Business & Economy

States where people receive the biggest tax refunds

Written by:
Leah Pace
September 17, 2018
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States where people receive the biggest tax refunds

The two constants in life, of course, are death and taxes. , but it's the Internal Revenue Service workers who have the truly impressive workload. Last year, they processed from both individuals and businesses.

Paying taxes can be painful … unless you've overpaid throughout the year and are eligible for a refund. In that case, the government cuts you a check. If you're an optimist, think of it like a fun, annual bonus from the government. If you're a realist, you know it's more like being paid back on an interest-free loan to the government. Regardless of your outlook, there are many refunds each year. In 2017, 121 million individuals—nearly half of all taxpayers—were paid $436 billion by the government. That's a sizeable chunk of change.

Every year, individual states dole out millions, or even billions, in refunds. How much is each person getting from that cut? Â鶹ԭ´´ has ranked each state from low to high. . The IRS tallied the total amount of refunds issued in each state and found the average per refund. This list includes all 50 states, plus the District of Columbia.

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#51. Montana

Tax refund per person: $2,421
Total IRS refunds: 383,966
Total amount refunded: $929,688,000

#50. Vermont

Tax refund per person: $2,443
Total IRS refunds: 259,915
Total amount refunded: $634,860,000

#49. Maine

Tax refund per person: $2,497
Total IRS refunds: 518,916
Total amount refunded: $1,295,965,000

#48. Idaho

Tax refund per person: $2,512
Total IRS refunds: 573,741
Total amount refunded: $1,441,498,000

#47. Wisconsin

Tax refund per person: $2,621
Total IRS refunds: 2,274,762
Total amount refunded: $5,961,644,000

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#46. West Virginia

Tax refund per person: $2,675
Total IRS refunds: 658,380
Total amount refunded: $1,761,388,000

#45. Hawaii

Tax refund per person: $2,682
Total IRS refunds: 545,207
Total amount refunded: $1,462,267,000

#44. Oregon

Tax refund per person: $2,692
Total IRS refunds: 1,459,595
Total amount refunded: $3,929,561,000

#43. New Mexico

Tax refund per person: $2,702
Total IRS refunds: 736,423
Total amount refunded: $1,989,921,000

#42. North Carolina

Tax refund per person: $2,726
Total IRS refunds: 3,635,581
Total amount refunded: $9,910,477,000

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#41. Michigan

Tax refund per person: $2,737
Total IRS refunds: 3,839,384
Total amount refunded: $10,507,569,000

#40. Kentucky

Tax refund per person: $2,742
Total IRS refunds: 1,612,373
Total amount refunded: $4,420,558,000

#39. Arizona

Tax refund per person: $2,750
Total IRS refunds: 2,277,407
Total amount refunded: $6,262,820,000

#38. Ohio

Tax refund per person: $2,776
Total IRS refunds: 4,640,883
Total amount refunded: $12,884,704,000

#37. New Hampshire

Tax refund per person: $2,801
Total IRS refunds: 568,397
Total amount refunded: $1,592,047,000

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#36. South Carolina

Tax refund per person: $2,828
Total IRS refunds: 1,743,517
Total amount refunded: $4,931,117,000

#35. Indiana

Tax refund per person: $2,832
Total IRS refunds: 2,612,413
Total amount refunded: $7,399,326,000

#34. Tennessee

Tax refund per person: $2,860
Total IRS refunds: 2,505,451
Total amount refunded: $7,165,543,000

#33. Arkansas

Tax refund per person: $2,912
Total IRS refunds: 1,007,785
Total amount refunded: $2,935,066,000

#32. Nebraska

Tax refund per person: $2,919
Total IRS refunds: 726,442
Total amount refunded: $2,120,377,000

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#31. Alabama

Tax refund per person: $2,933
Total IRS refunds: 1,676,151
Total amount refunded: $4,916,924,000

#30. Colorado

Tax refund per person: $2,964
Total IRS refunds: 2,051,877
Total amount refunded: $6,082,626,000

#29. Alaska

Tax refund per person: $2,966
Total IRS refunds: 283,436
Total amount refunded: $840,585,000

#28. South Dakota

Tax refund per person: $2,977
Total IRS refunds: 330,591
Total amount refunded: $984,209,000

#27. Kansas

Tax refund per person: $2,981
Total IRS refunds: 1,065,305
Total amount refunded: $3,175,384,000

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#26. Utah

Tax refund per person: $3,007
Total IRS refunds: 1,051,857
Total amount refunded: $3,162,991,000

#25. Nevada

Tax refund per person: $3,015
Total IRS refunds: 1,129,260
Total amount refunded: $3,404,334,000

#24. Mississippi

Tax refund per person: $3,017
Total IRS refunds: 1,035,489
Total amount refunded: $3,124,203,000

#23. Maryland

Tax refund per person: $3,039
Total IRS refunds: 2,363,151
Total amount refunded: $7,181,581,000

#22. Pennsylvania

Tax refund per person: $3,068
Total IRS refunds: 5,145,524
Total amount refunded: $15,787,448,000

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#21. Rhode Island

Tax refund per person: $3,081
Total IRS refunds: 445,927
Total amount refunded: $1,373,784,000

#20. Florida

Tax refund per person: $3,096
Total IRS refunds: 8,001,295
Total amount refunded: $24,770,258,000

#19. Missouri

Tax refund per person: $3,105
Total IRS refunds: 2,265,900
Total amount refunded: $7,035,631,000

#18. Virginia

Tax refund per person: $3,124
Total IRS refunds: 3,177,783
Total amount refunded: $9,927,175,000

#17. Georgia

Tax refund per person: $3,153
Total IRS refunds: 3,660,309
Total amount refunded: $11,539,377,000

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#16. North Dakota

Tax refund per person: $3,175
Total IRS refunds: 284,554
Total amount refunded: $903,489,000

#15. Wyoming

Tax refund per person: $3,191
Total IRS refunds: 221,537
Total amount refunded: $706,845,000

#14. Massachusetts

Tax refund per person: $3,202
Total IRS refunds: 2,751,130
Total amount refunded: $8,809,204,000

#13. Iowa

Tax refund per person: $3,231
Total IRS refunds: 1,162,882
Total amount refunded: $3,757,086,000

#12. Washington

Tax refund per person: $3,234
Total IRS refunds: 2,806,238
Total amount refunded: $9,074,335,000

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#11. California

Tax refund per person: $3,239
Total IRS refunds: 13,846,488
Total amount refunded: $44,842,074,000

#10. Louisiana

Tax refund per person: $3,261
Total IRS refunds: 1,640,935
Total amount refunded: $5,350,605,000

#9. District of Columbia

Tax refund per person: $3,330
Total IRS refunds: 283,179
Total amount refunded: $943,076,000

#8. New York

Tax refund per person: $3,458
Total IRS refunds: 7,860,621
Total amount refunded: $27,179,469,000

#7. Illinois

Tax refund per person: $3,525
Total IRS refunds: 5,067,372
Total amount refunded: $17,864,830,000

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#6. Oklahoma

Tax refund per person: $3,714
Total IRS refunds: 1,325,483
Total amount refunded: $4,922,820,000

#5. Minnesota

Tax refund per person: $3,846
Total IRS refunds: 2,149,182
Total amount refunded: $8,265,813,000

#4. Texas

Tax refund per person: $3,949
Total IRS refunds: 10,286,833
Total amount refunded: $40,627,689,000

#3. Connecticut

Tax refund per person: $4,001
Total IRS refunds: 1,422,410
Total amount refunded: $5,690,878,000

#2. New Jersey

Tax refund per person: $4,153
Total IRS refunds: 3,539,771
Total amount refunded: $14,700,625,000

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#1. Delaware

Tax refund per person: $4,445
Total IRS refunds: 375,420
Total amount refunded: $1,668,868,000

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