Standard Deduction 2027: Official 2026 Amounts, What's Pending and Who Gets More

The standard deduction is the flat amount the tax code lets you subtract from income before the tax brackets apply. Most households take it instead of itemizing, so it is one of the most important figures the IRS publishes each year. People look up "standard deduction 2027" with two questions in mind: what will they claim on the return they file in 2027, and what will the deduction be for income earned during 2027?

Status as of October 16, 2026: the tax year 2027 standard deduction has not been released. The amounts for the return you file in 2027 (tax year 2026) are official. The IRS published them on October 9, 2025, in Revenue Procedure 2025-32.

Official standard deduction amounts

Filing status	Tax year 2025 (filed in 2026)	Tax year 2026 (filed in 2027)	Tax year 2027 (filed in 2028)
Single	$15,750	$16,100	Pending
Married filing jointly / surviving spouse	$31,500	$32,200	Pending
Married filing separately	$15,750	$16,100	Pending
Head of household	$23,625	$24,150	Pending

The 2025 amounts are higher than the figures the IRS first announced in 2024. The 2025 tax law, which the IRS calls the One, Big, Beautiful Bill, raised them retroactively. The 2026 amounts build on those new levels and add an inflation adjustment. Between 2025 and 2026 the single amount rose by $350 and the joint amount by $700.

When will the 2027 standard deduction be announced?

The IRS announces the next year's standard deduction together with the tax brackets. Both come in one revenue procedure that adjusts more than 60 provisions. The 2026 figures came out on October 9, 2025, and the 2025 figures on October 22, 2024. The IRS newsroom for October 2026, last updated October 14, had no release for tax year 2027. The announcement is therefore still pending and likely within weeks.

The amounts come from a formula set in law and are then rounded, so a simple inflation estimate will not match the IRS figure exactly. We will update this table with the official 2027 numbers once the IRS publishes them. Until then, any 2027 figure you see is a projection.

Extra deductions for age and blindness

If you or your spouse is 65 or older at the end of the year, or legally blind, the standard deduction gets bigger. The extra amount applies once for age and once for blindness, for each spouse.

Additional standard deduction	2025	2026 (official)
Married (each qualifying spouse, per condition)	$1,600	$1,650
Unmarried, not a surviving spouse (per condition)	$2,000	$2,050

Example for 2026: a married couple filing jointly, both over 65, claims $32,200 + $1,650 + $1,650 = $35,500. A single filer over 65 claims $16,100 + $2,050 = $18,150.

The new senior deduction (2025 to 2028)

The 2025 tax law also created a separate deduction for older Americans. It is available for tax years 2025 through 2028.

• Up to $6,000 per eligible individual aged 65 or older, or $12,000 for a married couple where both spouses qualify.
• It phases out for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income over $75,000, or $150,000 for joint filers.
• You must reach age 65 by the last day of the tax year.
• You can claim it whether you itemize or take the standard deduction.
• You must include the qualifying person's Social Security number, and married couples must file jointly to claim it.

The IRS notes that this senior deduction is different from the personal exemption, which remains at zero. For retirees, it can offset part of the extra taxable Social Security income that comes from the 2027 cost-of-living adjustment.

Charitable deduction for people who don't itemize

Beginning with tax year 2026, the IRS says taxpayers who do not itemize may deduct up to $1,000 of cash contributions to eligible charitable organizations, or $2,000 for married couples filing jointly. Before this change, people who took the standard deduction got no federal tax benefit from most donations. Keep receipts, because the gifts must be made in cash to qualifying organizations. The IRS says certain contributions, including donations to donor-advised funds and supporting organizations, do not qualify.

How the standard deduction lowers your tax: example

A married couple filing jointly earns $110,000 in wages in 2026 and has no adjustments.

Step	Amount
Wages	$110,000
Minus standard deduction (2026, joint)	- $32,200
Taxable income	$77,800
Tax: $2,480 + 12% of ($77,800 - $24,800)	$8,840

Without the deduction, the full $110,000 would be taxed and the bill would be several thousand dollars higher. The $32,200 the couple does not pay tax on would otherwise fall partly in the 12% bracket and partly in the 22% bracket. See the full official tables in our guide to the 2027 tax brackets.

Standard deduction or itemize?

You get the larger of the two, so the decision is arithmetic. Itemized deductions mainly include:

• State and local income or sales taxes, real property taxes and personal property taxes
• Mortgage interest
• Gifts to charities
• Medical and dental expenses
• Disaster losses and certain gambling losses

The IRS notes that itemized deductions are subject to certain dollar limitations, and you need documents to show the expenses you deduct. Tax software runs both calculations and picks the larger one automatically.

Special cases

• Dependents: if another taxpayer can claim you as a dependent, a different standard deduction amount applies. IRS Topic 551 explains the calculation.
• Married filing separately: according to IRS Topic 551, you cannot take the standard deduction if your spouse itemizes.
• Nonresident or dual-status aliens, and returns for a period of less than 12 months because of a change in accounting period, are generally not entitled to the standard deduction (Topic 551 lists some exceptions).

Planning tips while the 2027 numbers are pending

1. Use the official 2026 amounts for the return you will file in 2027.
2. For 2027 paycheck withholding, wait for the IRS release, then check the Tax Withholding Estimator on IRS.gov.
3. If you are close to the line between itemizing and the standard deduction, consider "bunching". This means making two years of charitable gifts or property tax payments in one year, itemizing that year and taking the standard deduction in the other.
4. Pre-tax contributions to a 401(k) or HSA reduce taxable income on top of the standard deduction. See the 401(k) limit for 2027 and the 2027 HSA limits.
5. Low-wage workers who get a state minimum wage raise in January may still owe no federal income tax if their income stays below the standard deduction. Filing can still pay off because of refundable credits.

Do you have to file at all?

For many people the income level at which a return is required is linked to the standard deduction. The exact 2026 filing thresholds will be published in the instructions for the 2026 Form 1040. Self-employed people should note that the IRS says you usually must pay self-employment tax once net earnings from self-employment reach $400. Filing can still pay off at low incomes. It is the only way to get back withheld tax or to claim refundable credits such as the Earned Income Tax Credit.

Bottom line

For the return you file in 2027, the official figures are $16,100 single, $32,200 joint and $24,150 head of household. Add $1,650 or $2,050 for each age or blindness condition, and add the separate senior deduction of up to $6,000 if you qualify. The 2027 amounts will follow in the IRS autumn inflation release, and this page will show them as soon as they are official.