Head of household standard deduction by year
| Tax year | Head of household (under 65 years old) | Head of household (65 years or older) | Head of household (65 years or older and blind) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $23,625 | $25,625 | $27,625 |
| 2026 | $24,150 | $26,200 | $28,250 |
Source: Internal Revenue Service (1,2)
If you’re 65 and older, you may also qualify for the new additional senior deduction that’s worth up to $6,000.
Head of household qualification requirements
You need to clear three tests, all measured as of December 31:
- Considered unmarried: You’re single, divorced, legally separated, or you’re married but your spouse didn’t live with you for the last six months of the year.
- Cost of keeping up a home: You paid more than half the year’s costs of keeping up a home, which includes rent or mortgage, utilities, groceries, repairs, and other household costs.
- Qualifying person: A child, parent, or other relative who meets the IRS’s qualifying-person rules lived with you more than half the year (a dependent parent doesn’t have to live with you).
Head of household vs. filing single
Beyond the bigger deduction, head of household filers get wider tax brackets. For 2026, the 10% bracket covers taxable income up to $17,700 for HOH filers, compared to $12,400 for single filers.
For instance, say you and a single-filing neighbor both earn $50,000:
- $50,000 - $24,150 = $25,850 in taxable income for you in 2026.
- $50,000 - $16,100 = $33,900 in taxable income for your neighbor in 2026.
Common situations that trip people up
- You’re separated but still legally married: You can still count as “considered unmarried” if your spouse didn’t live with you for the last six months of the year and you otherwise qualify.
- You share parenting responsibilities with another unmarried parent: Since the taxpayer needs to pay over ½ of the household expenses for the child, only one parent can use the same qualifying child to claim head of household filing status. How it works depends on your situation:
- Same children, two homes: If your children split time between both parents’ homes, the parent who had each child for more nights during the year generally has the stronger claim to head of household status for that child.
- Different children, two homes: If Parent A is the primary caregiver for one child and Parent B is the primary caregiver for a different child — and each parent maintains a separate home and meets all head of household requirements for their own child — both parents may be able to file as head of household.
- The IRS denies your HOH status: You’ll be reassessed at the single or married filing separately rate, along with any additional tax owed.
