Planning for 2026 taxes - did I make the right tax bracket adjustment?

So first off, don't panic! Tax planning can be intimidating but you're already ahead of the game by thinking about this now. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) provisions are currently scheduled to expire after 2025, which means for the 2026 tax year (which you'll file in 2027), the tax brackets would revert to pre-2018 rates unless Congress takes action to extend them. Here's how you can estimate your 2026 tax situation: 1) Calculate your expected annual income: $21/hr × 40 hours × 52 weeks = roughly $43,680 (before any raises) 2) Estimate your taxable income by subtracting the standard deduction (for 2025 it's projected to be around $14,000 for single filers) 3) If TCJA expires, the 15% bracket would likely apply to a portion of your income instead of the current 12% bracket Your additional $13/week withholding adds up to $676 per year, which is probably a good start! If you want to be more precise, the IRS has a Tax Withholding Estimator on their website that you can use throughout the year to check if you're on track. One thing to consider - Oregon state taxes are among the highest in the nation, so make sure you're accounting for both federal and state taxes in your planning.

Just wanted to share my experience with a similar situation! I was constantly stressed about whether I was withholding enough until I found taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) - it analyzed my pay stubs and tax situation and gave me a much clearer picture of where I stood. What I really liked is that it looked at my specific situation (I'm also single with no dependents) and showed me exactly how much I needed to withhold to avoid a bill. It even created a customized W-4 for me based on my goals (whether I wanted a refund or to break even). The tool actually works really well for people who aren't tax experts (like me!) because it translates everything into super simple language and explains why it's making certain recommendations.

I just wanted to update after trying taxr.ai since my last comment. For someone terrible with numbers like me, it was genuinely helpful! I uploaded my last paystub and most recent tax return, and it showed me exactly where I stand for 2025 and gave projections for 2026 with and without the TCJA renewal. The tool suggested I needed to withhold about $17 more per week (pretty close to what that tax expert here suggested), and explained WHY in terms I could actually understand. It even filled out a new W-4 form for me that I could just give to my HR department. What I found most useful was seeing the breakdown of how much I'll pay in each tax bracket - made it much clearer why I owed last time despite my income not seeming that high. Definitely worth checking out if you're confused about withholding like I was!

If you're worried about dealing with the IRS (especially if you end up owing again), I'd strongly recommend checking out Claimyr (https://claimyr.com). I was in a similar situation last year where I owed unexpectedly and had some questions about my payment options. I spent DAYS trying to get through to the IRS myself - endless busy signals and hold times. Finally tried Claimyr and they got me connected to an actual IRS agent in under 20 minutes. There's a video that shows how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The IRS agent was able to set up a payment plan for me and explained exactly what I needed to adjust on my withholding to avoid the same issue this year. Saved me literally hours of frustration and hold music!

I have to eat crow here. After my skeptical comment, I decided to try Claimyr because I needed to ask about my payment plan options after adjusting my withholding wasn't enough. I was 100% convinced it was going to be a waste, but I was desperate after trying to call the IRS three days in a row and never getting through. The service actually worked exactly as advertised. I went about my business, and about 15 minutes later got a call connecting me directly to an IRS agent. The agent helped me set up a payment plan with much lower monthly payments than I expected. She also walked me through exactly how to adjust my withholding properly using the IRS calculator so I won't end up in this situation for 2026. This literally saved me from taking a day off work just to sit on hold. For anyone worried about the TCJA expiration and potential tax bills, getting accurate info directly from the IRS was super valuable. Never thought I'd be saying this, but it was totally worth it.

I'm an accountant (not giving professional advice here tho) and I think people are overlooking something big - the standard deduction will likely increase by 2026 even if TCJA expires, which helps offset some of the bracket changes. Also, dont forget that tax brackets are marginal - only the income above each threshold gets taxed at the higher rate. So even if you move into the 15% bracket, only a portion of your income gets hit with that rate. My advice: use the IRS Withholding Calculator mid-year 2025 when we know more about what Congress will do. Adjusting too much now might mean giving the govt an interest-free loan if you overwithhold.

Has anyone here used the IRS withholding calculator recently? I tried using it and got totally confused. Kept asking me for info from my paystub that I couldn't find.

I'm kinda shocked nobody's mentioned that Oregon has its own witholding form too (OR W-4). If you're only adjusting your federal W-4, you're missing half the equation. Oregon's state tax rates are pretty high (up to 9.9%!) and that might explain why your state refund was smaller than expected last time. You should check if your employer has you fill out a separate Oregon withholding form or if they just use your federal W-4 settings for state witholding too. Could make a big difference!

This is such great advice about the Oregon W-4! I honestly had no idea there was a separate state form. I just filled out the federal W-4 when I got hired and assumed that covered everything. Looking at my paystub now, I can see they're taking out Oregon state tax, but I have no clue what rate or how it was calculated. I'm going to check with HR tomorrow to see if I need to fill out a separate Oregon form. Oregon's tax rates being up to 9.9% is pretty scary - that could definitely explain why my state refund was so much smaller than I expected. Between potentially higher federal rates if TCJA expires AND making sure my Oregon withholding is right, I feel like I have a lot more to figure out than I thought! Thanks for pointing this out - I probably would have just focused on federal and gotten another surprise next year.