About SimpleDeduction
SimpleDeduction exists because the 2025 tax law changed the rules for tens of millions of ordinary workers, and the official guidance is written for accountants, not people. We build free, fast calculators that answer one question at a time: what does this mean for my money?
Who writes this
SimpleDeduction is written and maintained by Noah, Editor.
I built SimpleDeduction after spending a weekend trying to work out what the 2025 overtime deduction meant for a family member's paycheck and finding nothing but law-firm summaries. I'm not a CPA. What I do is read the primary sources (the statute, the IRS revenue procedures, each state's DOR guidance), verify every number against them, and publish the calculation openly so you can check my work.
What that means in practice: I am not a CPA, an enrolled agent, or an attorney, and nothing here is personal tax advice. I am not going to pretend otherwise in order to sound more authoritative. What I can tell you is exactly where every figure on this site comes from and how each calculation is performed, which most tax content will not do. That is the whole reason the methodology page exists.
How our calculators work
Every tool runs entirely in your browser. We use the IRS's published inflation adjustments for tax year 2026, the deduction rules from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (tax years 2025-2028), and each state's published rates. Nothing you type is sent to our servers or stored. Calculations happen on your device, which is why the calculators still work if you go offline after the page loads.
Each calculator shows its intermediate steps rather than just a final number: the cap that applied, the phase-out that reduced it, and the marginal rate used. If a result looks wrong to you, you should be able to see which step you disagree with.
What we are not
We're not tax preparers and these tools aren't filing software. They're planning estimates to help you understand your situation before you file with a professional or reputable software. Tax law has edge cases; when the numbers matter, verify with a pro.
Specifically, these calculators do not model: itemized deductions, self-employment tax, the Alternative Minimum Tax, capital gains, local and municipal income taxes, pre-tax payroll deductions such as 401(k) or HSA contributions, or any credit other than the deductions named on each page. If your return involves those, treat our output as a starting estimate rather than an answer.
How this site pays for itself
Advertising, and in future, affiliate links to tax filing software, which are always labeled as such. Nothing you enter into a calculator affects which ads or offers you see, because your inputs never leave your device in the first place. No calculator result is weighted to push you toward a paid product.
Corrections
Spotted an outdated figure? Tax rates change and states amend guidance mid-year, so email noah@ekofactory.com and we'll fix it fast. Corrections to a published figure are made the same day where possible, and the review date at the top of the affected page is updated.