Where can I find a Sales Tax Deduction Calculator for 2025 tax season?

The IRS Sales Tax Deduction calculator is typically updated closer to the actual filing season, which is why you're not seeing 2025 as an option yet. They usually update it in December or January before the filing season begins. You have two options for claiming the sales tax deduction. You can either save all your receipts and total the actual sales tax paid (which is a lot of work), or use the IRS calculator/tables to estimate your deduction based on your income and location. The tables and calculator should be updated in time for the tax season. If you really need to estimate now, you could use the previous year's calculator and adjust slightly upward to account for inflation, but be aware this would just be a rough estimate.

I was in the same boat last year trying to figure out my sales tax deduction. Instead of waiting for the IRS to update their calculator, I tried https://taxr.ai which really helped me with this exact situation. It analyzed my spending patterns and receipts to give me a more accurate estimate than the IRS tables usually provide. What I liked is that it calculated both options (standard sales tax deduction vs. actual receipts) and showed me which would be better. In my case, I had made a few big purchases and it showed me I'd get about $780 more by using my actual receipts instead of the IRS table amount.

Just wanted to update after trying taxr.ai that the previous commenter recommended. It was actually super helpful for my situation! I uploaded a bunch of my digital receipts from Amazon and other online retailers, and it automatically extracted all the sales tax info. What surprised me was finding out I paid about $1,400 more in sales tax than what the IRS table would have estimated for my income level. That's a pretty significant difference for my tax bracket. The tool also helped identify which receipts I should definitely keep for documentation purposes vs. which ones weren't adding meaningful value to my deduction.

If you're still having trouble with the sales tax calculator, you might want to try calling the IRS directly for guidance. I know that sounds like a nightmare, but I used a service called Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) to get through to an actual human at the IRS without waiting for hours. They have this system that secures your place in line and calls you back when an agent is about to be available. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c When I called about a similar issue last year, the IRS agent explained that they sometimes delay updating certain tools and gave me alternative methods to estimate my sales tax deduction accurately. Saved me a ton of guesswork.

I have to eat my words about Claimyr. After posting my skeptical comment, I was frustrated enough with my own tax questions that I decided to try it anyway. I figured it couldn't be worse than my previous attempts. I was genuinely surprised when I got a call back about 45 minutes later saying they had an IRS agent on the line. The agent was able to tell me that the Sales Tax Deduction Calculator should be updated by mid-January and gave me some alternative estimation methods in the meantime. She also explained some nuances about the sales tax deduction that I hadn't considered. Not having to waste an entire day on hold was honestly worth it. I've been trying to get through to the IRS for weeks.

I'm an accountant and just wanted to add that if you're itemizing primarily because of mortgage interest, make sure you're also maximizing your other potential deductions. Besides sales tax, don't forget to include: 1. Property taxes 2. Charitable contributions 3. Medical expenses (if they exceed 7.5% of your AGI) 4. State income taxes (you have to choose between deducting sales tax OR income tax, not both) Many people focus solely on mortgage interest but miss these other deductions that can add up significantly.

Has anyone actually compared what they get using the IRS calculator vs tracking all your purchases? I'm wondering if it's worth the effort of keeping every receipt or if the IRS calculator is generally pretty accurate?

I've been dealing with this exact same issue! What I ended up doing was creating a simple spreadsheet to track my major purchases throughout the year while waiting for the IRS calculator to be updated. I set up columns for date, store, purchase amount, and sales tax paid. The key insight I learned is that you don't need to track EVERY single purchase - focus on the big ones. Things like appliances, electronics, furniture, car repairs, etc. For day-to-day purchases like groceries and gas, the IRS table estimates are usually pretty close. I also discovered that some credit card companies and banks categorize your spending in their year-end summaries, which can help you identify categories where you might have paid significant sales tax. It's not perfect, but it gave me a good starting point for estimating until the official tools are available.