How much money does the US federal government collect?

 

How much money does the US federal government collect?

Federal revenue has increased 2.5 times from FY 1980 to 2025 (adjusted for inflation), while the nation’s population increased about 1.5 times. That means the government is collecting more revenue per person, on average, than it used to. Let’s look at what the government collects and how that’s changed.   Government revenue is the total amount of money received from individual and corporate taxes, as well as other sources. In fiscal year 2025, the federal government collected $5.26 trillion, or about $15,400 per person in the US. Of course, the amount collected per person varies based on their income and other factors.     Revenues were up 3.6% from the $5.08 trillion collected in FY 2024 after adjusting for inflation. Higher revenue from individual income taxes drove this growth from the year prior, and could have been due to a variety of factors, including income growth or the number of taxpayers.

For comparison, federal revenue was up 19.9% from the $4.39 trillion collected in FY 2019, just before the COVID-19 pandemic.     The government shares preliminary revenue data on what it’s collected so far this fiscal year, which began on October 1, 2025. The early data shows it has brought in $1.25 trillion in individual income taxes and $870.5 billion in payroll taxes in the first six months of FY 2026.    The government’s fiscal year 2026 budget deficit was about $954 billion as of this past April.    For a deeper dive into how the government collects revenue, watch this video featuring USAFacts Founder Steve Ballmer.