How to reach an actual human at the IRS?

The main IRS customer service number is 1-800-829-1040. But here's how to navigate the menu to get to a human: 1. Choose your language 2. Press 2 for "personal income tax" 3. Press 1 for "form, tax history, or payment" 4. Press 3 for "all other questions" 5. Press 2 for "all other questions" 6. When asked for SSN, DON'T ENTER ANYTHING 7. Press 2 for "personal or individual tax questions" 8. Press 4 for "all other inquiries" That should get you to a human, but be prepared to wait. Current wait times are crazy, especially during tax season.

What's the specific issue you're trying to resolve? Sometimes there are specialized numbers depending on what you need help with.

I was in the same boat last month. Tried calling for DAYS with no luck. Then I used Claimyr.com and got through to an agent in about 15 minutes. It costs a few bucks but honestly saved me hours of frustration. The agent was able to tell me exactly why my refund was delayed (missing form) and what I needed to do. Worth every penny: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c

Pro tip: call right when they open at 7am Eastern time. The wait is usually shorter then. Also, Tuesdays-Thursdays tend to have shorter wait times than Mondays or Fridays.

If your issue is specifically about understanding your tax transcript or refund status, you might want to check out taxr.ai - it helped me decode all those confusing codes on my transcript and gave me a better idea of what was happening with my return. Saved me a phone call altogether.

The Taxpayer Advocate Service can sometimes help if you're experiencing financial hardship due to not receiving your refund. Their number is 1-877-777-4778, and they might be easier to reach than the main IRS line.