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Here’s the Average IRS Tax Refund Amount by State

NoDerog / Getty Images/iStockphoto
NoDerog / Getty Images/iStockphoto

Generally, the sooner you file your taxes, the sooner you’ll see your refund in the bank (and it reduces the chances of tax fraud). The amount that you receive — if any — depends on a number of factors, including how much of your income isn’t subject to tax withholding, how many deductions and credits you claim, and how you filled out your W-4, which is the form your employer uses to determine how much to withhold from your paycheck for income taxes.

Even if you’re a procrastinator, you’ll want to file your tax return before the April 15, 2021 tax deadline. And if you think you’re getting a refund, you’ll want to know what to expect and how to protect it.

Find Out: What Are the 2020-2021 Federal Tax Brackets and Tax Rates?

What’s the Average Tax Refund?

For the 2020 filing season, which covers returns filed for the 2019 calendar year, the average federal tax refund for individuals was $2,707.

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The average tax refund also varies by state. For instance, in Maine, the average refund was just over $2,314, but in Texas, the average taxpayer got back $3,191. But, before you get jealous of those living in Texas, remember that receiving a tax refund just means you made an interest-free loan to Uncle Sam, and the government is now paying you back for the extra amounts that were taken out of your paycheck.

Here’s a look at the average tax refund issued by state for 2019 fiscal year, listed from highest average refund amount to lowest:

Average Tax Refund by State

State

Number of Individual Refunds Issued

Amount of Internal Revenue Refunds Issued (thousands of dollars) for Individual Returns

Average Refund Issued Per Return

Texas

10,436,922

$33,307,092

$3,191

Louisiana

1,608,550

$4,924,712

$3,062

Florida

$24,499,261

$8,151,800

$3,005

Mississippi

1,017,520

$3,015,784

$2,964

Alaska

276,686

$815,132

$2946

Connecticut

1,372,921

$3,993,301

$2,909

New York

7,644,230

$22,224,866

$2,907

Oklahoma

1,316,426

$3,802,939

$2,889

Nevada

1,163,692

$3,350,044

$2,879

Wyoming

219,898

$632,761

$2,878

Georgia

3,612,597

$10,290,206

$2,848

New Jersey

3,429,954

$9,768,328

$2,848

Alabama

1,655,802

$4,711,055

$2,845

Illinois

4,921,931

$13,902,803

$2,825

Nebraska

724,667

$2,041,855

$2,818

Arkansas

1,004,139

$2,820,606

$2,809

California

13,594,848

$38,130,058

$2,805

Tennessee

2,515,768

$7,029,987

$2,794

North Dakota

288,118

$801,463

$2,782

Washington

2,850,020

$7,859,981

$2,758

Massachusetts

2,720,252

$7,469,435

$2,746

Arizona

2,353,805

$6,397,979

$2,718

South Dakota

336,406

$913,254

$2,714

Virginia

3,104,655

$8,398,713

$2,705

Utah

1,081,660

$2,919,945

$2,700

Delaware

371,098

$997,155

$2,687

Missouri

2,247,710

$6,035,505

$2,685

Kansas

1,055,722

$2,824,391

$2,675

West Virginia

650,124

$1,738,040

$2,673

New Mexico

734,098

$1,961,668

$2,672

Maryland

2,248,030

$6,004,984

$2,671

Kentucky

1,595,597

$4,249,354

$2,663

Indiana

2,637,447

$7,020,247

$2,662

North Carolina

3,649,780

$9,627,185

$2,638

Pennsylvania

5,095,524

$13,366,148

$2,623

Iowa

1,158,405

$3,019,601

$2,607

Michigan

3,829,827

$9,968,736

$2,603

Colorado

2,091,133

$5,425,122

$2,594

South Carolina

1,755,272

$4,549,482

$2,592

New Hampshire

566,967

$1,460,197

$2,575

Rhode Island

438,594

$1,116,943

$2,547

Hawaii

538,931

$1,367,234

$2,537

Ohio

4,596,003

$11,533,664

$2,510

Idaho

595,846

$1,492,960

$2,506

Minnesota

2,134,440

$5,306,345

$2,486

Montana

382,921

$925,907

$2,418

Wisconsin

2,253,117

$5,400,920

$2,397

Vermont

257,419

$601,647

$2,337

Oregon

1,461,423

$3,394,36

$2,323

Maine

522,648

$1,209,459

$2,314

In past years, the IRS would issue most tax refunds within 21 days; however, the agency is taking longer to process all mailed items because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Certain other things can delay the processing of your refund, including the following:

  • Incomplete returns

  • Returns with errors

  • Returns affected by identity theft or fraud

  • Returns with claims for the earned income tax credit or additional child tax credit

  • Returns with Form 8379, injured spouse allocation, which can take up to 14 weeks to process

Within 24 hours of e-filing, or four weeks of filing by mail, you can visit the IRS “Where’s My Refund” site to check the IRS refund schedule and the status of your refund. Information on the site is updated daily, typically overnight.

What to Do With Your Refund

In a 2019 GOBankingRates survey, 27 percent of respondents said they would put their tax refund toward paying off debt. Once you get your refund, it might be tempting to treat yourself and spend it. But paying down or paying off debts is a smarter choice — if you pay off a credit card, for example, you can reduce your credit utilization ratio and bump up your credit score.

Other financially sound options for your tax refund include the following:

  • Padding your emergency fund

  • Contributing to a retirement plan

  • Improving the value of your home by tackling home renovations

  • Making charitable contributions that you can deduct from your next return

  • Investing the money in stocks or CDs

  • Investing in yourself with a fitness or certification program

Remember that you don’t have to make an “all-or-nothing” choice with your refund; you can tuck most of it away in investments or home improvements, for example, but still treat your family to a night out with a small portion of your refund.

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George Malone and John Csiszar contributed to the reporting for this article.

Last updated: Feb. 9, 2021

Methodology: In order to discover the average IRS tax refund amount by state, GOBankingRates used the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) “SOI Tax Stats – State Data FY 2019” (the latest data available) to find (1) individual income tax and employment tax refunds issued and (2) individual income tax and employment tax total refunds issued in USD. With these two figures isolated for all 50 states, GOBankingRates only had to divide the two to find (3) the average tax refund amount for every state. All data was collected on and up to date as of January 11, 2021.

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Here’s the Average IRS Tax Refund Amount by State