District of Columbia tax brackets
The 2026 schedule, moved from taxable income into the salary you actually know, and what it takes at seven incomes.
Written and edited by Pablo Ruiz QuinteroSources checked September 24, 2026Read off the DC Office of Tax and Revenue’s 2026 scheduleDistrict of Columbia tax brackets for 2026
District of Columbia taxes income in seven brackets for 2026. Married couples filing jointly use the same thresholds as single filers, though a couple may instead figure each spouse's tax separately on the same return.
| Rate | Taxable income, single or joint |
|---|---|
| 4% | $0 – $10,000 |
| 6% | $10,000 – $40,000 |
| 6.5% | $40,000 – $60,000 |
| 8.5% | $60,000 – $250,000 |
| 9.25% | $250,000 – $500,000 |
| 9.75% | $500,000 – $1,000,000 |
| 10.75% | over $1,000,000 |
The top rate of 10.75% applies above $1,000,000 of taxable income.
Taxable income is what is left after a standard deduction of $16,100 for a single filer and $32,200 for a couple.
The District uses one rate table for every filing status, so a married couple reaches each rate at the same income as a single filer. Its 2026 standard deduction is $16,100 single and $32,200 joint; above $200,000 of adjusted gross income deductions start to be reduced. A married couple may also figure each spouse's tax separately on the same return (Calculation J), dividing the $32,200 deduction between them as they choose; when both earn this is usually lower, and joint figures here use whichever is lower for the income split given.
Where each rate starts on your actual salary
The brackets are written in taxable income, and nobody knows their taxable income by heart — everyone knows their salary. The gap between the two is whatever comes off before the rate is applied: in District of Columbia, $16,100 for a single filer and $32,200 for a couple. So the schedule is read wrongly by construction, and the fix is to shift it by that amount.
The table below moves every threshold into salary terms. The first dollar of tax is owed at a gross income of $16,101 for a single filer and $32,201 for a couple.
| Rate | Single, salary | Joint, combined salary |
|---|---|---|
| 4% | $16,100 – $26,100 | $32,200 – $42,200 |
| 6% | $26,100 – $56,100 | $42,200 – $72,200 |
| 6.5% | $56,100 – $76,100 | $72,200 – $92,200 |
| 8.5% | $76,100 – $266,100 | $92,200 – $282,200 |
| 9.25% | $266,100 – $516,100 | $282,200 – $532,200 |
| 9.75% | $516,100 – $1,016,100 | $532,200 – $1,032,200 |
| 10.75% | over $1,016,100 | over $1,032,200 |
These are wage figures, and they assume the income District of Columbia starts from equals your salary with nothing taken out before it. Anything the state lets you subtract first moves every one of these lines up by the same amount — and the list is not the same in every state, which is why it is worth checking yours rather than assuming the federal one applies.
One salary through the whole calculation
Here is a single filer earning $75,000 in wages, step by step, exactly as the calculation runs.
| Step | Amount |
|---|---|
| Gross wages | $75,000 |
| Standard deduction | −$16,100 |
| Taxable income | $58,900 |
| $10,000 at 4% | $400 |
| $30,000 at 6% | $1,800 |
| $18,900 at 6.5% | $1,229 |
| District of Columbia income tax | $3,429 |
The result: $3,429 of District of Columbia income tax, an effective rate of 4.57% on the salary, with three brackets each taxing its own slice.
Every figure on this page is this same sequence run at a different salary. None of it is estimated from an average: change the brackets in the source and every number here changes with them.
What District of Columbia takes at seven salaries
The rate in the schedule is not the rate you pay. Here is the 2026 District of Columbia income tax at seven salaries, for a single filer and for a married couple filing jointly on the same household income, with the effective rate — tax divided by gross income — and the marginal rate measured on the next $100 rather than read off the schedule.
| Salary | Effective | Marginal | Per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $30,000 | 2.11% | 6% | $53 | $634 |
| $50,000 | 3.67% | 6% | $153 | $1,834 |
| $75,000 | 4.57% | 6.5% | $286 | $3,429 |
| $100,000 | 5.53% | 8.5% | $461 | $5,532 |
| $125,000 | 6.13% | 8.5% | $638 | $7,657 |
| $150,000 | 6.52% | 8.5% | $815 | $9,782 |
| $200,000 | 7.02% | 8.5% | $1,169 | $14,032 |
| Household salary | Effective | Marginal | Per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $30,000 | 0% | 0% | $0 | $0 |
| $50,000 | 1.42% | 4% | $59 | $712 |
| $75,000 | 2.89% | 6% | $181 | $2,168 |
| $100,000 | 3.67% | 6% | $306 | $3,668 |
| $125,000 | 4.19% | 6.5% | $436 | $5,232 |
| $150,000 | 4.57% | 6.5% | $571 | $6,857 |
| $200,000 | 5.53% | 8.5% | $922 | $11,063 |
Notice that the effective rate never catches the marginal one. At $100,000 a single filer's marginal rate is 8.5% and the effective rate 5.53%; at $200,000 the effective rate is still 7.02%. Every bracket below yours is taxed at its own lower rate, whatever you earn.
The joint figures assume two earners who split the household income evenly, because in District of Columbia a married couple may figure each spouse's tax separately on the same return, each on the single schedule, and the figures here use whichever is lower. How much the split matters is set out [below](#income-split).
The table stops at $200,000 on purpose. Above roughly $250,000 some states start withdrawing deductions and exemptions, and a figure for those incomes should come from the full calculator, which asks for the details that decide it.
Take-home pay in District of Columbia at seven salaries
The state income tax is one of four taxes on a paycheck. Here is what a single filer keeps once District of Columbia, federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare have all come off, and what share of the combined bill District of Columbia accounts for.
| Salary | DC | Federal | SS + Medicare | Take-home |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $30,000 | $634 | $1,420 | $2,295 | $25,651 |
| $50,000 | $1,834 | $3,820 | $3,825 | $40,521 |
| $75,000 | $3,429 | $7,670 | $5,738 | $58,163 |
| $100,000 | $5,532 | $13,170 | $7,650 | $73,648 |
| $125,000 | $7,657 | $18,734 | $9,563 | $89,046 |
| $150,000 | $9,782 | $24,734 | $11,475 | $104,009 |
| $200,000 | $14,032 | $36,734 | $14,339 | $134,895 |
District of Columbia's slice of the total is smallest at the bottom of the scale and grows as pay rises: 14.58% of the taxes on $30,000, 21.55% on $200,000. Over this range the District of Columbia tax rises faster with pay than the federal and payroll taxes put together, so its share of the bill grows.
Three District of Columbia households
Averages hide the households they are made of. Three typical ones, each with every tax on their wages:
A single filer earning $40,000: District of Columbia $1,234, federal income tax $2,620, Social Security and Medicare $3,060 — $6,914 in all, leaving $33,086 ($2,757 a month). The state is 17.85% of what they pay.
A married couple earning $60,000 and $35,000, filing jointly: District of Columbia $3,368, federal income tax $7,040, Social Security and Medicare $7,268 — $17,676 in all, leaving $77,324 ($6,444 a month). The state is 19.05% of what they pay.
A single professional earning $180,000: District of Columbia $12,332, federal income tax $31,934, Social Security and Medicare $13,770 — $58,036 in all, leaving $121,964 ($10,164 a month). The state is 21.25% of what they pay.
In all three, Social Security and Medicare take more than District of Columbia does. The payroll taxes have no deduction at all and start on the first dollar, which is why they are the largest tax many lower earners pay.
District of Columbia income tax at every $10,000
For a salary between the seven above, here is the single-filer figure in $10,000 steps, from $20,000 to $200,000.
| Salary | Per month | Effective | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| $20,000 | $13 | 0.78% | $156 |
| $30,000 | $53 | 2.11% | $634 |
| $40,000 | $103 | 3.08% | $1,234 |
| $50,000 | $153 | 3.67% | $1,834 |
| $60,000 | $205 | 4.09% | $2,454 |
| $70,000 | $259 | 4.43% | $3,104 |
| $80,000 | $319 | 4.79% | $3,832 |
| $90,000 | $390 | 5.2% | $4,682 |
| $100,000 | $461 | 5.53% | $5,532 |
| $110,000 | $532 | 5.8% | $6,382 |
| $120,000 | $603 | 6.03% | $7,232 |
| $130,000 | $674 | 6.22% | $8,082 |
| $140,000 | $744 | 6.38% | $8,932 |
| $150,000 | $815 | 6.52% | $9,782 |
| $160,000 | $886 | 6.64% | $10,632 |
| $170,000 | $957 | 6.75% | $11,482 |
| $180,000 | $1,028 | 6.85% | $12,332 |
| $190,000 | $1,099 | 6.94% | $13,182 |
| $200,000 | $1,169 | 7.02% | $14,032 |
Between two steps the tax moves in a straight line at the marginal rate, so for $64,000 take the $60,000 figure and add 6.5% of the extra $4,000.
Per paycheck, and why your withholding will not match exactly
Spread over 26 biweekly paychecks, a single filer's District of Columbia income tax comes to about $24 at $30,000, $71 at $50,000, $132 at $75,000, $213 at $100,000, $295 at $125,000.
On other pay schedules, the $75,000 figure of $3,429 a year works out to about $66 a week, $143 twice a month, or $286 once a month. The annual total is the same whichever way it is paid; only the slices change.
| Salary | Weekly | Every 2 weeks | Twice a month | Monthly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $30,000 | $12 | $24 | $26 | $53 |
| $50,000 | $35 | $71 | $76 | $153 |
| $75,000 | $66 | $132 | $143 | $286 |
| $100,000 | $106 | $213 | $231 | $461 |
| $125,000 | $147 | $295 | $319 | $638 |
| $150,000 | $188 | $376 | $408 | $815 |
| $200,000 | $270 | $540 | $585 | $1,169 |
What your employer actually withholds is set by the state's withholding formula, which is built to land close to these annual figures but is not the same calculation — it works one paycheck at a time and relies on the form you filled in when you started the job. The gap between the two comes back at filing time as a refund or a bill. The District of Columbia refund estimator runs that reconciliation for your own figures.
What each bracket costs in dollars
A bracket is a slice, and each full slice has a fixed price. For a single filer, the table gives what each slice costs once it is full, and the running total by the time you reach its top.
| Rate | Taxable income | Full slice | Total at its top |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4% | $0 – $10,000 | $400 | $400 |
| 6% | $10,000 – $40,000 | $1,800 | $2,200 |
| 6.5% | $40,000 – $60,000 | $1,300 | $3,500 |
| 8.5% | $60,000 – $250,000 | $16,150 | $19,650 |
| 9.25% | $250,000 – $500,000 | $23,125 | $42,775 |
| 9.75% | $500,000 – $1,000,000 | $48,750 | $91,525 |
| 10.75% | over $1,000,000 | no ceiling | — |
Those running totals are the fixed amount owed on everything below a given threshold. From there, only the part of your income inside your own bracket is taxed at its rate.
Moving into a higher bracket
The belief that a raise can cost you money because it "pushes you into a higher bracket" is the most common misreading of a schedule, and District of Columbia's shows why it is wrong.
A single filer's 8.5% rate starts at $76,100 of salary. At $75,100 the District of Columbia tax is $3,435; at $77,100 it is $3,585. The extra $2,000 of pay cost $150 — part at the old rate, part at the new one — and not a cent more on the income below.
Only the dollars inside a bracket pay that bracket's rate. Crossing a threshold changes the price of the next dollar, never of the ones already earned.
Three ways to misread the District of Columbia schedule
Applying the rate to your salary. 10.75% of a $75,000 salary is $8,063; the real District of Columbia tax on it is $3,429. The shortcut overstates the bill by $4,634, 135.14% too high, because it skips everything that comes off first and taxes every dollar at the top rate.
Confusing the effective rate with the marginal one. At $75,000 the combined effective income tax rate, federal plus District of Columbia, is 14.8%; the combined marginal rate is 28.5%. The first says how much of the salary goes in income tax; the second what the next dollar costs. Pricing a raise or a pre-tax contribution with the first is the classic slip.
Assuming last year's figures still hold. Thresholds and rates are set per tax year; everything on this page is for 2026, from the District of Columbia source checked on 2026-09-24.
What you keep from a $5,000 raise
The combined marginal rate is abstract; a raise is not. Here is where an extra $5,000 of salary goes for a single filer, with federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare all measured on the same two salaries:
From $50,000 to $55,000: District of Columbia $300, federal income tax $600, Social Security and Medicare $383 — you keep $3,717, or 74.34% of the raise.
From $100,000 to $105,000: District of Columbia $425, federal income tax $1,100, Social Security and Medicare $383 — you keep $3,092, or 61.84% of the raise.
District of Columbia's share is 6% of the raise at $50,000 and 8.5% at $100,000. The federal share is the one that moves most between the two salaries, because the federal schedule has more steps.
Married filing jointly: does District of Columbia penalise it?
Married couples filing jointly use exactly the same thresholds as single filers — they are not doubled. What keeps that from penalising two-earner couples is an option: District of Columbia lets a married couple figure each spouse's tax separately on the same return, each on the single schedule, and pay whichever is lower. The figures below use that option where it wins.
Measured on a household earning $100,000: split evenly, two single people would pay $3,668 between them; married and filing jointly they pay $3,668. The same, to within a few dollars — no penalty and no bonus.
With the same $100,000 earned by one partner alone, a single filer would pay $5,532; the couple pays $4,163, so filing jointly with a non-earning spouse is worth $1,369 a year in District of Columbia tax. All of it comes from the second deduction, since the rates are the same.
How the split between two incomes changes it
In District of Columbia the split matters even on a joint return, because a married couple may figure each spouse's tax separately on the same return, each on the single schedule, and the figures here use whichever is lower. A married couple on $100,000 pays between $3,668 and $3,682 depending on how the income divides between two earners, and $4,163 with one. Two unmarried partners file separately, and the table sets the two side by side for four ways of dividing the same $100,000.
| Split | Two single filers | Married, jointly | Marriage |
|---|---|---|---|
| $100,000 / $0 | $5,532 | $4,163 | saves $1,369 |
| $75,000 / $25,000 | $3,785 | $3,682 | saves $103 |
| $60,000 / $40,000 | $3,688 | $3,668 | saves $20 |
| $50,000 / $50,000 | $3,668 | $3,668 | no difference |
The more lopsided the split, the more a joint return is worth, because it lets the lower earner's unused deduction absorb part of the higher earner's income. These are District of Columbia figures only; the federal return has its own, separate version of the same effect.
District of Columbia and federal brackets together
Every extra dollar is taxed by both. The combined marginal income tax rate — federal plus District of Columbia — is 18% at $30,000 and 32.5% at $200,000 for a single filer, and the table shows every step in between.
| Salary | Federal | District of Columbia | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| $30,000 | 12% | 6% | 18% |
| $50,000 | 12% | 6% | 18% |
| $75,000 | 22% | 6.5% | 28.5% |
| $100,000 | 22% | 8.5% | 30.5% |
| $125,000 | 24% | 8.5% | 32.5% |
| $150,000 | 24% | 8.5% | 32.5% |
| $200,000 | 24% | 8.5% | 32.5% |
On top of that come Social Security (6.2% up to the wage base) and Medicare (1.45%, plus 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax on wages above $200,000 for a single filer). And the deduction for state income tax on a federal return only helps if you itemise — most people take the federal standard deduction and get nothing back for the state tax they paid.
The federal brackets step up at different points from the District of Columbia ones, so the combined rate changes in more places than either schedule alone. Planning a raise or a bonus around one table is how people misjudge what they will keep.
How District of Columbia ranks
On a $75,000 salary, single, District of Columbia takes $3,429 — the 10th highest of the 42 jurisdictions that charge anything at that salary, with nine taking nothing at all. The middle of those 42 takes $2,802, so District of Columbia is $627 above it.
The position is not fixed; it moves with the salary: 28th lowest at $50,000, 33rd lowest at $75,000, 41st lowest at $150,000. District of Columbia moves toward the expensive end as income rises: what keeps it cheap at low pay is the amount that comes off first, and that matters less the more you earn.
At that salary the range among states that charge anything runs from $182 in North Dakota to $5,055 in Oregon, which puts District of Columbia 66.63% of the way from the cheapest to the dearest.
Within $250 of it at $75,000: Maryland ($3,199), Maine ($3,385), Kansas ($3,385), New York ($3,453). States that look different on paper often end up a few hundred dollars apart, because the deduction moves the bill as much as the rate does.
For 2026, 13 states tax wages at a single rate, 29 jurisdictions use brackets and 9 have no tax on wages at all, so District of Columbia is one of the 29 with brackets.
The 2026 brackets for every state are on one page, and the state income tax comparison ranks all 51 at the salary you choose.
What this page leaves out
Head of household and married filing separately. This page publishes the two schedules that were read at source, single and joint, and nothing for the other two statuses rather than a guess.
Dependents and credits. Credits for children, earned income, retirement income and the rest depend on your household, not on the brackets, and are left to the District of Columbia income tax calculator.
Income that is not wages. Retirement income, capital gains and business income can be treated differently in District of Columbia from a salary. Everything above is for wages.
Other tax years. Every figure here is for the 2026 tax year, the return filed in 2027. A return for an earlier year has to be worked out with that year's rates and thresholds, which is exactly where copied tables go wrong.
Where these brackets come from
Read off the DC Office of Tax and Revenue's own 2026 figures, [otr.cfo.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/otr/publication/attachments/2026_D40ES_Book_wLinks04012026.pdf](https://otr.cfo.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/otr/publication/attachments/2026_D40ES_Book_wLinks04012026.pdf), checked on 2026-09-24. Both the single and the joint rules were verified against that source before this page was published — a state whose joint schedule has not been read does not get a brackets page here yet, and neither does one whose rules our engine still simplifies.
Every dollar figure on this page is computed by the same engine as the District of Columbia income tax calculator, from the brackets above, so the two cannot disagree. If District of Columbia changes a rate or a threshold, this page changes with the data.
Where to go next
Questions
- What are the District of Columbia tax brackets for 2026?
- District of Columbia has seven brackets for single filers in 2026: 4% up to $10,000, 6% up to $40,000, 6.5% up to $60,000, 8.5% up to $250,000, 9.25% up to $500,000, 9.75% up to $1,000,000, 10.75% above $1,000,000 of taxable income.
- What is the District of Columbia income tax rate for 2026?
- From 4% to 10.75%, depending on the bracket. The top rate applies above $1,000,000 of taxable income for a single filer.
- Is District of Columbia a flat tax state?
- No. District of Columbia uses seven brackets, from 4% up to 10.75%.
- At what income do you start paying District of Columbia income tax?
- A single filer with only wage income owes the first dollar of District of Columbia tax at a gross income of about $16,101, and a married couple filing jointly at about $32,201.
- How much District of Columbia income tax do you pay on $100,000?
- A single filer earning $100,000 in wages pays about $5,532 in District of Columbia income tax for 2026, an effective rate of 5.53%. A married couple filing jointly on the same household income pays about $3,668.
- Is District of Columbia income tax high or low?
- On a $75,000 salary, single, District of Columbia takes $3,429 — at the high end of the 42 jurisdictions that tax wages (33rd lowest), against $2,802 for the middle one. Nine take nothing at that salary.
- How much is District of Columbia state tax per paycheck?
- On a $75,000 salary paid every two weeks, a single filer's District of Columbia income tax comes to about $132 a paycheck, or $286 a month. Actual withholding follows the state's own formula and can differ slightly; the difference is settled when you file.
- What is the District of Columbia standard deduction for 2026?
- $16,100 for a single filer and $32,200 for a married couple filing jointly. It comes off before any bracket is applied.
- Are District of Columbia tax brackets different for married couples?
- Married couples filing jointly use exactly the same thresholds as single filers — they are not doubled. What keeps that from penalising two-earner couples is an option: District of Columbia lets a married couple figure each spouse's tax separately on the same return, each on the single schedule, and pay whichever is lower.