Marriage Tax Calculator
Compare tax implications for married couples versus filing separately
Marriage has significant financial implications for the individuals involved, including its impact on taxation. The calculator below can help estimate the financial impact of filing a joint tax return as a married couple (as opposed to filing separately as singles) based on 2025 federal income tax brackets and data specific to the United States. For tax purposes, whether a person is classified as married is based on the last day of the tax year, which means that a person married on the last day of the tax year is considered married for the entire year. Similarly, a person that is divorced would be considered unmarried for the entire tax year.
Marriage Tax Calculator
Spouse 1
Spouse 2
What is Marriage Tax?
Marriage tax refers to the difference in federal income tax liability between filing as a married couple versus filing as two single individuals. This can result in either a "marriage penalty" (paying more tax) or a "marriage bonus" (paying less tax) depending on the income levels and filing status of both spouses.
The marriage penalty typically occurs when both spouses have similar incomes, while the marriage bonus often occurs when there's a significant income disparity between spouses. This calculator helps you understand the potential tax implications of marriage based on 2025 federal tax brackets.