US federal tax revenue reached $5.31 trillion in fiscal year 2025, the highest annual total in the years shown, up 4.2% from FY2024’s $5.10 trillion, according to the Internal Revenue Service Data Book (Publication 55-B) released in April 2026. California, Texas, and New York together produced $1.66 trillion of the FY2025 total, accounting for 31.2% of all US federal tax dollars collected.
On a balance-of-payments basis (federal taxes paid minus federal dollars spent within the state), only two states, Massachusetts and New Jersey, end up as net donors over the most recent nine-year window, according to the Rockefeller Institute of Government’s 2025 Balance of Payments Report. The state figures below run on the freshest IRS primary source available, with a methodology section explaining how three different federal revenue cuts (gross collections, net receipts, and balance of payments) relate.
Key Takeaways
- US gross federal tax collections totaled $5.31 trillion in FY2025, up from $5.10 trillion in FY2024 (+4.2%), per IRS Data Book Publication 55-B.
- California led all states with $766.5 billion in FY2025 gross collections, equal to 14.4% of the national total.
- Texas $479.5 billion, and New York $411.4 billion, rounded out the top three, together with California producing $1.66 trillion in FY2025 federal gross collections.
- Individual income, employment, estate, and trust income taxes combined reached $4.71 trillion in FY2025, 88.6% of total federal gross collections, the dominant revenue source.
- Business income taxes fell to $486.4 billion in FY2025, down 13.9% year over year from FY2024’s $565.1 billion.
- Only 2 states (Massachusetts and New Jersey) are net donors on a nine-year average balance-of-payments basis, per Rockefeller Institute analysis.
- Federal refunds totaled $638.8 billion in FY2025, lowering net collections to $4.67 trillion after refunds.
Editor’s Choice
- FY2025 total IRS gross collections per Internal Revenue Service Data Book: $5.31 trillion.
- FY2025 Treasury receipts (net of refunds) per the Final Monthly Treasury Statement: $5.235 trillion.
- California FY2025 gross collections per IRS: $766.5 billion.
- Texas FY2025 gross collections per IRS: $479.5 billion.
- New York FY2025 gross collections per IRS: $411.4 billion.
- Number of federal returns filed FY2025 per IRS: 271.4 million.
- FY2025 federal deficit per Treasury: $1.775 trillion.
US Federal Tax Revenue by State (FY2025 IRS Gross Collections)
According to the Internal Revenue Service Data Book Publication 55-B (Table 1-5 Gross Collections by Type of Tax and State), the FY2025 state ranking runs as follows.
- United States total FY2025 gross collections reached $5.31 trillion in nominal dollars, the highest of the FY2020-FY2025 figures shown.
- California generated $766.5 billion, the single largest state contribution.
- Texas generated $479.5 billion, the second-largest state contribution.
- New York generated $411.4 billion, the third-largest state contribution.
- Florida generated $358.0 billion, and Illinois generated $227.7 billion, the fourth- and fifth-largest state contributions.
- Ohio $210.2 billion, New Jersey $192.1 billion, Pennsylvania $188.9 billion, Massachusetts $179.8 billion, and Washington $172.3 billion completed the FY2025 top 10.
- Within California’s total, business income taxes accounted for $109.4 billion, and individual income, employment, estate, and trust income taxes accounted for $643.5 billion.
| State | FY2025 gross collections ($B) | Business income tax ($B) | Individual + employment + estate/trust ($B) | Share of US total (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States, total | 5,313.8 | 486.4 | 4,705.7 | 100.0 |
| California | 766.5 | 109.4 | 643.5 | 14.4 |
| Texas | 479.5 | 37.0 | 414.4 | 9.0 |
| New York | 411.4 | 39.4 | 366.4 | 7.7 |
| Florida | 358.0 | 15.6 | 336.3 | 6.7 |
| Illinois | 227.7 | 21.5 | 199.9 | 4.3 |
| Ohio | 210.2 | 16.0 | 185.5 | 4.0 |
| New Jersey | 192.1 | 27.2 | 161.7 | 3.6 |
| Pennsylvania | 188.9 | 15.3 | 168.9 | 3.6 |
| Massachusetts | 179.8 | 13.5 | 164.0 | 3.4 |
| Washington | 172.3 | 26.1 | 142.6 | 3.2 |
| Virginia | 125.9 | 11.1 | 113.5 | 2.4 |
| Alabama | 39.6 | 1.9 | 37.2 | 0.7 |
Source: IRS Data Book FY2025 (Publication 55-B), Table 1-5 Gross Collections by Type of Tax and State
Methodology
Gross vs. net is the first methodology question every reader of federal revenue data should ask, and competing pages rarely answer it. This subsection lists the basis explicitly so the figures above stay traceable.
- Source name and URL: IRS Data Book FY2025 (Publication 55-B), Table 1-5,
https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p55b.pdf. - Extraction date: 2026-06-24.
- Extraction window: Federal Fiscal Year 2025 (October 1, 2024, through September 30, 2025).
- Filters applied: none (full Table 1-5 reproduced).
- Basis: gross collections, which include penalties and interest in addition to taxes, before refunds. Modified cash basis.
- Refresh cadence: annual; next release expected April 2027 with FY2026 data.
IRS gross collections of $5.31 trillion sit above the Monthly Treasury Statement net receipts of $5.235 trillion because gross collections precede the $638.8 billion in FY2025 refunds and include interest and penalties. The Rockefeller Institute balance-of-payments figures are a third, separate cut, federal revenue net of refunds minus federal expenditures spent within the state.
Top 10 States by Federal Tax Revenue
- California led FY2025 federal gross collections with $766.5 billion, 14.4% of the national total.
- Texas ranked second with $479.5 billion, 9.0% of the national total.
- New York ranked third with $411.4 billion, 7.7% of the national total.
- Florida ranked fourth with $358.0 billion, 6.7% of the national total.
- Illinois ranked fifth with $227.7 billion, 4.3% of the national total.
- Ohio ranked sixth with $210.2 billion, 4.0% of the national total.
- New Jersey ranked seventh with $192.1 billion, 3.6% of the national total.
- Pennsylvania ranked eighth with $188.9 billion, 3.6% of the national total.
- Massachusetts ranked ninth with $179.8 billion, 3.4% of the national total.
- Washington ranked tenth with $172.3 billion, 3.2% of the national total.
| State | FY2025 gross collections ($B) | Share of US total (%) |
|---|---|---|
| California | 766.5 | 14.4 |
| Texas | 479.5 | 9.0 |
| New York | 411.4 | 7.7 |
| Florida | 358.0 | 6.7 |
| Illinois | 227.7 | 4.3 |
| Ohio | 210.2 | 4.0 |
| New Jersey | 192.1 | 3.6 |
| Pennsylvania | 188.9 | 3.6 |
| Massachusetts | 179.8 | 3.4 |
| Washington | 172.3 | 3.2 |
Source: IRS Data Book FY2025, Table 1-5
By the numbers: The top five states (California, Texas, New York, Florida, and Illinois) produced $2.24 trillion in FY2025 gross collections combined, 42.2% of the $5.31 trillion US total. The remaining 45 states, DC, Puerto Rico, and territories contributed the other 57.8%.
The concentration of federal gross collections in three coastal states (California, New York, Massachusetts) plus two large-economy non-coastal states (Texas, Florida) is a structural feature of the US tax system rather than a transient outcome.
Customs duties sit outside the IRS gross-collections series above; together they trace the federal revenue mix from a different angle than the income-tax data here.
Recent Developments
- April 2026: The IRS released the FY2025 Data Book (Publication 55-B), confirming $5.31 trillion in FY2025 gross federal collections from 271.4 million returns.
- June 23, 2026: Treasury Fiscal Data published the most recent Monthly Treasury Statement update with data through May 31, 2026; the next MTS release is expected July 13, 2026.
- April 2026: The IRS noted in the FY2025 Data Book that 116.9 million refunds totaling $516.4 billion were issued to individuals in FY2025.
- August 2025: The Rockefeller Institute released its 2025 Balance of Payments report with preliminary FFY 2023 state-by-state donor and recipient figures.
- October 2025: Treasury published the Final Monthly Treasury Statement for FY2025, recording $5.235 trillion in net receipts, $7.010 trillion in outlays, and a $1.775 trillion federal deficit.
- FY2025 monthly receipts in the Final MTS show $326.8 billion in October 2024, $301.8 billion in November 2024, $454.4 billion in December 2024, and $513.3 billion in January 2025.
Federal Tax Revenue by Tax Type
- Individual, estate, and trust income taxes combined for $3.011 trillion in FY2025, 56.7% of total federal gross collections.
- Employment taxes totaled $1.694 trillion in FY2025, 31.9% of total gross collections.
- Business income taxes totaled $486.4 billion in FY2025, 9.2% of total gross collections.
- Excise taxes rose to $90.6 billion in FY2025, up from $77.9 billion in FY2024 (+16.2%).
- Estate and gift taxes totaled $31.1 billion in FY2025.
- Corporation income tax alone accounted for $484.2 billion of the business income tax line in FY2025.
- Individual income tax withheld totaled $1.953 trillion, and individual income tax payments totaled $983.7 billion in FY2025.
Worth noting: The FY2024-to-FY2025 composition shifted toward individual revenue and away from business income, with individual + estate/trust up 9.0% while business income taxes fell 13.9%. Excise taxes posted the largest percentage gain at +16.2%, though from a small base of $77.9 billion to $90.6 billion.
The drop in business income taxes coincides with the corporate-tax-base contraction tracked alongside investment banking industry revenue, where deal volumes and pre-tax income feed the corporate line directly.
Federal Tax Revenue Per Return by State
- California filed 31.0 million returns in FY2025 against $766.5 billion in gross collections.
- New York filed 17.3 million returns in FY2025.
- Florida filed 21.6 million returns, and Illinois filed 10.5 million returns in FY2025.
- Massachusetts filed 6.2 million returns, and New Jersey filed 8.2 million returns in FY2025.
- The United States as a whole filed 271.4 million returns in FY2025, of which 162.8 million were individual income tax returns.
- The IRS collected the most total tax (before refunds) from California, Texas, and New York in FY2025, while California, Texas, and Florida had the largest total refunds issued.
California’s per-return figure works out to approximately $24,700 per return when total state gross collections are divided by total returns filed. Massachusetts files fewer returns (6.2 million), but its higher gross collections ($179.8 billion) translate into approximately $29,100 per return, the highest among the large states shown here.
Per-return is a different cut from per-capita. Table 1-3 returns include individual, business, employment, and estate/trust forms, so the ratio measures federal tax collected per federal return filed, not per resident. Per-capita would require Census population denominators and mix two different agencies’ methodologies. Institutional investors handling concentrated portfolios in high-per-return states show up further upstream in the data on cryptocurrency adoption by institutional investors, which provides cross-asset context on where high-income activity is concentrated.
Donor States vs Recipient States
- On the nine-year average balance-of-payments basis (federal revenue collected from a state minus federal expenditures spent within that state), only 2 states end up as net donors: New Jersey at –$13.0 billion and Massachusetts at –$1.3 billion.
- Virginia topped the recipient list at +$100.9 billion, followed by Texas $72.2 billion, Maryland $71.2 billion, Florida $67.2 billion, and Pennsylvania $55.7 billion on the same nine-year average basis.
- Excluding COVID-19 emergency spending, 4 states (California, New York, Massachusetts, and New Jersey) become net donors on the nine-year average: New Jersey –$26.5 billion, California –$29.0 billion, New York –$23.1 billion, and Massachusetts –$12.1 billion.
- California flips from +$36.0 billion (rank 14) on the nine-year average including COVID to –$29.0 billion (rank 50) when COVID-19 emergency spending is excluded.
- New York’s preliminary FFY 2023 balance of payments was +$13.3 billion at rank 27, with a per-capita figure of $674; the US average per capita was $4,099.
- Texas ranked 2nd by total dollars on the nine-year average, including COVID (+$72.2 billion), but drops to 6th at +$37.3 billion when COVID-19 spending is excluded.
| State | Nine-year avg BoP ($B) | Rank | Nine-year avg BoP excl COVID ($B) | Rank excl COVID |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virginia | 100.9 | 1 | 91.4 | 1 |
| Texas | 72.2 | 2 | 37.3 | 6 |
| Maryland | 71.2 | 3 | 63.2 | 2 |
| Florida | 67.2 | 4 | 41.1 | 3 |
| Pennsylvania | 55.7 | 5 | n/a | n/a |
| California | 36.0 | 14 | -29.0 | 50 |
| New York | 13.1 | 27 | -23.1 | 48 |
| Massachusetts | -1.3 | 49 | -12.1 | 47 |
| New Jersey | -13.0 | 50 | -26.5 | 49 |
Source: Rockefeller Institute of Government, 2025 Balance of Payments Report (preliminary FFY 2023 data)
Key finding: When pandemic funding is excluded from the analysis, the donor-recipient picture flips dramatically. California moves from rank 14 (with COVID) to rank 50 (without), and New York’s BoP falls from +$13.1 billion to –$23.1 billion, per Rockefeller Institute analysis. The methodology choice (including or excluding pandemic spending) reshapes the entire ranking.
The COVID-19 segregation matters because emergency spending was administered nationally but allocated based on where residents and businesses received the funds, which artificially boosted the recipient figures for states that processed large volumes of stimulus checks, unemployment supplements, and ERC-style payroll credits. For a complementary state-level fiscal context, see also SEC and CFTC regulatory enforcement data, which shows how federal regulatory receipts and penalties flow back through state-based market participants.
US Federal Tax Revenue Trend Since 2020
- FY2020 IRS gross collections totaled $3.49 trillion, the FY2020 baseline.
- FY2021 gross collections rose to $4.11 trillion (+17.7% year over year).
- FY2022 gross collections reached $4.90 trillion (+19.2% year over year).
- FY2023 gross collections fell to $4.69 trillion (-4.2% year over year).
- FY2024 gross collections recovered to $5.10 trillion (+8.7% year over year).
- FY2025 gross collections reached $5.31 trillion (+4.2% year over year), the highest of the FY2020-FY2025 figures shown.
- The six-year change from FY2020 to FY2025 amounts to +52.1% in gross dollars ($3.49 trillion to $5.31 trillion).
- Individual income tax growth across this period tracks broader retail-investor activity covered in US retail investing data, which provides a cross-asset context on where individual taxable income was concentrated.
Pre-FY2008 historical figures combine estate-and-trust income tax with individual income tax (per IRS footnote on Table 1-6); FY2025 keeps the two lines separate. Across the data we’ve tracked, federal gross collections grew through the FY2020 to FY2025 stretch despite a single down-year in FY2023, a pattern consistent with broader nominal-economy growth and the FY2022 tax-receipts surge that the IRS noted in its Data Book opening commentary.
Which state pays the most federal taxes?
- California leads all US states in federal tax revenue, paying $766.5 billion in gross collections in FY2025, approximately 14.4% of all US federal tax dollars.
- Texas ($479.5 billion) and New York ($411.4 billion) follow in second and third place.
- Together, the top three states produced $1.66 trillion in FY2025 federal tax revenue, nearly a third of the US total of $5.31 trillion.
What is a donor state, and which states qualify?
- A donor state pays more in federal taxes than the federal government spends within its borders.
- Per the Rockefeller Institute’s 2025 Balance of Payments report (preliminary FFY 2023 data), only two states end up as net donors on a nine-year average basis: New Jersey at –$13.0 billion and Massachusetts at –$1.3 billion.
- Excluding COVID-19 emergency spending, four states become net donors: California, New York, Massachusetts, and New Jersey.
How does federal tax revenue from California compare with that of Texas and New York?
- California’s $766.5 billion FY2025 federal gross collections substantially exceed Texas’s $479.5 billion and New York’s $411.4 billion.
- California’s gap over Texas is $287.0 billion (approximately 60% more for California).
- On a per-return basis, the gap is narrower: California at approximately $24,700 per return, versus Texas at approximately $27,400 per return and New York at approximately $23,700 per return, reflecting Texas’s higher revenue per return despite filing fewer total returns.
Conclusion
The FY2025 federal tax record of $5.31 trillion in gross collections, up 4.2% from FY2024, lands within a six-year stretch that has added $1.82 trillion to annual federal gross receipts since FY2020. The four data axes covered above, the 50-state ranking, the FY2024-vs-FY2025 tax-type breakdown, the per-return derivation, and the donor-vs-recipient balance of payments, give researchers, fiscal-policy analysts, state finance directors, tax journalists, and business owners tracking their state’s contribution share a primary-source reading of the federal-revenue picture as of this year.
The next IRS Data Book release is expected in April 2027 with FY2026 data; the next Monthly Treasury Statement update is expected on July 13, 2026; and the next Rockefeller Institute Balance of Payments report is expected in mid-2026 with FFY 2024 preliminary data. Until those refreshes land, the figures above remain the freshest primary-source cuts available.
