What Retirees Pay in State Income Tax: 2026 Data for 5 Retiree Households

Key findings

• 28 of the 50 states and DC tax the $90,000 couple $0. That's the 9 with no tax on wages, plus 19 that have an income tax but whose retirement exclusions, deductions and credits cover this couple's income: Alabama, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Michigan and 7 more.
• The highest bill for that couple is $2,249 in Oregon (2.5% of their income), followed by Massachusetts ($1,990) and Vermont ($1,486). In the states that tax them at all, the typical (median) bill is $637.
• A single retiree with $44,000 pays nothing in 37 states; the most is $808 in Oregon.
• Higher income, fewer breaks. The $190,000 couple pays $0 in 12 states; with more taxable income and exclusions that are capped or end above income limits, the median bill where they're taxed is $3,987, and Minnesota takes the most: $9,303.
• Retired public employees: the $94,000 couple with a pension from their state's own system pays $0 in 29 states, and the most in Oregon ($3,870). In Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Missouri and New York they pay less than the private-pension couple despite $20,000 more pension and IRA income, because those states exempt their own public pensions more generously than private ones.
• Military retirees: the couple with $74,000 including $40,000 of military retired pay owes $0 in 41 states; the most is $2,344 in Oregon.
• 3 states with an income tax charge none of the five households anything: Iowa, Michigan and Mississippi.

Your own numbers will differ. Calculate your own state retirement tax with your ages, income sources and filing status, or open the calculator on any state from the table below.

The five households

1. Single retiree, $44,000. Single, 67: $24,000 of Social Security and $20,000 of IRA withdrawals. Total income $44,000.
2. Middle-income couple, $90,000. Married, both 67: $40,000 of Social Security, one spouse's $30,000 private-company pension, and $20,000 of IRA withdrawals split evenly between the spouses. Total income $90,000.
3. Higher-income couple, $190,000. Married, both 70: $60,000 of Social Security; one spouse's $60,000 private-company pension and $20,000 of 401(k) withdrawals; $40,000 of IRA withdrawals split evenly; and $10,000 of interest. Total income $190,000.
4. Retired public employees, $94,000. Married, both 67: one spouse's $60,000 pension from the state's own retirement system (a retired teacher, for example), $24,000 of Social Security and $10,000 of IRA withdrawals split evenly. Total income $94,000.
5. Military retiree couple, $74,000. Married, both 62: one spouse's $40,000 of military retired pay, $24,000 of Social Security and $10,000 of IRA withdrawals split evenly. Total income $74,000.

No household has wages, capital gains or itemized deductions. On joint returns the pension, military pay and 401(k) money belong to one spouse, while IRA withdrawals, interest and Social Security are split evenly; that matters in states whose exclusions are per person. Private pensions are assumed to be fully employer-funded (Hawaii, for one, taxes the part of a pension that comes from employee contributions).

Method and limits

1. Engine: each household runs through the same 2026 state rules as our retirement tax by state calculator: brackets and flat rates, standard deductions and exemptions, retirement-income exclusions by age, income source, cap and income limit, extra amounts at 65+, each state's treatment of Social Security, and the federal figures states start from (federal AGI or taxable income, including the 2025–2028 senior deduction where a state follows it). See the methodology for how calculations are checked.
2. Federal pieces: taxable Social Security uses the IRS Publication 915 formula. It sets the tax on benefits in the states that tax them (Colorado, Connecticut, Minnesota, Montana, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Utah and Vermont, each with its own exemptions) and feeds income limits in several others.
3. Tax year: 2026 rules where states have published them; where a 2026 amount isn't out yet (some brackets, caps and thresholds), the latest published amount is used. The CSV's approximate column flags states the engine can only approximate.
4. Public pensions are from the state's own system. A pension from another state's system, or federal civil service, is treated differently in many states.

Limits: state income tax only. Local income taxes aren't included (those that reach retirement income, such as Maryland's and Indiana's county taxes, Iowa's school surtax and New York City's, would add to these figures), nor are property taxes, sales taxes and estate taxes so this is not a ranking of overall cost or of "tax-friendliness." Credits that depend on property tax or rent, and anything that depends on tax years after 2026, are left out. Figures are rounded to the dollar.

Sources

1. State tax rules for retirees (each state's 2026 rules, with links to every revenue department) — Work & Money. Accessed October 18, 2026.
2. Publication 915 (2025), Social Security and Equivalent Railroad Retirement Benefits — Internal Revenue Service. Accessed October 18, 2026.
3. Rev. Proc. 2025-32 (2026 inflation adjustments) — Internal Revenue Service. Accessed October 18, 2026.