Most people view the IRS tax brackets as the starting point for tax calculations.

They’re actually the finish line.

The IRS follows a specific order when calculating taxes: it starts with your total income, subtracts adjustments and deductions, accounts for capital gains, and then applies the tax rates. Once you understand that order, you stop guessing and can intentionally lower your taxable income before tax rates ever come into play.

Watch the full step-by-step walkthrough for real-world examples and download the 2026 tax cheat sheet here.

What Changed For The 2026 Tax Year?

The IRS updates key federal tax thresholds and phase-outs annually to reflect inflation. For 2026, the adjustments include revised income ranges and increased contribution limits for 401(k) plans, IRAs, and HSAs.

These inflation adjustments don’t magically shrink your tax liability. They do expand your options. When you earn money from different sources, like wages, a business, rentals, dividends, or capital gains, the updated limits create more opportunities to lower taxable income.

What Are The 2026 Standard Deduction Amounts?

Before you look at tax rates, you start by reducing your taxable income with tax deductions. For many taxpayers, the standard deduction serves as the baseline.

For 2026, the standard deduction is:

• Single: $16,100
  
• Married Filing Jointly: $32,200

Personal exemptions no longer apply. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act eliminated them, and Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act made that elimination permanent.

These legal shifts put even more weight on deductions. For most households, the standard deduction becomes the first—and biggest—reduction you take before you calculate what’s actually taxable.

How Do Tax Brackets Actually Work?

Federal tax rates don’t apply as a single flat percentage. They apply in layers.

Under the 2026 tax brackets for single filers and married filing jointly, your income fills the lowest rate first and then spills over to the next higher rate. 

Only the dollars that cross into the next level are subject to the higher rate. Everything below keeps its original rate.

That’s why saying “I’m in the 22% bracket” usually means only the top slice of income reaches that level. It doesn’t mean you pay 22% on your entire income—and it certainly doesn’t override how 2026 tax brackets for capital gains apply separately through stacking.

What Is The Five-Step Order The IRS Uses To Calculate Tax?

This is the sequence that determines your tax bill:

Earn It → Adjust It → Deduct It → Stack It → Tax It

When you only look at brackets, you skip the steps where you can actually influence the result.

What Counts As Income In Step 1: Earn It?

Step one includes everything you made from January 1 through December 31.

Common sources include:

• W-2 wages
  
• Business income (Schedule C or K-1)
  
• Interest and dividends
  
• Rental income
  
• Capital gains
  
• Any other income

That total gives you your gross income. It’s your starting line—not the amount you pay tax on—because you haven’t applied any adjustments or deductions yet.

How Do Adjustments Work In Step 2: Adjust It?

Adjustments—often called “above-the-line” deductions—reduce your income before you choose the standard deduction or itemize. They take you from gross income to Adjusted Gross Income (AGI).

These adjustments often yield the fastest tax savings because they lower AGI dollar for dollar. Your AGI determines which deductions, credits, and tax benefits you qualify for—and which ones phase out as income rises.

Common adjustments include:

• Traditional IRA contributions
  
• Retirement plan contributions (such as a Solo 401(k))
  
• HSA contributions
  
• Student loan interest
  
• Certain self-employment expenses

When you lower AGI, you often qualify for more deductions, keep more credits, and avoid losing benefits you thought you “made too much” to claim.

How Do Deductions Work In Step 3: Deduct It?

After you calculate AGI, you subtract either the standard deduction or your itemized deductions—whichever is higher.

Itemized deductions can include:

• Mortgage interest
  
• State and local taxes (SALT limits apply)
  
• Charitable giving
  
• Medical expenses that exceed 7.5% of AGI

After deductions, you arrive at taxable income—the amount that flows into the federal income tax system and determines how the 2026 tax brackets for married filing jointly or filing single apply to your income.

What Does Stacking Mean?

Stacking governs how the tax code layers different types of income. You calculate ordinary income first—wages, business income, rental net income, interest, and short-term capital gains—and that ordinary income fills the rate ranges before anything else.

After that, you place long-term capital gains on top. When you hold an asset longer than one year, those gains can qualify for preferential long-term capital gains tax rates, depending on where your ordinary income leaves you.

That distinction matters a lot for real estate investors. A sale, a distribution, or even a portfolio move can push gains into a different rate band. When you control the timing—and understand how stacking works—you can materially change your tax liability.

What Are The 2026 Long-Term Capital Gains Brackets?

Long-term capital gains apply when you hold an asset longer than one year.

Single Filers

• 0% up to $49,450
  
• 15% from $49,451 to $545,500
  
• 20% over $545,500

Married Filing Jointly

• 0% up to $98,900
  
• 15% from $98,901 to $613,700
  
• 20% over $613,700

A huge portion of taxpayers end up in the 15% capital gains bracket—often without realizing it.

How Does Stacking Change Your Capital Gains Tax Rate?

Stacking forces you to judge capital gains in context, not in a vacuum. Ordinary taxable income sets the baseline. Then the IRS layers your long-term gains above it and applies the preferential rate only to the slice that pushes into the next range.

That’s why two people can realize the same $10,000 gain and pay very different amounts—one may keep most of it in the 0% zone, while another pushes part of it into 15%.

Why Should High Earners Focus On Taxable Income Instead Of Brackets?

High earners—especially real estate investors—often encounter problems when they focus on the marginal rate and overlook the number that actually determines the bill: taxable income.

The federal rate schedule doesn’t hit your gross earnings. It applies after you run income through adjustments, deductions, and allowable losses. That’s why tax planning for real estate investors focuses less on “making less” and more on structuring income so less of it becomes taxable.

Real estate tax strategies that commonly reduce tax liability include:

• Depreciation deductions
  
• Cost segregation
  
• Short-term rental strategies
  
• Real Estate Professional Status (REPS)
  
• Business losses that offset ordinary income
  

These strategies don’t eliminate income. They limit the amount of income that flows into higher federal tax rates, creating meaningful tax savings.

And the principle holds across filing statuses—whether you file single, married filing jointly, or head of household.

What Is The One Formula You Should Remember?

If you remember one thing, remember this order:

Earn It → Adjust It → Deduct It → Stack It → Tax It

That sequence illustrates the importance of planning. It also explains why staring at a rate chart—without understanding the steps before it—leads to costly assumptions and missed tax savings.

How Can You Use The 2026 Numbers To Plan Before Year-End?

Start by downloading the 2026 tax cheat sheet. It provides you with the updated thresholds and reference numbers you need to perform the calculations correctly.

Then apply those numbers to your actual income mix—wages, business income, rentals, dividends, and gains. If you want to do it the right way, work with a tax professional who understands how adjustments, deductions, and stacking interact across different income streams.If you want to lower your taxes year after year, schedule a free 45-minute Strategy Session with an Anderson Advisors Senior Advisor. You’ll walk away with a clear, personalized blueprint that maps out the most profitable strategies you can use to ensure you are always paying the least amount of tax possible.