Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) Calculator

How the Earned Income Tax Credit works

The Earned Income Tax Credit rewards people who work but earn modest incomes. It has three stages. In the phase-in stage, the credit grows as a percentage of your earned income (for example, 34% with one child). Once your earnings reach the plateau, you get the maximum credit for your family size. After your income passes the phaseout threshold, the credit shrinks at a fixed rate until it reaches zero at your income limit.

The EITC is fully refundable. That means if the credit is larger than the tax you owe, the IRS pays you the difference as a refund. It's aimed at low-to-moderate-income workers and families, and the credit gets bigger with each qualifying child, up to three.

One detail trips up a lot of filers: the phaseout uses the greater of your AGI or your earned income. So a high AGI (from investment gains or a spouse's income, for instance) can reduce or wipe out the credit even when your earned income alone sits in the plateau.

2026 EITC income limits and maximum credit amounts

For 2026, the maximum credit and the income limits depend on your number of qualifying children and your filing status. Both your earned income and your AGI must stay under the limit.

The 2026 investment income limit is $12,200. This is a cliff, not a gradual reduction: if interest, dividends, and capital gains come to more than $12,200, you cannot claim any EITC, no matter how low your wages are.

If you are preparing a 2025 return, the figures are slightly lower: maximum credits of $649 (0 children), $4,328 (1), $7,152 (2), and $8,046 (3 or more), with an investment income limit of $11,950.

Who qualifies for the EITC

To claim the credit you need earned income from work, an AGI under the limit for your situation, and a valid Social Security number for you, your spouse, and any qualifying children. You cannot file as Married Filing Separately unless you meet the limited exception (a qualifying child lived with you over half the year and you lived apart from your spouse for the last 6 months, or you have a legal separation agreement and did not live together at year-end).

Qualifying children must meet relationship, age, residency, and joint-return tests. If you have no qualifying children, you can still claim a smaller credit as long as you are between 25 and 64, lived in the U.S. for more than half the year, and are not claimed as someone else's dependent.

Earned income counts wages, salary, tips, and net self-employment earnings. It does not count interest, dividends, pensions, Social Security, unemployment, alimony, or child support. If you are self-employed, our Self-Employment Tax Calculator can help you estimate the net earnings that feed into this credit.

How to claim the EITC and common mistakes

You claim the EITC on Form 1040, and you attach Schedule EIC if you have qualifying children. Under the PATH Act, the IRS holds refunds on EITC returns until mid-February, so build that timing into your plans if you are counting on the money early in the year.

The two mistakes that cost people the credit most often are the investment income cliff and the AGI-versus-earned-income phaseout. Watch both. It also helps to keep your withholding accurate during the year so a refund is not your only safety net: our W-4 Withholding Estimator and Federal Tax Bracket Calculator are useful for that. To track take-home pay across the year, you can also download Pay44 for paycheck breakdowns in all 50 states.

This calculator gives an estimate, not tax or legal advice. Confirm your eligibility and exact credit with the IRS EITC Assistant or a tax professional before you file.