How Much Taxes Will I Owe on $100,000?

How much tax you’ll owe on $100,000 depends on your filing status and the tax year. There’s a considerable difference in the amount owed if you file singly, as head of household or as a married couple filing jointly.

Keep in mind that $100,000 represents your adjusted gross income, not your salary per se. The adjusted gross income is your gross income minus adjustments, as per the IRS. You must include all your income, whether from salary, dividends, interest, rents or any other sources. Your total income minus deductions gives you the adjusted gross income. If your adjusted gross income is $100,000, you likely made much more than that, but allowable deductions lowered the amount. The standard deduction is subtracted from your adjusted gross income.

Income tax deductions may include things like home mortgage interest and charitable contributions, to name just a few. Make sure you have records to substantiate all deductions. You must itemize in order to take deductions. Use Form 1040 and include your deductions on Schedule A.

Beginning in the 2019 tax year, all federal taxpayers will begin using a new edition of the IRS 1040 form. This streamlined edition of the 1040 will synthesize the various editions of the form being used today into a single document which taxpayers can use to report a variety of financial circumstances.

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, signed into law on Dec. 22, 2017, changes the tax brackets. In 2018, a single filer with an adjusted gross income of $100,000 is in the 24 percent tax bracket. This person will pay 24 percent on the excess over $82,500. A married couple filing jointly is in the 22 percent tax bracket, and will pay 22 percent on the excess over $77,400. A head of household is in the 24 percent tax bracket. However, the law also eliminated or reduced some deductions, such as imposing a $10,000 cap on state and local property tax deductions. The law also nearly doubled the standard deduction, which is now $12,000 for single filers and $24,000 for married couples filing jointly. This means far fewer people will itemize deductions this year.

The tax brackets for 2016 were adjusted slightly for inflation for the following tax year. In 2017, a single filer with an adjusted gross income of $100,000 is in the 28 percent tax bracket. The tax owed is $18,713.75, plus 28 percent of the excess over $91,900, which is the level at which the 28 percent bracket kicks in for single filers. Using a tax calculator, the tax on $100,000 is then $20,981.75, since 28 percent of the excess is $2,268. A married couple filing jointly with an adjusted gross income of $100,000 is in the 25 percent tax bracket, and they will pay $10,452.50 plus 25 percent of the amount over $75,900. That amount is $6,025, so their total tax is $16,477.50. A person filing as head of household is in the 25 percent bracket, and must pay $6,952.50 plus 25 percent of the amount over $50,800. That number is $12,300, so the total tax is $19,252.50.