Calculate your potential Earned Income Tax Credit. The EITC is a refundable federal tax credit for low to moderate income workers. Enter your earned income, filing status, and number of qualifying children to see your estimated credit.
The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) is one of the largest federal anti-poverty programs in the United States, paying out roughly $60 billion per year to working low- and moderate-income families. Unlike most tax benefits, it is fully refundable — if the credit exceeds your tax bill, the IRS sends the difference as a refund. For a working parent with three children, the maximum EITC for tax year 2024 was $7,830; for 2025, it rises slightly with inflation adjustments.
The credit has a distinctive bell-curve structure: it phases in as earned income rises (essentially a wage subsidy), plateaus across a middle range, then phases out as income grows beyond a threshold. The exact phase-in rate, plateau width, and phase-out endpoint depend on filing status and number of qualifying children. The more children you have (up to three), the larger the maximum credit and the higher the income at which it phases out completely.
This calculator estimates your EITC using the tax-year 2024 parameters (the most recently completed year as of filing season 2025). The Internal Revenue Service publishes updated thresholds each year — the structure is stable, but the dollar figures move with inflation. Treat the output as a planning estimate, and always confirm against IRS Publication 596 or a qualified preparer when filing.
Filing status: Single (head of household). Earned income: $20,000. One qualifying child. Income is in the plateau range (above $11,750 phase-in completion, below $22,720 phase-out start). EITC: $4,213 (the maximum for one child in TY 2024). If federal tax owed before the credit is $200, the credit zeroes out the tax and the remaining $4,013 is refunded.
Filing status: Married filing jointly. Earned income: $50,000. Three qualifying children. Phase-out starts at $29,640 (joint). Reduction = ($50,000 − $29,640) × 21.06% ≈ $4,288 EITC = $7,830 − $4,288 = $3,542 A meaningful refund check, but $4,288 less than the maximum. Note: a $5,000 income reduction (e.g., higher 401(k) contribution would not help here since EITC uses earned income, not AGI) would have restored about $1,053 of credit.
Filing status: Single. Earned income: $14,000. No qualifying children. Phase-in completes at $8,260 (single, no kids). Plateau extends to $10,330. At $14,000, in the phase-out. Reduction = ($14,000 − $10,330) × 7.65% ≈ $281 EITC = $632 − $281 = $351 The childless EITC is much smaller than the family version but still real money for low-wage workers. Must be at least age 25 and under 65 to claim the no-children version (with some exceptions).
Use this calculator any time you are estimating taxes or planning withholding for a low- to moderate-income household, especially one with children. The EITC is the largest source of refunds for many filers and is frequently misunderstood, missed, or under-claimed — the IRS estimates roughly 1 in 5 eligible workers does not claim it each year, leaving billions on the table.
It is particularly important when planning around the phase-out cliff. A worker hovering near the phase-out range can see hundreds of dollars of EITC vanish from accepting a small bonus or extra hours. Pair this calculator with planning conversations about whether to defer income, accelerate retirement contributions (limited help, since EITC uses earned income not AGI), or shift earnings between spouses on a joint return.
Free preparation help is available for EITC-eligible filers through IRS-sponsored Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) sites. The IRS Free File program also supports EITC filing free for households under specific income thresholds. Many states (CA, NY, MA, CO, MN, others) have their own state-level EITC that piggybacks on the federal calculation — often 10–45% of the federal credit, claimed on the state return.
Pair this calculator with the child-tax-credit and income-tax-estimator calculators for a full picture of the family's federal tax outcome.
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Estimated EITC
$3,265
Maximum Credit
$4,328
Phase-Out Starts
$23,350
Phase-Out Ends
$50,434