Head of household filing status can save you money on your taxes — if you qualify

Your tax filing status — married filing jointly or separately, single, head of household — can make a big difference when it comes to how much you’ll owe at tax time. The head of household filing status, which is for single people with dependents, is more valuable than filing as a single taxpayer, thanks to a lower tax rate and higher standard deduction.

For example, a head of household filer with $60,000 of taxable income for the 2024 tax year would pay almost $1,400 less in taxes than a single filer would — and that’s based solely on the difference in income tax rates, not even counting the higher standard deduction for head of household filers.

But it’s crucial to understand whether you qualify as a head of household filer before checking that box on your Form 1040. Failing to pick the correct status can mean you don’t pay what you owe in taxes — and that can lead to underpayment penalties, among other issues.

What is head of household filing status?

When it comes time to file your taxes, you have five choices for filing status:

• single
• married filing jointly
• married filing separately
• head of household
• qualifying surviving spouse

The head of household filing status is for taxpayers who are unmarried and have a dependent, but aren’t a dependent themselves. A single parent, for example, is likely to qualify as a head of household.

Taxpayers who file as head of household typically enjoy a lower federal income tax rate and a higher standard deduction than other single taxpayers who file as single or married filing separately.

You can choose the head of household filing status by marking the appropriate box near the top of Form 1040.

Who qualifies for head of household filing status?

To qualify for the head of household status, you must be unmarried or “considered unmarried,” have paid more than half the cost of keeping up a home for the year and live with a dependent for more than half the year (in some cases, the dependent doesn’t have to live with you).

The IRS deems you unmarried for the full year if on the last day of the tax year you’re unmarried or legally separated through a divorce or separate maintenance decree.

You’re “considered unmarried” if you meet all of the following requirements:

• You’re filing a separate tax return
• You paid more than half the cost of keeping up your home for the tax year
• Your spouse didn’t live in your home the last six months of the tax year
• Your home was the main home of your child, stepchild or foster child for more than half the year, and you can claim the child as a dependent

If you live with your child and their other parent but you and the other parent are not married, only one of you can claim the child as a qualifying child to file as head of household. If you’re divorced and your ex-spouse is claiming your child as a dependent, you may still be able to file as head of household. You must have paid more than half the cost of keeping up the child’s main home for more than half the year, and your child must be a qualifying child for purposes other than the dependency exemption and the child tax credit.

The cost of keeping a home includes rent, mortgage interest, real estate taxes, home insurance, repairs, utilities and food eaten in the home. But it doesn’t include clothing, education, medical treatment, vacations, life insurance or transportation.

Who is a qualified dependent for head of household filing status?

There are many different types of dependents who can qualify you for head of household status. Unsurprisingly, a child you can claim as a dependent would count.

Qualifying children must be related to you (as child, stepchild, foster child, sibling, half-sibling, step-sibling, adopted child or the child of one of these), and be under age 19, or under age 24 if they’re a full-time student, or any age if they’re disabled. They also must live with you for more than half the year, get more than half their financial support from you and not file as married filing jointly unless it’s to claim a refund of taxes paid or withheld.

Other relatives — such as your parent, sibling or grandparent — can also qualify you for the head of household status as long as they can be claimed as your dependent. The general rules for qualifying relatives to be dependents are that they live with you (with some exceptions), have a gross income under $5,050 and get more than half their financial support from you.

While a dependent has to live with you in the home for more than half the year, there are exceptions for temporary absences such as school. And if the qualifying person is your dependent parent, they don’t necessarily have to live with you. Check out the IRS rules for filing as head of household.

Advantages of the head of household filing status

If you file your taxes as a head of household, more of your taxable income falls into lower tax brackets compared with single taxpayers and those who are married filing separately.

For example, let’s look at two different taxpayers. One taxpayer files as a single filer, and the other taxpayer qualifies for the head of household tax status. Each taxpayer has taxable income of $60,000.

Tax rate for single filer with taxable income of $60,000:

• 10 percent on income up to $11,600 = $1,160 tax
• plus 12 percent on income from $11,600 to $47,150 = $4,266 tax
• plus 22 percent on income from $47,150 to $60,000 = $2,827 tax

Total tax bill: $8,253

Tax rate for head of household filer with taxable income of $60,000:

• 10 percent on income up to $16,550 = $1,655 tax
• plus 12 percent on income from $16,550 to $60,000 = $5,214 tax

Total tax bill: $6,869

In other words, the head of household filer’s tax bill is almost $1,400 lower. And that’s only counting the lower tax rates for that filing status; the above calculation doesn’t include the benefit of a higher standard deduction.

For the 2024 tax year, the standard deduction is $21,900 for head of household filers, compared with $14,600 for single taxpayers and married people filing separately. The standard deduction reduces the amount of your income that’s taxable.