U.S. Tax & Business Pulse
The U.S. tax and business landscape, with sources.
A bilingual snapshot of the figures most people ask us about: federal tax brackets, refunds, audits, where each tax dollar goes, small-business counts, formations, and survival. Every number is dated and cites a primary U.S. government source.
Last updated
Headline figures
162.8M
Individual returns filed
Total individual income tax returns filed.
As of FY2025Source: IRS Data Book, Fiscal Year 2025
$3,052
Average refund
Final IRS figure for the 2025 filing season.
As of 2025 filing season, finalSource: IRS Filing Season Statistics
0.3%
Audit rate
About 1 in 333 individual returns.
As of TY2021Source: IRS Data Book FY2025, Table 3-1 (Examination Coverage)
Quick reference for Tax Year 2026
Standard deduction amounts by filing status, the most-asked tax figure of the year.
- Single filer$16,100
- Married filing jointly$32,200
- Head of household$24,150
As of TY2026Source: Revenue Procedure 2025-32 (Tax Year 2026 inflation adjustments)
Federal income tax brackets
The seven federal rates and their dollar thresholds for the tax year shown. OBBBA (signed July 2025) made the seven-rate structure permanent.
| Rate | Single | Married filing jointly |
|---|---|---|
10% | ≤ $12,400 | ≤ $24,800 |
12% | $12,400 - $50,400 | $24,800 - $100,800 |
22% | $50,400 - $105,700 | $100,800 - $211,400 |
24% | $105,700 - $201,775 | $211,400 - $403,550 |
32% | $201,775 - $256,225 | $403,550 - $512,450 |
35% | $256,225 - $640,600 | $512,450 - $768,700 |
37% | > $640,600 | > $768,700 |
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (Public Law 119-21, signed July 4, 2025) made the seven-rate TCJA structure permanent. The thresholds shown are the Tax Year 2026 amounts.
As of TY2026Source: Revenue Procedure 2025-32 (Tax Year 2026 inflation adjustments)
Where each tax dollar goes
Composition of U.S. federal outlays by function. Refreshed monthly from the U.S. Treasury Monthly Treasury Statement, Table 9.
- Social Security22.5%
- Medicare14.2%
- Health (incl. Medicaid)14%
- Net interest on debt13.8%
- National defense13.1%
- Income security10%
- Veterans benefits5.4%
- Other7%
As of FY2025Source: U.S. Treasury Monthly Treasury Statement, Table 9
The federal balance
The same Treasury dataset, now showing total receipts and the national debt outstanding. Both refresh live.
$5T
Total federal receipts
Fiscal-year-to-date, live from the Monthly Treasury Statement.
As of FY2025Source: U.S. Treasury Monthly Treasury Statement, Table 1
$39.9T
National debt outstanding
Total public debt, refreshed daily from Debt to the Penny.
As of 2026-08-07Source: U.S. Treasury Debt to the Penny
Average effective federal tax rate by income group
Average rate across all federal taxes (income, payroll, corporate, excise), not income tax alone. Source: CBO, Distribution of Household Income, 2022.
- Lowest 20%1.4%
- Highest 20%23.2%
- Top 1%31.5%
As of Income year 2022Source: CBO, The Distribution of Household Income, 2022
Headline figures
36.2M
U.S. small businesses
99.9% of all U.S. businesses, per SBA Office of Advocacy.
As of SBA 2026 publicationSource: SBA Office of Advocacy, FAQ About Small Business 2026
5.7M
New business applications
EIN filings (Form SS-4), not confirmed business starts.
As of Calendar Year 2025Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Formation Statistics
How long new businesses survive
Cumulative survival from the opening cohort. Counts establishments (a single business location), not firms. Source: BLS Business Employment Dynamics, Table 7.
- Survive year 177.9%
- Survive year 551.4%
- Survive year 1034.7%
As of Cohorts observed through March 2025Source: BLS Business Employment Dynamics, Table 7 (Establishment Survival)
How U.S. businesses are taxed
Share of business income tax returns by entity type. Sole proprietorships file Schedule C with Form 1040, so they appear here via IRS SOI counts.
- Sole proprietorships69.4%
- S-Corporations13.7%
- Partnerships11.6%
- C-Corporations5.2%
As of Returns FY2025, sole props ~TY2023Source: IRS Data Book, Fiscal Year 2025
Questions about this page
How current is this data?
Each statistic shows the period it describes (a fiscal year marked FY, or a tax year marked TY) and its source. The page itself is reviewed on the 'Last updated' date above. Four datasets (federal spending, federal receipts, the national debt, and new business formations) refresh automatically from official U.S. government APIs.
What does 'effective federal tax rate' include?
The CBO measure shown here is the average across ALL federal taxes (individual income, payroll, corporate, and excise) paid by households in each income group. It is not the marginal rate, and it is not income tax alone.
Are these survival rates year-over-year or cumulative?
Cumulative survival from the cohort's opening year, per BLS Business Employment Dynamics. The 5-year figure means the share of establishments born in a given year that are still operating five years later, not the year-over-year survival rate.
Informational only. Not tax advice. Each figure is labeled with its data vintage and links to its primary source. The page is reviewed periodically; four datasets refresh from official U.S. government APIs.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Sources
- IRS Data Book, Fiscal Year 2025 · Internal Revenue Service
- IRS Filing Season Statistics · Internal Revenue Service
- IRS Data Book FY2025, Table 3-1 (Examination Coverage) · Internal Revenue Service
- Revenue Procedure 2025-32 (Tax Year 2026 inflation adjustments) · Internal Revenue Service
- U.S. Treasury Monthly Treasury Statement, Table 9 · U.S. Department of the Treasury
- U.S. Treasury Monthly Treasury Statement, Table 1 · U.S. Department of the Treasury
- U.S. Treasury Debt to the Penny · U.S. Department of the Treasury
- CBO, The Distribution of Household Income, 2022 · Congressional Budget Office
- SBA Office of Advocacy, FAQ About Small Business 2026 · U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of Advocacy
- U.S. Census Bureau, Business Formation Statistics · U.S. Census Bureau
- BLS Business Employment Dynamics, Table 7 (Establishment Survival) · U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
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These figures describe the U.S. landscape. Your situation is yours. Talk with an Enrolled Agent about what the current rules actually mean for your taxes or your business.