Taxes / Refunds
7 min Read
Written by Laura Beck
Edited by Amber Barkley
The vast majority of Americans don’t enjoy filing their taxes. Even to those for whom it’s a relatively painless process, it still represents a chore. However, no matter how much you hate the process of putting your return together, you probably love the day the money from your refund hits your bank account.
While plenty of personal finance experts insist that you adjust your withholding so that you can earn interest on it throughout the year, many Americans still seem to prefer receiving it as one lump sum shortly after they file. And certainly, if that ensures the cash gets invested or put in savings, it’s probably worth foregoing that extra little bit of interest you can earn by reducing your withholding.
So, which Americans are getting the most back on their tax returns? To get to the bottom of that question, GOBankingRates compiled a list of all 50 states, ranked by the size of the average return people received for the 2022 tax year — the taxes you filed at the beginning of 2023. The study took the total amount of money issued as returns in each state and divided it by the number of returns with a refund to come up with the average return. See where your state ranks among the rest of the country in terms of getting that fat check from Uncle Sam.
Idaho
- Number of refunds issued: 1,286,619
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $1,763,227,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,370
Oregon
- Number of refunds issued: 2,842,777
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $4,378,396,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,540
Maine
- Number of refunds issued: 944,371
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $1,479,556,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,567
Vermont
- Number of refunds issued: 440,517
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $693,381,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,574
Montana
- Number of refunds issued: 742,501
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $1,184,129,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,595
New Mexico
- Number of refunds issued: 1,499,721
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $2,437,752,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,625
Minnesota
- Number of refunds issued: 3,970,935
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $6,559,739,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,652
Nebraska
- Number of refunds issued: 1,404,018
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $2,326,430,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,657
Wisconsin
- Number of refunds issued: 4,121,337
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $6,844,299,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,661
North Carolina
- Number of refunds issued: 7,510,558
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $12,686,046,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,689
Hawaii
- Number of refunds issued: 982,621
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $1,668,198,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,698
South Carolina
- Number of refunds issued: 3,673,855
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $6,240,281,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,699
Rhode Island
- Number of refunds issued: 786,960
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $1,338,545,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,701
Kentucky
- Number of refunds issued: 3,208,928
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $5,465,995,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,703
Kansas
- Number of refunds issued: 2,054,691
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $3,505,170,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,706
Utah
- Number of refunds issued: 2,356,556
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $4,025,637,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,708
Colorado
- Number of refunds issued: 4,075,961
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $6,973,265,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,711
Ohio
- Number of refunds issued: 8,532,813
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $14,658,351,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,718
Iowa
- Number of refunds issued: 2,221,770
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $3,824,272,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,721
New Hampshire
- Number of refunds issued: 968,426
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $1,669,428,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,724
Arizona
- Number of refunds issued: 5,065,087
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $8,739,170,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,725
California
- Number of refunds issued: 27,215,414
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $46,959,301,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,725
West Virginia
- Number of refunds issued: 1,217,658
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $2,106,042,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,730
Missouri
- Number of refunds issued: 4,367,880
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $7,587,530,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,737
Virginia
- Number of refunds issued: 6,082,710
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $10,580,139,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,739
Delaware
- Number of refunds issued: 725,569
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $1,263,969,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,742
Maryland
- Number of refunds issued: 4,475,264
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $7,804,048,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,744
Indiana
- Number of refunds issued: 5,019,014
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $8,791,208,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,752
Pennsylvania
- Number of refunds issued: 9,279,255
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $16,327,099,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,760
Arkansas
- Number of refunds issued: 2,153,904
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $3,794,200,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,762
Michigan
- Number of refunds issued: 7,075,683
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $12,532,381,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,771
Washington
- Number of refunds issued: 5,379,202
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $9,545,674,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,775
North Dakota
- Number of refunds issued: 536,582
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $959,992,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,789
Tennessee
- Number of refunds issued: 4,985,921
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $8,946,038,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,794
Massachusetts
- Number of refunds issued: 4,810,841
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $8,640,718,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,796
New Jersey
- Number of refunds issued: 6,541,529
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $11,751,647,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,796
Alaska
- Number of refunds issued: 536,903
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $970,276,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,807
Alabama
- Number of refunds issued: 3,485,204
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $6,339,107,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,819
New York
- Number of refunds issued: 13,966,079
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $25,575,228,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,831
Oklahoma
- Number of refunds issued: 2,809,496
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $5,166,899,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,839
Mississippi
- Number of refunds issued: 2,197,370
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $4,069,908,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,852
Georgia
- Number of refunds issued: 7,883,778
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $14,615,732,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,854
Connecticut
- Number of refunds issued: 2,536,235
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $4,728,785,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,864
South Dakota
- Number of refunds issued: 638,068
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $1,190,593,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,866
Nevada
- Number of refunds issued: 2,343,474
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $4,400,718,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,878
Illinois
- Number of refunds issued: 9,059,344
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $17,090,115,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,886
Louisiana
- Number of refunds issued: 3,334,600
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $6,494,379,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,948
Texas
- Number of refunds issued: 22,324,670
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $43,499,670,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,949
Wyoming
- Number of refunds issued: 415,658
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $810,466,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,950
Florida
- Number of refunds issued: 15,837,100
- Total dollar amount of refunds issued: $31,578,695,000
- Average refund issued per return: $1,994
Alexandria Bova contributed to the reporting for this article.
GOBankingRates, using the Internal Revenue Service’s SOI Tax Stats for the fiscal year 2022, found the average refund check in every state by first finding each state’s total number of tax refunds issued and the total dollar amount of refunds issued for individual income tax and employment tax. The second figure was divided by the first to give the only ranking factor of Average Refund Issued Per Return. All data was collected on and up to date as of Feb. 5, 2024.
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