Tax Proposal Calculator

The Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center (TPC) has created a calculator to help show how the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) would affect sample taxpayers. You can use the default options we created for people in various income groups, or you can create your own taxpayer profile.

If you want to see how we created the defaults scenarios, click here. For a detailed description of the methodology behind this calculator, see our methodology page.

TPC's Tax Calculator estimates how the TCJA affects typical taxpayers. To make it easy to use, we left out many items which would be included on an actual tax return. Thus, the TPC calculator is not a tax preparation tool and the results it produces cannot be applied to specific tax situations.

TPC welcomes any feedback on the calculator, either on design or on how we modeled the provisions of the bill, as we are constantly working to improve our products. You can email info@taxpolicycenter.org with comments.

For a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ), click here.

Select a Scenario

[+] Create Your Own Scenario

Select an Income level

Default income values are typical amounts taxpayers at five percentiles of the income distribution for the particular type of household chosen. The five levels are: 1) Low: 20th percentile; 2) Middle: 50th percentile; 3) High: 80th percentile; 4) Very High: 99th percentile; and 5) Highest: 99.9th percentile.

Income ranges reflect the scenario chosen above.

Select Demographic Info

Choose marital status of taxpayer(s). Choose whether taxpayer (and spouse, if married) is age 65 or over. Choose whether taxpayer (and spouse, if married) is attending college at least half-time.

Marital Status

Age

in College

Spouse's Age

Spouse in College

Select Dependents Info

Choose number of dependents (up to 7). For each dependent, choose age range or, if the dependent is age 19 to 25, whether the dependent is a full-time student.

Total Dependents

First Dependent is

Second Dependent is

Third Dependent is

Fourth Dependent is

Fifth Dependent is

Sixth Dependent is

Seventh Dependent is

Provide Income Sources

For the principal taxpayer, all income from paid employment, including tips, bonuses, and the like.
For the spouse of the taxpayer, all income from paid employment, including tips, bonuses, and the like.
Interest paid on savings accounts and other financial investments, other than tax-exempt interest.
Interest on instruments such as municipal bonds that is exempt from the federal individual income tax.
Qualified dividends received. Enter non-qualified dividends as taxable interest income.
Gains on assets held for longer than one year. Enter short-term capital gains as taxable interest income.
Taxable portion of payments during retirement from plans (pension, 401(k), etc.) tied to previous employment.
All benefits for retirees, survivors, and dependents.
Health insurance premiums paid by employers (including any employee amount paid with pre-tax dollars).
Income from all other taxable sources.
Net income from a sole proprietorship, partnership, S corporation, limited liability company, or other business. All net income will be treated as earned by the primary taxpayer for purposes of calculating self-employment payroll taxes.
Professional services businesses are those in which the principal asset is the reputation or skill of its employees, e.g. doctors, lawyers, accountants, etc..

Deductions & Expenses

Donations to charitable organizations or causes.
Qualifying medical expenses include out of pocket medical expenses on preventative care, treament, surgeries, and dental and vision care. Enter the total amount of expenses, not just the deductible portion.
Interest paid on student loans.
Expenses for post-secondary education (e.g. tuition, textbooks, school fees)
Mortgage interest paid on primary residence.
Interest paid on a home equity loan.
Income or sales tax payments (excluding property taxes) to state and local governments.
Real estate (property) tax payments to state and local governments.
Childcare expenses for all children under age 13.

Tax Laws Compared

The calculator compares the tax liability for the chosen household/income combination under three alternative sets of tax laws: 1) ; 2) 's tax proposals offered during the current election; and 3) 's tax proposals offered during the current election. The calculator takes accounts of the most widely used aspects of the tax code but does not include all provisions.

Pre-TCJA: Pre-TCJA Tax Law measures the total amount of federal individual income tax and payroll tax owed under the law prior to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

TCJA Law: TCJA measures the total amount of federal individual income tax and payroll tax owed under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

Potential 2018 Tax Implications

Pre-TCJA
The above number is the estimated tax liability under the law prior to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act for a person or family that fits the marital status, income, and expenses that you selected.
TCJA Law
The above number is the estimated tax liability under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act for a person or family that fits the marital status, income, and expenses that you selected.
See Detailed Breakdown

Taxes

Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Cash Income

(includes employer’s share of payroll tax)

Income from all sources plus the employer's share of the payroll taxes that fund Social Security and Medicare. 		Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Adjusted Gross Income Total income subject to tax after adjustment for exclusions and additions. Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Taxable Income Adjusted gross income minus personal exemptions and the standard or itemized deductions allowed under the regular income tax. Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Income Tax Liability Amount of income tax owed, net of any allowed credits. Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Net Investment Income Tax

(included in Income Tax Liability)

Additional tax imposed by the Affordable Care Act on high-income taxpayers' investment income above specified thresholds. 		Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Payroll Tax Liability

(includes both employee and employer shares)

Taxes imposed from wage, salary, and other equivalent income that finance Social Security and Medicare. Includes both employer and employee shares. 		Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Additional Medicare Payroll Tax

(includes income and payroll taxes)

Additional tax imposed by the Affordable Care Act on high-income taxpayers' earnings above specified thresholds. 		Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Total Tax Liability

(includes income and payroll taxes)

Total tax liability equals the household's income tax liability plus its payroll tax liability. 		Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Average Income Tax Rate Income tax liability measured as a percentage of total cash income (not taxable income). Pre-TCJA TCJA Law

Taxable Income Calculation

Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Adjusted Gross Income Total income subject to tax after adjustment for exclusions and additions. Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Personal Exemptions A fixed-dollar reduction in taxable income for each taxpayer and each qualifying dependent. Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Standard Deduction A fixed-dollar reduction in taxable income for each tax return, for taxpayers who elect not to itemize specific deductions. Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Itemized Deductions Total expenses that taxpayers can itemize (net of limitations), including state and local taxes, mortgage interest, charitable contributions, and other items. Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Taxable Income Adjusted gross income minus personal exemptions and the standard or itemized deductions allowed under the regular income tax. Pre-TCJA TCJA Law

Regular Tax Calculation

Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Tax Before Credits Income tax liability before subtracting allowed tax credits. Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Child/Family Tax Credit

(partially refundable)

Partially refundable tax credit per dependent child.

Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Earned Income Tax Credit

(fully refundable)

Refundable tax credit based on taxpayer's earnings and number of children; credit phases out for higher-income households.

Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Education Credits

(partially refundable)

Total education tax credits (partially-refundable American Opportunity credit and non-refundable Lifetime Learning Credit).

Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Child and Dependent Care Credit

(not refundable)

Non-refundable tax credit subsidizing child and dependent care costs for taxpayers who work (or,for some couples, attend school). 		Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Total Non-Refundable Credits Sum of Child and Dependent Care Credit, Lifetime Learning Credit, and non-refundable portions of Child Tax Credit and American Opportunity Tax Credit. Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Total Refundable Credits Sum of Earned Income Tax Credit and refundable portions of Child Tax Credit and American Opportunity Tax Credit. Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Regular Income Tax After Credits Tax owed to the government or, if negative, the payment from the government before AMT (if applicable). Pre-TCJA TCJA Law

Alternative Minimum Tax Calculation

Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Taxable Income Adjusted gross income minus personal exemptions and the standard or itemized deductions allowed under the regular income tax. Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
(+) AMT Adjustments Additions to regular taxable income of deductions, exemptions, and exclusions not allowed under the AMT. Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
(-) AMT Exemption Fixed dollar amount exempt from AMT in addition to specific "non-preference" items exempt from the tax. Exemption phases out at high incomes. Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Taxable Income for AMT Purposes Regular taxable income plus AMT adjustments minus applicable AMT exemption. Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
Tentative AMT AMT liability obtained by applying AMT tax rates to AMT taxable income. Used to determine whether taxpayer owes AMT. Pre-TCJA TCJA Law
AMT Liability

(in addition to regular tax liability)

Alternative Minimum Tax that tax unit owes in addition to its regular tax liability. 		Pre-TCJA TCJA Law

Credits

Project Credits

The Tax Policy Center (TPC) is a joint venture of the Urban Institute and Brookings Institution. The Center is made up of nationally recognized experts in tax, budget, and social policy who have served at the highest levels of government. It aims to provide independent analyses of current and longer-term tax issues and to communicate its analyses to the public and to policymakers in a timely and accessible manner. The Center combines top national experts in tax, expenditure, budget policy, and microsimulation modeling to concentrate on four overarching areas of tax policy that are critical to future debate.

RESEARCH: TPC Staff

DEVELOPMENT: David D’orio, Jessica Kelly, Alyssa Harris, Philip Stallworth, Daniel Berger, and Roberton Williams