Your bracket isn’t your tax rate.
Your effective rate is what you actually pay on all your income. Your marginal rate is what the next dollar costs, and it can be higher than your bracket. Both depend on the kind of income you have and the state you live in.
- Gross income$0
- Federal adjusted gross income$0
- Federal taxable income$0
- Federal income tax$0
- State income tax$0
- Total income tax$0
- Social Security and Medicare payroll taxesYour share on wages, or self-employment tax.$0
Effective vs marginal
Why the two rates differ. Your bracket applies only to the top slice of your income, so your effective rate is always lower. But the true cost of your next dollar can be higher than your bracket, because extra income can make more of your Social Security taxable, push capital gains into the 15% rate, trigger the 3.8% net investment income tax, or shrink deductions. Those are the numbers that should drive Roth conversion, withdrawal, and timing decisions.
Your bracket is a planning tool, not just a number.
The gap between your effective rate and your true marginal rate is where tax planning happens: which account to draw from, how much to convert to Roth, when to take gains, and when to claim Social Security. We map those decisions year by year with your CPA.
Assumptions and limits. Federal figures use the 2026 brackets, standard deduction, additional age-65 deduction, and capital gains thresholds from IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32, the $6,000 per-person senior deduction (2025 to 2028) with its income phase-out, the Social Security taxation formula, the 3.8% net investment income tax, the 0.9% additional Medicare tax, and the $184,500 Social Security wage base. Not included: the qualified business income deduction, credits (child, education, energy, and others), the alternative minimum tax, early withdrawal penalties, and itemized deduction limits. State figures apply each state’s 2026 brackets (2025 where 2026 figures were not yet published, including California), standard deduction or exemptions, age-based deductions, and its main rules for Social Security, pension and IRA income, and capital gains, compiled from state revenue departments and the Tax Foundation in 2026. Retirement income is split evenly between spouses when a rule applies per person. Local income taxes (for example in Maryland counties, Indiana counties, Ohio and Pennsylvania municipalities, and New York City), state credits, and some high-income phase-outs and recapture rules are not included, so actual state tax can differ. This tool is general education, not tax advice. Confirm with your tax preparer.