{"id":41164,"date":"2026-02-14T01:14:30","date_gmt":"2026-02-14T01:14:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/?p=41164"},"modified":"2026-02-14T01:14:30","modified_gmt":"2026-02-14T01:14:30","slug":"average-irs-tax-refund-is-up-10-9-so-far-this-season-early-data-shows","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/?p=41164","title":{"rendered":"Average IRS tax refund is up 10.9% so far this season, early data shows"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> \n<\/p>\n<div id=\"RegularArticle-ArticleBody-5\" data-module=\"ArticleBody\" data-test=\"articleBody-2\" data-analytics=\"RegularArticle-articleBody-5-2\"><span class=\"HighlightShare-hidden\" style=\"top:0;left:0\"\/><\/p>\n<div class=\"InlineImage-imageEmbed\" id=\"ArticleBody-InlineImage-108098617\" data-test=\"InlineImage\">\n<div class=\"InlineImage-wrapper\">\n<div>\n<p>D-keine | E+ | Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/02\/13\/average-tax-refund.html\">average tax refund<\/a> is 10.9% higher so far this season, compared to about the same point in 2025, according to early filing data from the IRS.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The 2026 tax season <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/01\/08\/irs-accepting-tax-returns.html\">opened Jan. 26<\/a>, and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irs.gov\/newsroom\/filing-season-statistics-for-week-ending-feb-6-2026\" target=\"_blank\">average refund amount<\/a> was $2,290 as of Feb. 6, up from $2,065 about one year prior, the IRS reported Friday night. That figure reflects current-year returns only. <\/p>\n<p>Earlier on Friday, Treasury Secretary and acting IRS Commissioner Scott Bessent told CNBC&#8217;s &#8220;Squawk Box&#8221; that refunds were up 22%. But it was unclear how many days of returns Bessent&#8217;s figure reflected or what comparison period he used.<\/p>\n<p>The Treasury Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<div class=\"RelatedContent-relatedContent\" id=\"RegularArticle-RelatedContent-1\">\n<div class=\"RelatedContent-container\">\n<div class=\"RelatedContent-nonCollapsibleContent\">\n<h2 id=\"read-more-cnbc-personal-finance-coverage\" class=\"RelatedContent-header\">Read more CNBC personal finance coverage<\/h2>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/02\/13\/social-security-cola-2027-early-estimates.html\">Early estimates point to lower Social Security COLA for 2027<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/02\/13\/social-security-fairness-act-lump-sum-payment-timeline.html\">Senators call for longer Social Security Fairness Act lump-sum payment timeline<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/02\/13\/heres-the-inflation-breakdown-for-january-2026-in-one-chart.html\">Here&#8217;s the inflation breakdown for January 2026 \u2014 in one chart<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/02\/13\/average-tax-refund.html\">Average tax refund is up 22%, Bessent says \u2014 what filers can expect this season<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/02\/13\/k-shaped-economy-middle-class-spending.html\">K-shaped economy looks like &#8216;jaws of a crocodile,&#8217; 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may spur the rise of &#8216;un-college,&#8217; experts say<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/02\/07\/401k-mullet-quarter-zip-economy.html\">First the quarter zip, now a &#8216;401(k) mullet&#8217; \u2014 what trends say about the economy<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/10\/01\/best-financial-advisors.html\">CNBC&#8217;s Financial Advisor 100: Best financial advisors, top firms ranked<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>The IRS release said &#8220;average refund amounts are strong,&#8221; and the figure will increase in the Feb. 27 release once the agency starts issuing refunds that include <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/02\/03\/earned-income-tax-credit-eligibility-for-2024.html\">earned income tax credit<\/a> or additional <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/02\/06\/trump-child-tax-credit.html\">child tax credit<\/a>.  <\/p>\n<p>As of Feb. 6, the total amount refunded was more than $16.9 billion, up 1.9% compared to last year, according to the IRS release.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Early data [for refunds] can be deceiving,&#8221; Andrew Lautz, director of tax policy for the Bipartisan Policy Center, a nonprofit think tank, wrote in a <a href=\"https:\/\/bipartisanpolicy.org\/issue-brief\/the-2026-tax-filing-season-what-to-know\/\" target=\"_blank\">tax season guide<\/a> on Jan. 22.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Typically, filers receive a refund when they overpay taxes throughout the year via <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/02\/14\/withhold-taxes-paycheck.html\">paycheck withholdings<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/02\/14\/withhold-taxes-paycheck.html\">estimated payments<\/a>. Alternatively, filers owe a balance when they don&#8217;t pay enough. <\/p>\n<p>In recent years, IRS data has reflected a smaller refund during the beginning of the tax season, but those payments have &#8220;risen sharply&#8221; in mid-February, Lautz wrote. <\/p>\n<p>After the February peak, the average refund has &#8220;declined slightly&#8221; through the April 15 deadline, he wrote. <\/p>\n<p>In 2025, the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.irs.gov\/newsroom\/filing-season-statistics-for-week-ending-oct-17-2025\" target=\"_blank\">average refund<\/a> for individual filers was $3,052 through Oct. 17, according to the IRS.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2 id=\"filers-could-see-bigger-tax-refunds\" class=\"ArticleBody-subtitle\"><a id=\"headline0\"\/>Filers could see bigger tax refunds<\/h2>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>For the 2026 filing season, the size of tax refunds has been a key political topic with the midterm elections approaching.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>President\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/donald-trump\/\">Donald Trump<\/a> has promised that 2026 will be the &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/12\/18\/trump-bigger-tax-refunds.html\">largest tax refund season of all time<\/a>&#8221; based on changes enacted via his &#8220;big beautiful bill.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p>The legislation <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/07\/03\/trump-big-beautiful-bill-tax-changes.html\">added new tax breaks<\/a> for 2025, and the IRS did not\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.irs.gov\/newsroom\/irs-announces-no-changes-to-individual-information-returns-or-withholding-tables-for-2025-under-the-one-big-beautiful-bill-act\" target=\"_blank\">adjust paycheck withholdings<\/a>, which could result in refunds for many workers. <\/p>\n<p>However, there could be &#8220;a lot of variation between taxpayers,&#8221; Garrett Watson, director of policy analysis at the Tax Foundation, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/01\/30\/tax-refunds.html\">previously told CNBC<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>Ultimately, the size of your refund, or balance due, depends on which new tax breaks apply to your situation and how much you paid throughout the year, experts say.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div role=\"region\" aria-labelledby=\"Placeholder-ArticleBody-Video-108253296\">\n<div role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" id=\"Placeholder-ArticleBody-Video-108253296\" class=\"PlaceHolder-wrapper\" data-vilynx-id=\"7000401015\" data-test=\"VideoPlaceHolder\">\n<div class=\"InlineVideo-videoEmbed\" id=\"InlineVideo-0\" data-test=\"InlineVideo\">\n<div class=\"InlineVideo-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"InlineVideo-inlineThumbnailContainer\"><span class=\"InlineVideo-videoButton\"\/><span\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/02\/13\/average-tax-refund-early-irs-data.html\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"D-keine | E+ | Getty Images The average tax refund is 10.9% higher so far this season, compared&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":41165,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-41164","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-investing","cs-entry","cs-video-wrap"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41164","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=41164"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41164\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/41165"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=41164"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=41164"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=41164"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}