Charitable Deduction Calculator
Starting in 2026, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act changes charitable deductions three ways at once: a new $1,000 (single) / $2,000 (married) deduction for people who take the standard deduction, a new 0.5%-of-AGI floor for itemizers, and a 35-cent-on-the-dollar cap at the top bracket. These changes are permanent. Enter your numbers to see what's deductible and what it saves you. Everything runs in your browser — nothing is uploaded.
Estimate for general guidance only — not tax advice. Figures use the 2026 federal brackets and standard deductions (single $16,100 / married filing jointly $32,200 / head of household $24,150). The tax-saving figure compares your best deduction with the gift against your best deduction without it. It does not model the 60%/30%/20%-of-AGI ceilings on very large gifts, carryforwards, the AMT, or state tax. Verify with the IRS or a tax professional.
Five things people get wrong about the 2026 charitable changes
1. You don't have to itemize anymore to get a break for donating — but it's cash only. Standard-deduction takers get up to $1,000 ($2,000 married filing jointly) for cash gifts to public charities. Dropping off clothes, giving appreciated stock, or funding a donor-advised fund or private foundation does not qualify for this bonus.
2. "You don't have to itemize" does NOT mean "it lowers your AGI." Most articles get this wrong. The non-itemizer deduction is subtracted after your AGI (Internal Revenue Code §63(b)(4)), so it cuts your federal income tax but not your AGI — it will not lower your Medicare IRMAA, your ACA premium subsidy, or how much of your Social Security is taxed.
3. If you itemize, your first 0.5% of AGI in giving is now worth nothing. A new 2026 floor: on a $200,000 AGI, the first $1,000 of charitable giving isn't deductible — only the excess counts on Schedule A. Small itemized gifts can now yield $0.
4. The "35% cap" isn't a cap on your donation — it's a haircut on every itemized deduction at the top. In the 37% bracket, IRC §68's "2/37 rule" makes a deducted dollar worth about 35¢, not 37¢. It applies to your SALT and mortgage interest too, not just charity.
5. These changes are permanent. Unlike no tax on overtime and no tax on tips (which end after 2028), the charitable changes have no sunset — plan for the long term.
How the 2026 charitable deduction changes work
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (signed July 2025) changed charitable giving in three ways, all effective for tax years beginning after December 31, 2025, and all permanent.
1. A deduction for non-itemizers (IRC §170(p)). If you take the standard deduction, you can deduct up to $1,000 (single, head of household, or married filing separately) or $2,000 (married filing jointly) of cash gifts to public charities, on top of the standard deduction. It's not indexed for inflation, there's no carryforward of unused amounts, and it's claimed via §63(b)(4) — subtracted after your AGI to reach taxable income. So it lowers your federal income tax but does not reduce your AGI. The one true sense in which it's "above the line" is simply that you don't have to itemize to get it.
2. A 0.5%-of-AGI floor for itemizers (IRC §170(b)(1)(I)). If you itemize, only the charitable contributions that exceed 0.5% of your AGI are deductible on Schedule A — the first 0.5% is lost. On a $175,000 AGI the floor is $875; on a $500,000 AGI it's $2,500. It applies to your cash and non-cash gifts together. Amounts disallowed only by this floor generally don't carry forward, and carryovers from pre-2026 gifts aren't subject to it.
3. A 35-cent-on-the-dollar cap at the top bracket (IRC §68). This is not a charitable-specific rule. For filers in the 37% bracket, §68's "2/37 rule" reduces total itemized deductions — charitable, state and local taxes, mortgage interest, all of them — by 2/37 (about 5.4%) of the lesser of your total itemized deductions or your taxable income above the 37% threshold ($640,600 single / $768,700 married for 2026). The upshot: a dollar that used to save 37¢ now saves about 35¢.
What else stayed the same. The pre-existing 60%-of-AGI ceiling on cash gifts to public charities was made permanent; the 30%/20% ceilings for certain non-cash and appreciated property still apply to very large gifts. The floor cuts the bottom; those ceilings cap the top.
The same 2025 law also added temporary breaks that end after 2028: see the no tax on overtime calculator, the no tax on tips calculator, the $6,000 senior bonus deduction, and the car loan interest deduction. Itemizing in a high-tax state? It also raised the SALT deduction cap to $40,000 — the deduction that most often decides, with charity, whether you itemize.
A worked example: the 0.5% floor in action
Maria is single with an AGI of $175,000. She gives $2,500 in cash to public charities and has $20,000 of other itemized deductions (state and local taxes plus mortgage interest). Here's how 2026 treats her gift:
- The 0.5% floor: 0.5% of her $175,000 AGI is $875. Only the giving above that counts, so her $2,500 gift is deductible to the extent of $1,625 on Schedule A ($2,500 − $875).
- Itemize or not? Her itemized total is $1,625 + $20,000 = $21,625, which beats her $16,100 standard deduction (plus the $1,000 non-itemizer bonus she'd otherwise get). So she itemizes, and the gift is claimed on Schedule A.
- Federal tax saved by the gift: the deductible $1,625 comes off income in her 24% bracket, lowering her federal tax by about $390 ($1,625 × 24%) — not $2,500, because the first $875 was lost to the floor and a deduction only saves your marginal rate.
If Maria took the standard deduction instead (say she had little else to itemize), her $2,500 cash gift would give her the $1,000 non-itemizer deduction — no floor, but capped at $1,000 — worth about $240 at 24%. Either way, it lowers her federal income tax, not her AGI.
Common questions
Can I deduct donations without itemizing in 2026? Yes — up to $1,000 (single) or $2,000 (married filing jointly) of cash gifts to public charities, on top of the standard deduction. It's permanent and claimed after your AGI, so it lowers your federal income tax but not your AGI.
Does it reduce my AGI? No. You don't have to itemize to get it, but it's subtracted after AGI (§63(b)(4)) — it cuts your federal income tax, not your AGI, so it doesn't affect IRMAA, ACA subsidies, or Social Security taxability. "No itemizing required" is not the same as "reduces AGI."
What is the 0.5% floor? If you itemize, only charitable gifts above 0.5% of your AGI are deductible — the first 0.5% is lost. On $175,000 of AGI that's an $875 floor.
Is the non-itemizer deduction cash only? Yes — cash to public charities. Non-cash gifts (goods, stock) and cash to donor-advised funds or private foundations don't qualify for the bonus (though they may still be deductible if you itemize).
What is the 35% cap? Not a charitable cap — a general §68 "2/37 rule" that trims every itemized deduction in the 37% bracket so a deducted dollar is worth about 35¢ instead of 37¢. It hits SALT and mortgage interest too.
Are these changes permanent? Yes. Unlike the tips, overtime, senior, and car-loan deductions (which end after 2028), the charitable changes have no sunset.
What does itemizing mean? Listing specific deductible expenses — charitable gifts, state and local taxes, mortgage interest — on Schedule A and deducting the total, instead of taking the flat standard deduction. You take whichever is larger.
Is anything saved or uploaded? No. The tool is fully client-side — your numbers never leave your browser.
Sources: Public Law 119-21 §§70424, 70425, 70111, statute text (congress.gov); 26 USC §170 (Cornell LII), §63, §62, and §68; Bipartisan Policy Center, how the new charitable deduction floors work; Holland & Knight, year-end charitable planning; Gunster, the new 2/37 rule; Taft, charitable giving after the OBBBA.