The standard deduction for married couples filing jointly expands to $32,200 for the 2026 tax year, according to the Internal Revenue Service, marking a $700 increase from 2025 and reflecting the broader tax cuts now locked in by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
The IRS announced the adjustment on October 9, 2025, as part of its annual inflation-based updates to more than 60 tax provisions. Single filers will see their standard deduction rise to $16,100, up $350 from 2025, while heads of household reach $24,150, up $525.
The standard deduction has grown significantly since 2017, when the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) nearly doubled the baseline deductions for all filing statuses. The TCJA increased the standard deduction from $6,500 to $12,000 for individual filers and from $13,000 to $24,000 for joint returns, according to the Tax Policy Center. That law was set to expire at the end of 2025, but the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed into law on July 4, 2025, made those larger deductions permanent.
The 2026 increase represents approximately a 2.2% rise from 2025, driven by inflation adjustments, according to TurboTax. The standard deduction reduces taxable income for taxpayers who don’t itemize deductions—a benefit that applies to the vast majority of filers. For a married couple with $62,200 in adjusted gross income who claim the $32,200 standard deduction, their taxable income would be reduced to $30,000, according to the Bipartisan Policy Center.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act also introduced several other changes for 2026. Taxpayers age 65 and older can claim an additional $6,000 deduction per person ($12,000 if married filing jointly) for tax years 2025 through 2028. The state and local tax (SALT) deduction cap, which was previously $10,000, jumps to $40,400 for 2026. Starting in 2026, non-itemizers can also deduct cash donations to charity—up to $1,000 for single filers or $2,000 for married couples filing jointly, according to Fidelity Investments.
Sources
- Internal Revenue Service — official announcement of 2026 standard deduction amounts and One Big Beautiful Bill adjustments
- Tax Foundation — 2026 tax brackets and standard deduction increase of $700 for joint filers
- TurboTax — 2.2% standard deduction increase for 2026
- Tax Policy Center — Tax Cuts and Jobs Act standard deduction increases from 2017
- Bipartisan Policy Center — example of standard deduction impact on taxable income
- Fidelity Investments — charitable deduction and other 2026 tax changes
