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The average tax refund is 10.8% higher so far this season, compared with about the same period in 2025, according to the latest IRS filing data.
As of March 13, the average refund amount for individual filers was $3,623, up from $3,271 about one year ago, the IRS reported on Friday.
The IRS data reflects roughly 69.7 million individual returns received, out of about 164 million expected through the April 15 deadline.
The latest filing data comes as both parties focus on Americans’ affordability concerns ahead of the midterm elections.
President Donald Trump has said this will be the “largest tax refund season of all time” following the 2025 changes enacted via his “big beautiful bill.”
Meanwhile, many Americans are facing rising gasoline prices amid the Iran war. The national average gasoline price reached $3.91 a gallon on Friday, up from about $2.93 per gallon one month ago, according to AAA.
The spiking gas prices could offset higher tax refunds from this season, according an analysis published this week from a professor of economics at Stanford University.
“The energy shock is going to hit those who have the least cushion … and it doesn’t look like those tax refunds are going to be here to save them,” Alex Jacquez, chief of policy and advocacy at Groundwork Collaborative, a left-leaning economic policy think tank, said during a press call Friday.
Average tax refund changes
This season, the average refund size peaked at $3,804 on Feb. 20, up from $3,453 about one year prior, and has gradually declined over the past three weeks of IRS filing updates.
The mid-February jump is common once payments start reflecting refunds that include the earned income tax credit or the refundable part of the child tax credit, known as the additional child tax credit or ACTC.
While the White House in early January said the average refund could increase “by $1,000 or more,” payments have been lower so far this season.
Tom O’Saben, director of tax content and government relations at the National Association of Tax Professionals, told CNBC he has filed around 200 returns so far this season.
Those receiving refunds have seen about a few hundred dollars difference compared with last year, he said.
However, your tax refund or balance due depends on several factors, including which of Trump’s tax breaks affect your situation and how much you paid in 2025 via paycheck withholdings, experts say.