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1Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFor tax year 2026, Kansas uses a two-tier individual income-tax schedule, while every neighboring state uses either a flat rate or a different graduated structure. Colorado taxes taxable income at one flat rate; Missouri, Nebraska and Oklahoma apply several marginal bands. The figures below compare statutory individual schedules, not a personalized tax bill or an overall state-tax ranking.
The comparison is most useful when you match the tax year, filing status and taxable-income definition. Missouri requires special care because its Department of Revenue page describes 2025 income-tax brackets for returns filed in 2026, whereas a 2026 comparison table describes income earned during tax year 2026.
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2026 schedule at a glance
The table uses single or non-joint thresholds unless it identifies another filing status. A marginal rate applies only to the slice of taxable income inside that band; it is not multiplied across all income.
| State | Tax year and structure | Rates and thresholds | Important qualification |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kansas | 2026; two marginal tiers | 5.2% through $23,000, then 5.58% above $23,000. Married filing jointly: 5.2% through $46,000, then 5.58% above $46,000. | Applies to Kansas taxable income under the schedule in the Kansas statute. |
| Colorado | 2026; flat | 4.40% on taxable income. | The 2026 comparison includes the federal standard deduction in Colorado’s income starting point, so its displayed base is not automatically interchangeable with another state’s. |
| Missouri | 2025 return schedule, filed in 2026; graduated | 0% on the first $1,313; 2.00% above $1,313; 2.50% above $2,626; 3.00% above $3,939; 3.50% above $5,252; 4.00% above $6,565; 4.50% above $7,878; 4.70% above $9,191. | These are inflation-indexed 2025 return-year figures from the Missouri Department of Revenue. |
| Nebraska | 2026; graduated and inflation-indexed | 2.46% from $0; 3.51% above $4,130 single ($8,250 joint); 4.55% above $24,760 single ($49,530 joint). | Thresholds are from the 2026 comparative table; the rate schedule and indexing rule are in Nebraska law. |
| Oklahoma | 2026; graduated | Single or married separate: 0% through $3,750; 2.5% above $3,750; 3.5% above $4,900; 4.5% above $7,200. Joint, head of household or surviving spouse: 0% through $7,500; 2.5% above $7,500; 3.5% above $9,800; 4.5% above $14,400. | The Oklahoma Tax Commission legislative update says these rates apply for tax year 2026. |
On the listed top marginal rates alone, Colorado is lowest at 4.40%, followed by Oklahoma at 4.5%, Nebraska at 4.55%, Missouri at 4.70% for its 2025 return schedule, and Kansas at 5.58%. That ordering does not establish which state produces the smallest bill for a particular person because each state starts with a different taxable-income calculation and offers different deductions and credits.
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How to read a state income-tax bracket
Tax year is not filing year
Tax year is when you earn the income. Filing year is when you submit the return. A return filed in 2026 can report 2025 income, as Missouri’s official page does, while a 2026 comparison table concerns income earned in 2026. Always identify both before comparing a threshold or rate.
Marginal is different from average
Suppose part of your taxable income falls below a threshold and the rest exceeds it. The lower band is taxed under its own rule, and only the excess receives the higher percentage. Kansas law and Oklahoma’s official table state this as a base amount plus a percentage applied to income over the threshold. Multiplying total taxable income by the highest listed rate overstates the liability.
Taxable income is the base
These schedules apply to state taxable income, not necessarily wages, business receipts or federal adjusted gross income. Deductions, exemptions, credits and a state’s conformity to federal rules can change the amount that reaches the brackets. Colorado’s comparison entry specifically notes that its starting point includes the federal standard deduction, illustrating why displayed bases cannot be assumed identical.
Kansas: two tiers with a filing-status threshold
Kansas has used the same two-tier statutory design for tax years 2024 and later. For a non-joint filer, the first $23,000 of Kansas taxable income is in the 5.2% tier and income above that amount is in the 5.58% tier. The married-filing-jointly threshold is doubled to $46,000, with the same two percentages. The controlling schedule is in Kansas statute.
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The percentages do not by themselves tell you what a Kansas resident owes. The Kansas Department of Revenue’s 2025 income-tax booklet lists standard deductions and exemption allowances by filing status and includes a worksheet for taxes paid to another state. Those deductions and credits are applied before or after the bracket calculation according to the return instructions; they are not included in the two statutory percentages. See the Kansas income-tax booklet for the applicable return-year forms and instructions.
Colorado: one 4.40% rate
Colorado’s 2026 individual schedule is a 4.40% flat rate on taxable income, according to the 2026 state comparison. A flat rate removes the multiple marginal bands found in Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Oklahoma, but it does not eliminate deductions or the need to determine taxable income.
The comparison table notes that Colorado includes the federal standard deduction in its income starting point. Therefore, comparing the 4.40% percentage directly with Kansas’s 5.2% and 5.58% percentages without aligning deductions can produce a misleading result. The Colorado figure here is attributed to the comparative table rather than a separate Colorado revenue publication.
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Missouri: distinguish 2025 returns from 2026 income
Schedule used for returns filed in 2026
Missouri’s Department of Revenue lists an inflation-indexed schedule for 2025 individual returns due in 2026. It has a 0% band through the first $1,313, followed by successive 2.00%, 2.50%, 3.00%, 3.50%, 4.00%, 4.50% and 4.70% bands. The 4.70% rate applies to taxable income above $9,191 under that return-year schedule. Those figures come from the state’s year-changes page.
Indexed 2026 comparative schedule
The 2026 national comparison table uses a different tax-year schedule for income earned in 2026. It shows the first positive 2.00% band beginning above $1,348 and the top 4.70% band beginning above $9,436. Do not substitute these 2026 thresholds on a 2025 return simply because the return is filed during 2026. Check the year’s Missouri instructions when preparing the return.
Nebraska: indexed graduated rates and a scheduled 2027 change
Nebraska’s 2026 schedule starts at 2.46%. The next rate is 3.51% above $4,130 for a single filer or $8,250 for a joint filer. The 4.55% rate begins above $24,760 for a single filer or $49,530 for a joint filer. The threshold amounts in this paragraph are the 2026 values shown in the cross-state comparison, while the legal rate schedule and inflation-indexing requirement appear in Nebraska Revised Statute 77-2715.03.
The statute sets the relevant upper rate at 4.55% for 2026 and 3.99% for 2027. Because Nebraska indexes brackets for inflation and has a legislated future rate, a comparison made for a later year must use that year’s thresholds and percentages rather than carrying 2026 figures forward.
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2026 brackets by filing status
For single and married-separate filers, Oklahoma taxes the first $3,750 at 0%, then applies 2.5% above $3,750, 3.5% above $4,900 and 4.5% above $7,200. Joint filers, heads of household and surviving spouses receive doubled opening thresholds: 0% through $7,500, 2.5% above $7,500, 3.5% above $9,800 and 4.5% above $14,400. The Oklahoma Tax Commission’s 2025 legislative update identifies the rate reduction as effective for tax year 2026.
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Conditional 0.25-point reduction
Oklahoma has not made a further reduction automatic. Its legislative update states: “Additionally, individual income tax rates can be reduced by 0.25% across all brackets when certain revenue conditions are met.” The State Board of Equalization evaluates the conditions each December and makes final certification in February. Treat that language as a contingent mechanism, not as a guaranteed rate for a return, until the certification occurs.
Why the top-rate ranking is not a household ranking
A rate table answers only one part of a relocation or filing decision. The final state tax depends on at least these variables:
- Filing status: Kansas and Oklahoma use different thresholds for joint returns, and Nebraska publishes separate single and joint thresholds.
- Taxable-income definition: Deductions, exemptions and the state’s starting point can differ. Colorado’s federal-standard-deduction treatment is one documented example.
- Credits: A credit can reduce tax after the bracket computation and may matter more than a small percentage-point difference.
- Residency and source: A full-year resident, part-year resident and nonresident with in-state income can face different filing rules.
- Other state and local taxes: This article compares individual state income-tax schedules only; it does not rank sales, property, corporate or local taxes.
No common household profile, income level and deduction set was established that would support naming one of the five states the universally “cheapest.” A defensible comparison must define the household and calculate each state’s taxable income under its own rules.
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Cross-border workers and residents
Kansas generally treats someone who lives in Kansas as a resident regardless of where that person works. A worker who earns income in another state may need to file in both states and then claim relief under the applicable rules. Kansas’s booklet includes an other-state tax-credit worksheet that limits the credit using the income and Kansas-tax calculations; the credit is not automatically equal to tax withheld or paid to the other state.
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Keep wage records, residency dates, work-location information and copies of every state return. For a move during the year, determine which state treats you as a resident for each period and which state can tax the income by source. The bracket table cannot resolve those questions by itself.
A practical method for comparing your own situation
- Fix the tax year. Identify the year the income was earned, and do not mix it with the year the return is filed.
- Select filing status. Use the joint, single, head-of-household or surviving-spouse threshold that matches the return.
- Compute each state’s taxable income. Apply that state’s deductions, exemptions and starting-point rules instead of reusing a federal or neighboring-state figure.
- Apply marginal bands in order. Tax each slice at its own rate, using the state’s worksheet or statutory base-tax-plus-excess formula where provided.
- Apply credits and multistate adjustments. For Kansas, review the other-state credit worksheet when the same income was taxed elsewhere.
- Check for scheduled or conditional changes. Revisit Nebraska’s 2027 rate provision and Oklahoma’s revenue-certification process when planning for a later year.
For an actual filing, use the relevant state’s current instructions and forms. The published numbers above are statutory schedule figures, not a software calculation or individualized tax advice.
When to recheck the numbers
Bracket tables can change through legislation, inflation indexing or a certification mechanism. Missouri’s year-specific publication, Nebraska’s indexed schedule and Oklahoma’s conditional reduction make the tax-year label especially important. Review the current state instructions before filing or making an estimated-tax payment, particularly for income earned after 2026.
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