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The 1040 Tax Table is printed in the IRS Instructions for Form 1040 for the tax year on your return. For the 2025 tax year, open the IRS 2025 Instructions for Form 1040, find the Tax Table later in the document, and look up the taxable income from Form 1040, line 15. Find the row that contains that amount, read across to your filing status column, and enter the number where they meet on Form 1040, line 16. The Tax Table applies when taxable income is below $100,000. At $100,000 or more, the Tax Computation Worksheet that follows the table is used instead.
Where to find the table
The Tax Table sits in the instructions, not on the Form 1040 itself. The IRS publishes the instructions as an online document, and the table appears partway through it, after the main line-by-line guidance. Two IRS items are relevant:
- Instructions for Form 1040 (2025): the document that contains the Tax Table and the Tax Computation Worksheet. The IRS forms catalog lists it with a posted date of February 27, 2026. Source: IRS, 1040 (2025) Instructions.
- Publication 1040 (2025), Tax and Earned Income Credit Tables: a companion IRS publication that the IRS lists with a posted date of January 15, 2026. Source: IRS, Publication 1040 (2025).
To locate other years or related forms, use the IRS search at IRS Forms, instructions and publications, which returns Form 1040 results.
Always use the instructions for the year printed at the top of the return. Tax tables and worksheet thresholds can change from year to year, so a table from a neighbouring year can produce the wrong figure.
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Form 1040-SR is an optional alternative for taxpayers age 65 or older. It uses the same schedules and instructions as Form 1040, so the same table applies. The IRS describes Form 1040 as the annual federal income tax return for U.S. taxpayers; see About Form 1040.
How to read a row, step by step
- Start with taxable income. Take the figure from Form 1040, line 15. Do not use gross income or adjusted gross income.
- Find the matching band. The table is organized in $50 intervals. Look for the row where the “At least” amount is less than or equal to your line 15 figure and the “But less than” amount is greater than it.
- Choose your filing status column. Columns are Single, Married filing jointly, Married filing separately, and Head of household. A qualifying surviving spouse uses the Married filing jointly column.
- Read the intersection. The number where the row and column meet is your tax. Enter it on Form 1040, line 16, unless a special worksheet or form applies to the return (see below).
Worked example
The IRS illustrates the method with a married couple filing jointly whose taxable income on line 15 is $25,300. They find the $25,300–$25,350 row, read down the Married filing jointly column, and reach $2,562. That $2,562 is the amount they enter on line 16.
The same logic works for any income in the table. A taxable income of $25,320 falls in the same $25,300–$25,350 band and produces the same $2,562 for a joint return. A taxable income of $25,350 moves to the next band, so a different figure applies. Because each band is $50 wide, a small change in taxable income can change the result, which is why reading the row boundaries carefully matters.
Tax Table or Tax Computation Worksheet?
The 2025 instructions set the dividing line at $100,000 of taxable income. The IRS instruction on line 16 reads: “If your taxable income is less than $100,000, you must use the Tax Table, later in these instructions, to figure your tax.”
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Repair common Windows errors and clear accumulated junk for a smoother, more stable PC - no reinstall needed.Free scan · no reinstall| Taxable income (Form 1040, line 15) | Method under the 2025 instructions | Where to find it |
|---|---|---|
| Less than $100,000 | Tax Table | Later in the Form 1040 instructions |
| $100,000 or more | Tax Computation Worksheet | Immediately after the Tax Table in the same instructions |
Two exceptions are important. The instructions state that neither the ordinary Tax Table nor the Tax Computation Worksheet should be used for certain special calculations. Examples the IRS gives include returns involving Form 8615, and tax computations involving qualified dividends, capital gains, Schedule J, or foreign earned income. If your return includes any of these, follow the method described for that calculation rather than the basic lookup. The IRS instructions are the authority on which method applies; see IRS 1040 (2025) Instructions.
Common reading errors and how to fix them
- The number looks too high or too low. Confirm you started from line 15 and not line 11 (adjusted gross income) or a total before deductions. A different starting figure moves you to a different row.
- The result is off by a few hundred dollars. Check that you read the row whose range contains your figure, not the row above or below. Your amount must be at least the “At least” value and below the “But less than” value.
- The result seems to belong to another filer. Confirm the column. Single, Head of household, and joint returns often produce very different numbers for the same income.
- Line 15 is $100,000 or more. Stop using the table and switch to the Tax Computation Worksheet that follows it.
- The return includes a special form or schedule. The basic table may not be the right method. Follow the instructions for that form before entering line 16.
Checking your work
After you have read the figure, compare the taxable income band and the column header with the printed table once more before writing the amount on line 16. Keep the instructions page reference with your return records so you can show how the figure was derived if questions come up later.
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