20 Statistics on What the 2025 Tax Season Can Tell Us About Consumer Behavior and Expectations for the Future

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The 2025 tax season gives us a clear picture of how people are handling their money and what they expect in the future. As millions of Americans file their taxes, we can see important trends—like how they plan to use their refunds, whether more people are filing online, and how they feel about taxes in general. By looking at 20 key statistics, we can better understand how people’s financial habits are changing and what that might mean moving forward. Whether it’s saving, spending, or stressing over taxes, these numbers tell an interesting story about money in 2025.

Key findings

• Although many people feel anxiety when filing taxes over correctly filing taxes or being able to pay taxes, more respondents are actively concerned about facing other financial issues – like inflation – than they are about taxes.
• Most people will be using their refunds to shore up their savings accounts –up from last year.
• Tax literacy pertains to knowledge about the workings of tax brackets, the differences between credit and deductions, and so forth – this is low among most Americans.

Confidence in Receiving a Refund and Filing Correctly

While many Americans file taxes as early as possible in order to access their refunds, a smaller number of submitted tax returns indicates concern about filing taxes and receiving a refund.

1. 58% of consumers expect to receive a refund this year. [Source: NRF]
2. In 2024, the IRS issued refunds to 81.7% of individual filers for the 2023 tax period. [Source: IRS]
3. As of February 7, 2025, 7% fewer tax returns had been received than at the same time last year (2/9/2024). [Source: IRS]
4. As of February 7, 2025, the average tax return was $2065, 19% higher than returns processed in 2024. [Source: IRS]

Tax Literacy

A lot of the anxiety that Americans feel towards taxes seems to come from a lack of knowledge of how taxes work, how to correctly file, or a fear of being audited.

1. Californians may be the most stressed about filing their taxes, South Dakota residents appear to be the least. [Source: Forbes]
2. Only 25% feel confident about filing their taxes [Source: CPA Practice Advisor]
3. 45% of survey respondents are anxious about filling out tax forms accurately. [Source: CPA Practice Advisor]
4. 29% of survey respondents are anxious about calculating deductions and credits. [Source: CPA Practice Advisor]
5. 28% of people say that their biggest concern is being audited. The same percentage say that they are concerned about not having enough to pay their taxes. [Source: Wallethub]
6. More than 60% of respondents did not know the top federal income tax rate. [Source: Tax Foundation]
7. More than 50% of respondents did not know how tax brackets work. [Source: Tax Foundation]
8. 52% of respondents believe there’s no difference between taking advantage of legal loopholes in tax law and tax fraud. [Source: The Harris Poll]

Perception of Fairness in Tax Rates

Surveys show that despite the low tax literacy amongst most Americans, there is a general perception among many of those surveyed that believe that they are being taxed too much (as opposed to those who believe they are being taxed the right amount, or those who say not enough.) Many also believe that high-income earners and corporations should be taxed more.

1. Slightly more than half of survey respondents (57%) believe that they are taxed at an unfair rate compared to filers in other tax brackets [Source: The Harris Poll]
2. 55% of survey respondents believe it’s “smart” to use legal loopholes to maximize their tax return. [Source: The Harris Poll]
3. 35% of respondents say that intentionally misreporting finances to reduce the amount of taxes owed does not qualify as tax evasion [Source: The Harris Poll]
4. 72% of respondents think their tax rate is too high. [Source: Wallethub]
5. More than 2 in 5 survey respondents knows someone who has cheated on their taxes. [Source: Wallethub]
6. In 2024, 56% of respondents believed that federal taxes were too high. [Source: Gallup]
7. 55% of Americans believe that upper-income earners don’t pay enough taxes. [Source: Gallup]
8. 7 in 10 Americans believe that corporations aren’t paying enough in taxes. [Source: Gallup]

How Do Consumers Plan to Use Their Refunds?

One of the most surprising statistics  on for the 2025 tax season is that most consumers plan to use their refunds to improve their financial situation. According to the NRF, 48% of consumers want to use their refunds to bulk up their savings. Another 34% plan to use the money to pay off debt.

Other survey participants plan to use their refunds to make a major purchase, take a much-needed vacation, do some home improvement or make a “splurge” purchase. Once you have your refund in hand, you can use the money any way you like.

If you’re trying to build credit, consider using your refund to pay down high-interest debt or work with a credit repair professional. You may be able to settle your past-due debts or work out a payment plan with one of your creditors.

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