Tax returns are over 10% larger on average so far this tax filing season
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Americans get hundreds tax refund on average for the 2026 filing season than last year, although taxpayers are filing at a slower pace in the first few weeks than last year.
The latest IRS data for tax filing was released by the agency on Friday and showed that as of February 6, the average tax refund paid to taxpayers was $2,290.
That represents a 10.9% increase compared to the average size of refunds paid during the same period of the 2025 tax filing season, when the average refund amount was $2,065.
More than 7.4 million refunds have been issued since February 6, down 8.1% from the same time last year when nearly 8.1 million were paid to taxpayers.
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The average tax return paid by Americans has increased more than 10% so far this filing season, the IRS reports. (Michael Bocchieri/Getty Images)
While the number of refunds decreased, the total amount refunded increased by 1.9% from approximately $16.7 billion to approximately $17 billion, which helped increase the size of average refund.
The IRS data also showed that the average direct deposit return increased by a similar amount compared to this point in last year’s tax filing season, as the average direct deposit return for the current year is $2,388 – up 10.3% from $2,165 this time last year.
Although refunds have increased so far in the 2026 filing season compared to last year, the amount of tax received and processed has decreased compared to last year.
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The IRS has reported that Americans are filing tax returns at the slowest pace so far this filing season. (J. David Ake/Getty Images)
The IRS reported that it received about 22.4 million returns as of February 6, a decrease of 5.2% from last year when about 23.6 million returns were received during the same period of the filing season.
The IRS offers the Internet “Where is my refund?” a tool for taxpayers to check the status of their tax return.
The IRS website said processing a tax return usually takes up to 21 days e-filed returnswhile returns sent by mail can take six weeks or more to reach the taxpayer. Refunds may also take longer if the return requires additional corrections or revisions.
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Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said taxpayers will get a big refund this filing period. (Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Taxpayers preparing to file their returns should consider setting up direct deposit with the IRS if they wish to receive their refund quickly.
Taxpayers who mail their returns can usually see their refund status within 24 hours using the “Where’s my refund?” tool, which can provide return information not only for the current year but also for the past two years.
If a taxpayer needs to amend their return after filing, it may take longer to receive their tax return. An amended return can take three weeks to appear in the IRS system and up to 16 weeks to be processed.
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The IRS also provides “Where is my amended return?” tool for taxpayers who have filed an amended return and want to track the status of their filing and any related returns.
