Standard Deduction for 2026

For 2026 the standard deduction is $16,100 for single filers, $32,200 for married filing jointly, $16,100 for married filing separately, $24,150 for head of household, and $32,200 for qualifying surviving spouse — up from $15,750 (single) and $31,500 (MFJ) in 2025, per IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32. Filers who are 65+ or blind add an additional amount on top of these base figures.

$32,200 for a married couple filing jointly in 2026, up from $31,500 in 2025. Qualifying surviving spouse uses the same $32,200 amount. If both spouses are 65 or older, add $3,300 more ($1,650 per qualifying spouse) — see the worked example below.

A single or head-of-household filer who is 65+ adds $2,050 to their base standard deduction; a married filer adds $1,650 per qualifying spouse. This "additional standard deduction" is a permanent feature of the tax code and is SEPARATE from the temporary OBBBA senior bonus deduction of $6,000 per person (2025-2028, income-phased) — eligible seniors can claim both at once. See the dedicated OBBBA senior bonus section below for the full contrast.

No — they are two different deductions that stack. The additional standard deduction ($2,050 single/HoH or $1,650 per spouse married, in 2026) is permanent and available to everyone 65+ regardless of income. The OBBBA senior bonus deduction is a separate, temporary above-the-line deduction of $6,000 per qualifying person ($12,000 if both spouses on a joint return are 65+), available for tax years 2025 through 2028, and it phases out at higher incomes (starting at $75,000 single MAGI / $150,000 MFJ MAGI). A married couple must file jointly to claim the senior bonus deduction at all — married filing separately gets none of it.

If someone else claims you as a dependent, your 2026 standard deduction is the GREATER of $1,350 or your earned income plus $450 — capped at the normal single filer amount of $16,100. A dependent with no earned income gets the $1,350 floor; a dependent with $2,000 in earned income gets $2,450 ($2,000 + $450), because that's larger than the floor.

Yes. The standard-vs-itemized choice only affects Schedule A itemized deductions (SALT, mortgage interest, charitable gifts, medical expenses above the AGI floor). Above-the-line adjustments to income — student loan interest, HSA and traditional IRA contributions, educator expenses, and the OBBBA tip/overtime/senior bonus deductions — are claimed on Schedule 1 regardless of whether you itemize or take the standard deduction. You can take the standard deduction and still claim every adjustment to income you qualify for.

A married person filing separately whose spouse itemizes must also itemize — you can't mix standard and itemized on the same married-separately pair of returns. Most nonresident aliens cannot take the standard deduction at all. And a taxpayer filing a short tax year return (less than 12 months, due to an accounting-period change) is also ineligible. Estates and trusts don't use the individual standard deduction either.