TAX STATISTICS
Updated OCTOBER 05, 2026

Tax Statistics

Logan Allec, CPA

Logan Allec, CPA

Founder of Choice Tax Relief · Over 140,000 YouTube subscribers covering IRS and state tax relief, unfiled tax returns strategies, and general tax strategy.

Featured in Forbes, USA Today, NBC

Choice Tax Relief publishes original data studies on taxes in the United States, built from primary government sources such as the IRS Data Book, IRS Statistics of Income and the U.S. Treasury.

Each study explains what the numbers measure, links every figure to its source and includes a downloadable dataset.

Last updated October 5, 2026. Journalists and researchers may republish any chart, table or figure with credit to Choice Tax Relief and a link to the study.

Tax Debt Statistics

How Many Americans Owe the IRS? Tax Debt Statistics for 2026 covers delinquent IRS accounts, unpaid balances, payment plans, offers in compromise, collection staffing and balances due at filing by state.

13.1MDelinquent IRS accounts at the end of fiscal year 2025
$540.3BUnpaid federal tax assessments as of September 30, 2025
27.2%Individual returns filed with a balance due for tax year 2023

Read the tax debt study

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Tax Refund Statistics

What Is the Average Tax Refund? Tax Refund Statistics for 2026 covers average refunds by filing season, state and income, refund anticipation checks, unclaimed refunds and refund offsets.

$3,276Average federal refund in the 2026 filing season through May 8
66.5%Individual returns that claimed a refund for tax year 2023
$3.79BFederal tax refunds offset for other debts in fiscal year 2026 through September 11

Read the tax refund study

IRS Audit Statistics

What Are Your Chances of Being Audited? IRS Audit Statistics for 2026 covers audit rates by tax year and income, correspondence versus field audits, no-change rates, what audits find, automated underreporter notices and IRS examination staffing.

1 in 316Individual returns for tax year 2021 that were audited, down from 1 in 99 for tax year 2010
89.2%Individual audits closed in fiscal year 2025 that were done by mail
8,609IRS revenue agents on September 30, 2025, down 20% in one year

Read the audit study

Still have questions? Talk to a tax expert — free.

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Media Requests

Need a figure cut a different way, the underlying spreadsheet, or a CPA to interview?

Email Logan Allec, CPA at [email protected].

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Not sure what to do next? Get a straight answer from a tax pro.

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Author:

Logan Allec, CPA, Founder and Owner

Logan Allec has been serving taxpayers as a CPA for over 14 years. After leaving his role at a "Big 4" firm, he started Choice Tax Relief to help everyday Americans who have found themselves behind on their taxes. He also educates thousands of people daily about tax relief on his YouTube channel. In addition to his CPA license, Logan also has a Master's Degree in Taxation from the University of Southern California (USC). He lives with his wife and children in the Los Angeles area. Learn more about Logan here.

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