Top Marginal Tax Rate
The highest-bracket federal income-tax rate, where money meets policy.
| Year | Top Marginal Tax Rate |
|---|---|
| 1913 | 7.0% |
| 1914 | 7.0% |
| 1915 | 7.0% |
| 1916 | 15.0% |
| 1917 | 67.0% |
| 1918 | 77.0% |
| 1919 | 73.0% |
| 1920 | 73.0% |
| 1921 | 73.0% |
| 1922 | 58.0% |
| 1923 | 43.5% |
| 1924 | 46.0% |
| 1925 | 25.0% |
| 1926 | 25.0% |
| 1927 | 25.0% |
| 1928 | 25.0% |
| 1929 | 24.0% |
| 1930 | 25.0% |
| 1931 | 25.0% |
| 1932 | 63.0% |
| 1933 | 63.0% |
| 1934 | 63.0% |
| 1935 | 63.0% |
| 1936 | 79.0% |
| 1937 | 79.0% |
| 1938 | 79.0% |
| 1939 | 79.0% |
| 1940 | 81.1% |
| 1941 | 81.0% |
| 1942 | 88.0% |
| 1943 | 88.0% |
| 1944 | 94.0% |
| 1945 | 94.0% |
| 1946 | 86.5% |
| 1947 | 86.5% |
| 1948 | 82.1% |
| 1949 | 82.1% |
| 1950 | 84.4% |
| 1951 | 91.0% |
| 1952 | 92.0% |
| 1953 | 92.0% |
| 1954 | 91.0% |
| 1955 | 91.0% |
| 1956 | 91.0% |
| 1957 | 91.0% |
| 1958 | 91.0% |
| 1959 | 91.0% |
| 1960 | 91.0% |
| 1961 | 91.0% |
| 1962 | 91.0% |
| 1963 | 91.0% |
| 1964 | 77.0% |
| 1965 | 70.0% |
| 1966 | 70.0% |
| 1967 | 70.0% |
| 1968 | 75.3% |
| 1969 | 77.0% |
| 1970 | 71.8% |
| 1971 | 70.0% |
| 1972 | 70.0% |
| 1973 | 70.0% |
| 1974 | 70.0% |
| 1975 | 70.0% |
| 1976 | 70.0% |
| 1977 | 70.0% |
| 1978 | 70.0% |
| 1979 | 70.0% |
| 1980 | 70.0% |
| 1981 | 69.1% |
| 1982 | 50.0% |
| 1983 | 50.0% |
| 1984 | 50.0% |
| 1985 | 50.0% |
| 1986 | 50.0% |
| 1987 | 38.5% |
| 1988 | 28.0% |
| 1989 | 28.0% |
| 1990 | 28.0% |
| 1991 | 31.0% |
| 1992 | 31.0% |
| 1993 | 39.6% |
| 1994 | 39.6% |
| 1995 | 39.6% |
| 1996 | 39.6% |
| 1997 | 39.6% |
| 1998 | 39.6% |
| 1999 | 39.6% |
| 2000 | 39.6% |
| 2001 | 39.1% |
| 2002 | 38.6% |
| 2003 | 35.0% |
| 2004 | 35.0% |
| 2005 | 35.0% |
| 2006 | 35.0% |
| 2007 | 35.0% |
| 2008 | 35.0% |
| 2009 | 35.0% |
| 2010 | 35.0% |
| 2011 | 35.0% |
| 2012 | 35.0% |
| 2013 | 39.6% |
| 2014 | 39.6% |
| 2015 | 39.6% |
| 2016 | 39.6% |
| 2017 | 39.6% |
| 2018 | 37.0% |
Hover the line to read any month. Drag across the chart to zoom; double-click to reset.
Source: FRED · IITTRHB · series · Jan 1913 to Jan 2018 · latest-revised
Refreshed Jul 31, 2026 from FRED.
The highest-bracket federal income-tax rate, where money meets policy.
Highest-bracket statutory federal individual income-tax rate (regular tax), by year.
Source: FRED · Jan 2018 · 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.
- Wealth Share, Top 0.1% The share of net worth held by the top 0.1%, the wealth at the top this rate sits above.
- Outside Spending Independent expenditures in presidential cycles, the campaign-finance side of the same domain.
- Corporate Profits (% of GDP) The share of output taken as corporate profit, a separate channel for top incomes.