Updated March 22, 2026, 10:29 a.m. ET
Nearly half of American taxpayers are counting on an IRS refund to help them pay the bills or get out of debt, a new survey finds.
This is a good year for refunds. The IRS has returned $161 billion to individual taxpayers through March 6. That’s 11% more than the agency refunded through the same week in 2025. The average refund is $3,676, also up from last year.
Refunds are higher this year, and taxes lower, thanks to President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, according to an analysis from the nonpartisan Tax Foundation.
Many Americans will count their tax refund as the largest single check they deposit in 2026.
“People just don’t get big checks in the mail all that often,” said Matt Schulz, chief consumer finance analyst at LendingTree.
And, judging by a March 16 LendingTree survey, many of us have already spent the money several times over in our minds.
Of more than 1,500 tax filers surveyed, 46% said they are relying on getting a refund in 2026. In three prior surveys, smaller shares of taxpayers said they were counting on money from the IRS.
Taxpayers are counting on IRS refunds in a shaky economy
Refunds are coming at a precarious moment for American consumers. The stock market is down. Gas prices are way up. The job market seems to be tightening.
“It’s just the reality of 2026 that a lot of people need a little bit of help to make ends meet,” Schulz said.
But some Americans may be overly optimistic about their chances of getting a refund. In the LendingTree survey, conducted in early February, nearly 9 in 10 filers said they expect to get one. The survey played out before most taxpayers had filed returns.
In fact, fewer than two-thirds of taxpayers reap refunds, according to IRS data for 2025.
A few specific demographic groups seem to be banking on refunds more than others:
- 63% of parents with children under age 18 are relying on a refund, compared with 32% of parents with adult children.
- 58% of millennials are counting on a refund, but only 45% of Gen Xers.
- 48% of men are relying on a refund, compared with 44% of women.
Roughly two in three taxpayers said a tax refund is important to their “overall financial situation,” the survey found. One in three said they are depending on it.
Here’s how taxpayers plan to spend their refunds
Rising prices have been a relentless theme for consumers over the past five years. No surprise, then, that many taxpayers plan to use any tax refund to pay everyday expenses. Here’s a Top 10 list of how people plan to spend their checks:
- Pay for everyday expenses (34%)
- Pay off debt (34%)
- Put it in a savings account/emergency fund (32%)
- Save it for a big purchase (19%)
- “Buy something I’ve wanted” (18%)
- Put it in retirement savings (15%)
- Help support family members (13%)
- Take a vacation (13%)
- Invest in stocks (11%)
- Donate to charity (8%)
Where’s my refund?
If you’re expecting a refund, you can track its progress at the Where’s my refund? page on the IRS website. Your refund status should be available 24 hours after you’ve filed a 2025 return electronically, the tax agency says. If you file a paper return, wait four weeks.
Your refund will take longer to arrive if you file a paper return. The typical wait, according to the IRS, is three weeks after you e-file, six weeks (or more) after the agency receives a return in the mail.
One more tip: You’ll get your refund a lot faster if you receive it by direct deposit.
