostly avoid a penalty. It mainly hits high earners in the 35% bracket (which starts at $768,700 joint versus $640,600 single), couples above the Additional Medicare tax threshold, and single parents who lose head-of-household status.
Why do single parents often face a marriage penalty?
Head of household gets a $24,150 standard deduction and wider brackets than single. When a single parent marries, the couple's combined $32,200 joint deduction is less than $24,150 + $16,100, and the head-of-household brackets are lost, so tax can go up.
Does filing separately avoid the marriage penalty?
Rarely. Married filing separately uses brackets that are half of the joint ones, and it removes or limits many credits such as the earned income credit, education credits and the dependent care credit. It occasionally helps when one spouse has large medical bills or income-driven student loan payments.
Is the Additional Medicare tax a marriage penalty?
It can be. The 0.9% Additional Medicare tax applies to wages above $200,000 for a single filer but $250,000 for a married couple filing jointly, so two $150,000 earners pay nothing single but owe 0.9% on $50,000 when married.
Which year's tax rules does this use?
It uses 2026 federal figures: the 10% to 37% brackets, standard deductions of $16,100 single, $32,200 joint and $24,150 head of household, and a $2,200 child tax credit. Your tax status for the whole year depends on whether you are married on December 31.
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