Inaccurate "Compare to U.S. Averages" Information

[MrChilln]

The "Compare to U.S. Averages" section of TurboTax is wildly inaccurate.  I'm seeing $407K which is WELL ABOVE the $50K or so published by financial publications.  Has anyone else seen this?

[SteamTrain · Accepted solution]

Answered in your other post:

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The software uses an income range depending on where yours falls....not the entire population that is used for the national averages

Up near the top of the Averages form you are looking at, it shows what income range it is using for an average...... for your situation.

IF your AGI is above 250,000.  The average seems pretty useless.....seeing as they average in the entire top 5%,  everyone from 250k up to an AGI of a $billion.  But not the 95% of the population below 250k

[MrChilln]

Thank you for the quick responses everyone.  Very helpful.

[macuser_22]

Where you fall in an "average" is totally meaningless.   Averages are only useful for statistical purposes.  Ever taxpayer is an individual with their own unique circumstances.    It is like saying that the "average" tax payer has  1.6 children, but in reality there is no such thing.   If you are a government planner, that is useful information, but if you are a taxpayer with zero (or 10) children, that information is useless to you.    Like they say "there is no average man".