Estate tax headlines can be alarming, but the 2026 federal exemption is high enough that the overwhelming majority of estates never encounter it at all.
2026 estate tax exemption calculator, the number that matters
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act made the federal estate tax exemption permanent at $15 million per person starting 2026, with $30 million available to married couples through portability of the unused spousal exemption. Fewer than 1 in 1,000 US estates exceed this threshold.
Federal estate tax calculator, only the excess is taxed
Only the amount above the exemption is taxable — not the entire estate. A $20 million individual estate has a $15 million exemption applied first, leaving $5 million taxable. At the 40% top federal rate, that's $2 million in federal estate tax, with the remaining $18 million passing to heirs free of federal estate tax.
Does my estate owe estate tax, the state-level catch
Even when federal estate tax doesn't apply, some states levy their own estate or inheritance tax with exemption thresholds far below the federal $15 million — sometimes as low as $1-2 million. This calculator covers federal tax only; check your specific state's rules separately if your estate is sizable.
