Effective Tax Rate, Lowest Fifth
Average federal tax rate paid by the lowest-income fifth of households.
| Year | Effective Tax Rate, Lowest Fifth |
|---|---|
| 1979 | 9.3% |
| 1980 | 8.9% |
| 1981 | 9.6% |
| 1982 | 9.8% |
| 1983 | 11.1% |
| 1984 | 12.1% |
| 1985 | 11.8% |
| 1986 | 11.7% |
| 1987 | 10.7% |
| 1988 | 10.1% |
| 1989 | 9.6% |
| 1990 | 10.6% |
| 1991 | 10.1% |
| 1992 | 10.0% |
| 1993 | 10.0% |
| 1994 | 8.2% |
| 1995 | 7.6% |
| 1996 | 6.9% |
| 1997 | 7.0% |
| 1998 | 6.9% |
| 1999 | 7.3% |
| 2000 | 7.2% |
| 2001 | 5.8% |
| 2002 | 5.4% |
| 2003 | 5.4% |
| 2004 | 5.0% |
| 2005 | 5.2% |
| 2006 | 5.5% |
| 2007 | 4.9% |
| 2008 | 0.5% |
| 2009 | -0.7% |
| 2010 | -0.5% |
| 2011 | 0.2% |
| 2012 | 0.5% |
| 2013 | 1.9% |
| 2014 | 1.5% |
| 2015 | 1.2% |
| 2016 | 1.2% |
| 2017 | 0.9% |
| 2018 | -0.2% |
| 2019 | 0.6% |
| 2020 | -16.5% |
| 2021 | -22.5% |
| 2022 | 1.4% |
Hover the line to read any month. Drag across the chart to zoom; double-click to reset.
Source: cbo · cbo-dhi-table9 · series · Jan 1979 to Jan 2022 · latest-revised
Refreshed Jun 25, 2026 from cbo. May be delayed: our daily refresh has not run in the last few days.
Average federal tax rate paid by the lowest-income fifth of households.
Average federal tax rate paid by the lowest income quintile (bottom 20% of households), CBO.
Source: cbo · Jan 2022 · Full lesson → Learn
About the bands. Shaded spans are NBER-dated US recessions, drawn as factual overlays. They mark when the economy contracted, not why. Lining an event up with a move is not evidence it caused the move.
Read across
No single number is the economy. These measure nearby parts of it — add one to compare, or open it on its own.
- Effective Tax Rate, Top 1% What the top 1% pays on average, the other end of the distribution.
- Effective Tax Rate, Middle Fifth The middle fifth's average federal tax rate.