How much should I pay in taxes on $43k income? Does this seem right?

That tax amount does seem a bit high for your income level. Most single filers making around $43k would typically owe less or even get a refund, depending on your withholding throughout the year. The most likely explanation is that you didn't have enough taxes withheld from your paychecks during the year. Check your W-2 form, specifically Box 2 (Federal income tax withheld). For a $43k income, you'd typically expect to see around $3,000-4,000 withheld throughout the year. If your withholding was significantly lower than that, it would explain why you owe now. It's not about making a mistake while filing - it's about how much was taken out of each paycheck during the year.

After struggling with a similar situation last year (made $47k and somehow owed $900), I found this AI tool called taxr.ai that helped me figure out what was going on. I uploaded my tax docs to https://taxr.ai and it showed me I had accidentally marked myself as exempt from withholding on one of my part-time jobs. The tool analyzed everything and showed me exactly what was happening with my withholding vs what I should expect to pay. It even suggested adjustments for my W-4 so I wouldn't have the same problem this year. It was super helpful for someone like me who isn't a tax expert.

Ok I have to admit I was super skeptical about taxr.ai when I commented earlier. But my tax situation this year was stressing me out so much I decided to give it a try. Honestly surprised at how helpful it was! It showed me I had been claiming the wrong filing status on my W-4 which is why I kept owing every year. Fixed that issue plus found some deductions I was missing. Ended up getting $780 back instead of owing like last year. Sometimes my skepticism gets in the way of finding good solutions lol.

If you're still confused about your tax situation and want to talk to an actual IRS agent (impossible, right?), I used a service called Claimyr that got me through to the IRS in about 20 minutes when I had a similar issue. I was banging my head against the wall trying to figure out why I owed so much more than expected. I found https://claimyr.com after spending hours on hold with the IRS myself. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c - basically they navigate the IRS phone tree for you and call you when an agent is available. The IRS agent actually walked me through my withholding and explained exactly what happened.

I've got to eat my words. After posting my skeptical comment yesterday, I decided to try Claimyr because I was desperate to fix a tax issue from last year. I ACTUALLY got through to the IRS in 15 minutes! The agent was able to explain that I had entered my student loan interest incorrectly which was throwing off my whole return. Fixed it right there on the phone and got my refund sorted. Would have taken weeks to figure out through letters or trying to call myself. Sometimes being proven wrong is a good thing.

Check if you have any 1099 income mixed in with your W-2 wages. If you did any gig work, freelancing, or earned any self-employment income, you might owe self-employment tax (15.3%) on top of regular income tax. That can really bump up what you owe at tax time since there's no automatic withholding on 1099 income.

Check your state tax situation too! I had a similar issue when I first started filing taxes where my federal return looked fine but I owed the state a bunch. Depending on your state, they might have different deductions or tax brackets that affect your overall tax picture.

Thanks everyone for all the helpful responses! Based on what you've all shared, I think I figured out what happened. The DoorDash income definitely explains a big chunk of it - I had no idea about self-employment tax being so much higher. Plus looking at my W-2, I only had about $2,800 withheld for federal taxes from my main job, which seems low based on what Gabriel mentioned. I'm going to double-check my FreeTaxUSA entries to make sure I didn't miss anything, but it sounds like this might just be the reality of having mixed W-2 and 1099 income without planning ahead. Lesson learned for next year - I'll either set aside money quarterly or adjust my W-4 to have more withheld from my regular job to cover the gig work taxes. Really appreciate everyone taking the time to explain this stuff. Tax season is so confusing when you're just starting out!

Great thread everyone! As someone who's been through this exact situation, I wanted to add that FreeTaxUSA actually has a really helpful "Why do I owe?" feature that breaks down exactly where your tax liability is coming from. If you go back into your return, there should be a summary page that shows the breakdown between regular income tax and self-employment tax. Also, for anyone doing gig work going forward - consider opening a separate savings account and automatically transferring 25-30% of your gig earnings into it throughout the year. That way you're not hit with a surprise tax bill. I learned this the hard way after owing $1,800 my first year doing Uber on top of my regular job! The IRS also has a safe harbor rule - if you pay at least 100% of last year's tax liability through withholding and estimated payments, you won't owe penalties even if you end up owing more at filing time. Something to keep in mind for planning next year.