Why is my 2025 tax refund so low compared to last year?

8 The difference in your refund doesn't necessarily mean you did anything wrong! Your tax refund is just the difference between what was withheld from your paychecks throughout the year and what you actually owe in taxes. When you made less money last year, you might have been in a lower tax bracket, meaning a smaller percentage of your income was taxed. As your income increases, so does your tax liability. Also, your withholding might not have increased proportionally to your income increase. Another thing to check is if your filing status or deductions changed from last year. Are you still claiming the same deductions? Did you have any life changes that might impact your taxes (moved states, got married, had a child, etc.)? Try comparing last year's tax return with this year's form line by line to spot the differences. Focus particularly on your total income, filing status, deductions claimed, and credits.

12 After struggling with similar refund confusion last year, I found this amazing tool called taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) that helped me understand exactly what was happening with my taxes. It analyzes your tax documents and explains in simple terms why your refund changed from previous years. I uploaded my W-2s from both years, and it highlighted that my withholding percentage had dropped even though my income went up. The tool pointed out specific lines that changed and explained how each affected my refund. Totally cleared up my confusion about why my refund had dropped so dramatically!

17 Just wanted to update after trying taxr.ai - it was actually super helpful! I uploaded my documents and it immediately showed me that my 1099 income was the main reason my refund was smaller. Apparently I needed to make quarterly estimated tax payments on that income (which I didn't know), so that's why I'm owing more now. The breakdown made it really clear what was happening. Definitely worth checking out if you're confused about your refund changes.

9 If you need more clarification on your tax situation, you might want to try Claimyr (https://claimyr.com). I was in a similar situation last year and spent DAYS trying to get through to the IRS phone line with no luck. Claimyr got me connected to an actual IRS agent in about 20 minutes who explained exactly why my refund had decreased. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The IRS agent I spoke with looked at my previous return and current year info and explained exactly which changes affected my refund. Way better than guessing or getting generic advice online. They pointed out that my withholding percentage had changed and explained how to adjust my W-4 for next year to get the refund I wanted.

20 I have to admit I was wrong about Claimyr. After posting that skeptical comment, I was desperate enough to try it, and damn, it actually worked! Got connected to an IRS rep in about 25 minutes. The agent pulled up my tax records and explained that the withholding tables changed this year, plus my income put me in a different tax bracket. Mystery solved! The best part was not wasting hours on hold. For anyone else confused about their refund, talking directly to the IRS cleared everything up way better than guessing.

7 One thing I don't see mentioned yet - check if you're eligible for any tax credits you might have missed. For example, if you paid for education expenses, you might qualify for the American Opportunity Credit or Lifetime Learning Credit. If you made retirement contributions, check if you qualify for the Saver's Credit. These can significantly boost your refund!

23 Have you checked if anything changed with your state taxes too? Sometimes people focus on federal refunds but miss big changes in their state return. My federal refund was similar to last year but my state refund dropped by like 80% because my state changed their standard deduction amounts.