Estimate whether you may receive a federal tax refund or owe additional federal tax.
Enter your income, withholding, payments, and credits to estimate your refund or amount owed.
Estimate only. Not tax, legal, accounting, or financial advice.
Tax Refund Guide
This tax refund calculator estimates whether you may receive a federal refund or owe additional tax by comparing your estimated federal tax liability with your withholding, estimated payments, other payments, and refundable credits.
A refund may occur when total tax payments and refundable credits are greater than your estimated federal tax after non-refundable credits.
You may owe additional tax if your estimated federal tax is greater than your withholding, estimated payments, other payments, and refundable credits.
Non-refundable credits can reduce your tax to zero. Refundable credits and payments can increase your refund estimate.
A tax refund is money returned to you when your tax payments and refundable credits are greater than your final tax liability.
You may owe taxes if not enough was withheld from your paycheck, if you had self-employment income, investment income, fewer credits, or other taxable income without enough payments.
A non-refundable credit can reduce your tax liability, but generally does not create a refund by itself. A refundable credit may increase your refund even if your tax is already zero.
No. This calculator focuses on federal refund estimates. State tax refunds depend on each state’s tax rules, withholding, credits, and filing requirements.
No. This calculator is for educational estimates only. For filing, use official tax forms, tax software, or a qualified tax professional.
Last updated: April 2026