Estate Tax Calculator
Estimate the US federal estate tax for 2026: taxable estate after debts and deductions, lifetime gifts, the $15 million exemption – $30 million for married couples – and the tax at rates up to 40%.
Who pays estate tax in 2026
The federal estate tax applies only to estates above the basic exclusion amount, which the One Big Beautiful Bill Act set at $15 million per person for 2026, indexed for inflation after that. Fewer than one in a thousand estates owe it. A married couple can shelter $30 million: anything left to a spouse is deductible, and the surviving spouse can use the unused exemption of the first to die (portability, claimed on a timely estate tax return).
How the tax is calculated
Start with the gross estate – homes, investments, retirement accounts, business interests and life insurance you own. Subtract debts, funeral and administration expenses, and what passes to a spouse or to charity. Add taxable gifts made during life, because estate and gift tax share one exemption. The tax is computed on this total with rates from 18% to 40%, and the unified credit then removes the tax on the exempt amount – so every dollar above the exemption is taxed at 40%.
Example
A single person leaves $18 million, with $500,000 of debts and expenses, after $1 million of taxable lifetime gifts. The taxable base is $18.5 million, $3.5 million above the exemption, and the estate tax is $1.4 million – an effective 8% of the $17.5 million estate.
Frequently asked questions
What is the estate tax exemption for 2026?
$15 million per person, or $30 million for a married couple using portability. It will rise with inflation from 2027.
What is the estate tax rate?
The rates run from 18% to 40%, but because of the unified credit everything above the exemption is effectively taxed at 40%.
Do heirs pay income tax on an inheritance?
Generally no. Inherited assets also get a stepped-up cost basis, though a few states charge an inheritance tax to the heirs.