Why do i pay over $110 a week in taxes but at the end of the year only get back $247?

[xmasbaby0]

We cannot see your screen or your tax return; we know nothing about the amount of income you earned, or your filing status, whether you have dependents. etc.   Those of some of the factors that determine how much tax you are required to pay.   However, if you worked and earned income, you are subject to paying tax, including Social Security, Medicare and ordinary income tax.   If the amount that was withheld from your pay as shown in box 2 of your W-2 is more than your tax liability, then you may  get a refund of that amount.  You do not get back the amount that was withheld for Social Security or Medicare.

We cannot see your screen, your return or your account.  Have you entered ALL of your 2024 information?  All your income, etc.?  

There are a lot of variables that affect your refund or tax due including how much you earned, how much tax you had withheld, your filing status, the number of dependents you claim, your deductions and credits, etc.  You may have lost Earned Income Credit or the Child Tax Credit— did a child turn 17?  If you received the EIC last year, remember that changes in the amount you earn have a big effect on the amount of EIC you can get. (Sometimes earning more money means less EIC)  Are you 65 or older ?  If so, your standard deduction is higher. Everyone has a higher standard deduction now so it is harder to use itemized deductions.

And of course, always check your own data entries, looking for errors such as misplaced decimals or extra zeros.

https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/tax-refund/refund-go-compared-last-year/...

Print out 2023  and 2024  and compare them side by side to see what is different. 

https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tips/tax-payments/video-why-would-i-owe-federal-taxes/L3VXudPiN

[xmasbaby0]

You are posting from TurboTax Live.  You can arrange for the Live help you are paying the extra fee for with your questions from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. Pacific time Monday -Friday.

https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/product-setup/connect-tax-expert-turbota...

[VolvoGirl]

@latriciaaldermanboone9   If you only got a $247 refund that is actually a good thing.  It means your tax withholding covered the tax due on your income and you don't owe more.  And you didn't let the IRS keep your money all  year.  If you had a big refund it's like giving the IRS a loan without paying you interest.  

The federal and state income taxes taken out of your pay are just estimates to cover the tax on all your income.  If you want a bigger tax refund then you can increase the amount they take out of your checks each week.  So you can either have a smaller paycheck and get a big refund at the end of the year OR get a bigger paycheck and a small refund (or tax due) on your tax return.  

[Mike9241]

these are estimates because we can't see your return. likely you have a tax liability of around $5000 - line 24 or put another way taxable income of somewhere over $43K if filing as single - line 15. review your 1040 line for line and things should become clearer.

[Opus 17]

Taxes is really a simple math problem.  It's the rules that make it complicated, but the math is simple.  If you have $110 withholding ($5,720 per year) and you get a refund of $247, that means your actual tax was $5,473.  

If you wanted a larger refund, you would have more taken out each week, but that would mean you have less to spend each week.   It would be like setting up a forced savings account, where you pay extra to the IRS, so they can send it back to you as a lump sum.  But the IRS doesn't pay interest.  Better to save on your own, unless you completely lack the discipline.

Or, you can increase your refund by reducing the tax you owe, such as by making tax-deductible contributions to an IRA, or pre-tax contributions to a workplace 401k, or donations to charity.  But again, you would have less money to spend on other items of daily living.