Trying to understand why in 2019 my refund was less, when I made more this year but in 2017 my refund was more but I made less?

[HelenC12 · Accepted solution]

The more you make, the more taxes you pay.

If you added a second W-2, see Why did my refund drop when I entered a second W-2?

Otherwise, if your refund is much lower than 2017, do a line by line comparison of this year's return versus your 2017 return to identify any differences.  If you are using TurboTax Online, you can see a preview of your 1040 form. 

 Also, double check the amounts you entered into TurboTax to make sure they were entered correctly.

Below are additional reasons why your refund may be lower this year compared to last year: 

• Your 2019 Federal and/or State Tax Withholding was lower than 2017. This generally happens if you have more than one W-2.
• You didn't defer or you deferred less income into your Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan or Flexible Savings Plan.
• You didn't qualify for a tax credit you you received in 2017 (or the credit amount decreased).
• You removed a dependent.
• You changed your filing status.
• If you didn't itemize your deductions in 2019 but you itemized your deductions in 2017 or you are using the Standard Deduction in 2019.

Additional information: Why did my refund go down compared to last year's?