TaxesBeginner4 min read
Standard deduction vs. itemizing
Why most people stopped itemizing in 2018, and when it still makes sense.
Every taxpayer gets a choice: take the standard deduction (a fixed amount based on filing status) or itemize (list out individual deductions like mortgage interest, state taxes, and charitable donations). You pick whichever is larger.
Why almost everyone now takes the standard
The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act roughly doubled the standard deduction. For 2025, it's around $15,000 single and $30,000 married filing jointly. To beat that with itemized deductions, you need a lot of deductible expenses. Most people don't. Before 2018, about 30% of filers itemized. Now it's around 10%.
When itemizing still wins
- You own a home with significant mortgage interest (especially early in the loan).
- You live in a high-tax state and can deduct up to $10k of state and local taxes (the SALT cap).
- You make large charitable donations.
- You had a catastrophic year of medical expenses exceeding 7.5% of AGI.
Bunching
If you're near the threshold, 'bunching' charitable donations into alternating years — giving twice as much one year, nothing the next — can let you itemize every other year and take the standard in off years. Legal. Effective. Boring.
Put this into practice
Worth tracks your accounts, budgets, and goals — so the concepts in this article aren't just theory.
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