Methodology
Changelog
A dated, sourced record of every change to the financial data, contribution limits, tax figures, and calculation logic behind our calculators — including corrections we've made along the way. This page implements Section 9 of our Editorial & Verification Policy. It doesn't list every new calculator we've shipped or content edit we've made — only changes that affect what a calculator returns.
- Data updates logged
- 10
- Corrections logged
- 27
- Last updated
- October 2, 2026
- Correction
Income Analysis Suite: bonus and investment income no longer counted twice
The suite added your bonus and investment income to your salary and then added them again, so the default example ($75,000 salary, $5,000 bonus, $1,200 investment income, $6,000 pre-tax deductions, single) showed $15,581 of tax instead of $13,834. Each income item is now counted once, using the 2026 federal brackets and standard deduction and 2026 FICA rates.
Source: IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32; IRS Publication 15 (2026)Income Analysis Suite → - Financial Data & Assumptions
Cost of Living Calculator: city price levels updated to BEA's 2024 figures
City price levels now use the Bureau of Economic Analysis's 2024 metro-area Regional Price Parities (released February 19, 2026). Several cities previously used values that did not match BEA's published figures; for example San Francisco versus Columbus, OH now shows a 21.05% price gap (115.6 vs 95.5) instead of 31.52%.
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities by State and Metro AreaCost of Living Calculator → - Correction
Capital gains and stock return calculators: short-term gains, dividends and NIIT
Capital Gains Tax: short-term gains were taxed at your top bracket rate on the whole gain; they are now taxed as the difference in bracket tax with and without the gain ($4,686 instead of $4,800 on a $20,000 gain at $100,000 of income, single). Stock Return: dividends are now taxed with the gain inside the 2026 long-term capital-gains bands, short-term results use the bracket difference, and the 3.8% net investment income tax is added above the IRS thresholds.
Source: IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32 (2026 capital-gains breakpoints); IRS Net Investment Income TaxCapital Gains Tax Calculator →Stock Return Calculator → - Correction
Stock split, HSA and real-estate calculators: rounding and blank-input fixes
Stock Split: the new cost basis per share was rounded to whole dollars ($8 instead of $7.50 for 100 shares at $15 after a 2-for-1 split); it now shows cents. HSA: a blank months-eligible, return or tax-drag field was read as zero instead of the default. House Hacking: 0% down and 0% vacancy were replaced by 5%; zero now stays zero. Flipping Profit: a blank down payment was read as 0% instead of the 20% default.
Source: IRS stock splits FAQStock Split Calculator →HSA Calculator →House Hacking Calculator →Flipping Profit Calculator → - Correction
Mortgage Calculator: interest-only loans now repay principal after the interest-only period
With the Interest Only option, the calculator never started repaying principal, so a $320,000 loan at 7% showed a 30-year payoff while the full balance was still owed, and 30 years of interest ($672,000). It now charges interest only for the first 10 years and then repays the balance over the remaining 20, showing both payments ($1,867, then $2,481) and total interest of $499,430. The PMI note now says that 20% equity is when you can ask to cancel PMI; federal law ends it automatically at 22% equity on the original schedule.
Source: Homeowners Protection Act, 12 U.S.C. 4901-4902 (PMI cancellation and termination)Mortgage Calculator → - Correction
FHA Loan Calculator: higher annual MIP for loans above $726,200
HUD charges a higher annual mortgage insurance premium when the base loan is above $726,200 (for example 0.75% instead of 0.55% on a 30-year loan with 3.5% down). The calculator applied the lower rates to every loan, so high-cost-area borrowers saw MIP that was too low. It now follows HUD's full table by term, loan size and loan-to-value.
Source: HUD Mortgagee Letter 2023-05FHA Loan Calculator → - Correction
Closing Costs Estimator: FHA and VA fees now use your down payment
The FHA upfront MIP and VA funding fee assumed the minimum down payment even when you entered a larger one, so a VA buyer putting 10% down on a $400,000 home saw a $8,600 fee instead of $4,500 (1.25% of $360,000). The fees now use the down payment you enter, and Total Cash Needed to Close no longer includes these fees, which are normally financed into the loan.
Source: HUD Mortgagee Letter 2023-05; VA funding fee tableClosing Costs Estimator → - Correction
Home Affordability and Refinance calculators: two input and cost fixes
Home Affordability: entering 0% down (as on a VA loan), 0% property tax or $0 insurance silently fell back to 20%, 1.2% and $1,000; zero now stays zero. Refinance Analyzer: when closing costs were rolled into the new loan, they dropped out of the lifetime cost comparison, understating what the refinance costs by the full closing costs; they are now counted either way.
- Correction
ARM Calculator: separate first-adjustment cap
A Loan Estimate lists two caps: the most the rate can change at the first adjustment and at each later one. The calculator used one cap for both, let the rate fall without any cap, and showed an error if the index, margin or cap field was cleared. It now has a First Adjustment Cap input (defaulting to the same 2% as before, so default results are unchanged), caps changes in both directions, and handles blank fields.
Source: Regulation Z, 12 CFR 1026.37(j)ARM Calculator → - Correction
Debt Payoff Optimizer: paid-off minimums now roll to the next debt
Snowball and avalanche both work by rolling each paid-off debt's minimum payment into the next debt. The calculator dropped those payments instead, so payoff took longer than it should. With the default debts and $200 extra, payoff falls from 2.8 to 2.5 years and interest from $1,992 to $1,908.
- Correction
Student Loan Repayment Calculator: current federal plan rules
The Extended plan was offered at any balance; it requires more than $30,000 in Direct Loans and is not available to anyone with a loan made on or after July 1, 2026. The calculator now applies that rule, adds the Tiered Standard plan (10, 15, 20 or 25 years depending on balance) for borrowers with newer loans, and applies the $50 minimum monthly payment.
Source: 34 CFR 685.208Student Loan Repayment → - Financial Data & Assumptions
Car loan calculators now default to the Federal Reserve's 60-month new-car rate
The Car Loan and Auto Loan Amortization calculators now start at 7.14%, the average 60-month new-car loan rate at commercial banks in the Federal Reserve's G.19 release (Q2 2026). The input help names the series. Other loan pages label their default rate as an example rather than current market data.
- Correction
Title Insurance Calculator now follows each state's rate rules exactly
Checked line by line against the Texas Department of Insurance 2026 rate sheet and Rate Rule R-5, Florida Administrative Code rule 69O-186.003, and the TIRSA Rate Manual (New York). Texas policies over $25 million were priced with the $15–25 million formula; a $39,351,800 policy showed $112,923 instead of $99,289. Texas policies under $100,000 now use TDI's full $500-step table instead of interpolating, which moves some results by a dollar or two. In Texas and Florida, when the loan is larger than the purchase price, the simultaneously issued lender's policy now adds the regular rate on the excess instead of staying at the flat $100 or $25. Florida's rule does not say where in the schedule that excess starts, so the calculator uses the higher reading and says so. Florida now rounds coverage up to the next $100 and applies the $100 minimum premium, and New York now charges each $1,000 or fraction of $1,000, as the rules require. The New York Zone 2 description now lists all its counties.
Source: TDI 2026 title rates and Rate Rule R-5; Fla. Admin. Code R. 69O-186.003; TIRSA Rate Manual, Seventh RevisionTitle Insurance Calculator → - Correction
Roth vs Traditional IRA Calculator: verdict now compares equal take-home cost
The verdict compared the same deposit in each account and taxed only the Traditional one at withdrawal, so it named Roth the winner at almost any retirement tax rate, including with the default inputs (24% today, 18% in retirement), where Traditional comes out ahead. It now compares the two at the same take-home cost, which gives the standard result: Roth wins when your retirement rate is higher than today's, Traditional when it is lower, and equal rates tie. A new row shows the Traditional figure on that basis. The input help now shows the 2026 IRA limit of $7,500 ($8,600 at 50+); it said $7,000.
Source: IRS Notice 2025-67 (2026 IRA limits)Roth vs Traditional IRA Calculator → - Correction
72(t) SEPP Calculator: Uniform Lifetime Table now covers ages under 72
When the Uniform Lifetime Table was selected, anyone under 72 was given the age-72 life expectancy (27.4) instead of their own, which overstated both payment methods. A 50-year-old with $500,000 at 5% saw $18,248 a year under the RMD method and $33,906 under fixed amortization; the correct figures are $10,309 and $27,588, using the age-50 figure of 48.5. Taking more than the allowed SEPP amount can trigger the 10% additional tax on every prior payment. The calculator now uses the full table from IRS Notice 2022-6, Appendix A. Results using the Single Life Table were not affected.
Source: IRS Notice 2022-6, Appendix A72(t) SEPP Calculator → - Correction
RSU, NSO and Bonus calculators: FICA now counts earlier bonuses and vests
Bonuses, earlier RSU vests and earlier option exercises in the same year are Social Security and Medicare wages, but the RSU, NSO and Bonus Tax calculators only counted regular salary when working out how much of the Social Security wage base was left and when the 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax starts. Someone with large earlier supplemental pay could see too much Social Security withheld. All three now count those wages. The Bonus Tax Calculator also now withholds Additional Medicare Tax above $200,000 for every filing status (as employers do, per IRS Publication 15) and describes the 22% flat rate as optional rather than required. The Gift Tax Calculator's note on the tax rate now says the flat 40% is exact above the exemption, and the Reasonable Salary Calculator now labels its industry percentages as rules of thumb, since the IRS sets no formula.
Source: IRS Publication 15; IRS Form 1120-S instructions; IRS Form 709 and 706 instructionsRSU Calculator →NSO Calculator →Bonus Tax Calculator →Gift Tax Calculator →Reasonable Salary Calculator → - Correction
Quarterly Estimated Tax and Payroll Tax Estimator: labels and FUTA note corrected
The Quarterly Estimated Tax Calculator asked for last year's tax from Form 1040 Line 22, which leaves out self-employment tax. The safe-harbor amount is based on total tax, Line 24, so the field now points there. The Payroll Tax Estimator described California and the U.S. Virgin Islands as the confirmed 2026 FUTA credit-reduction jurisdictions; the Department of Labor does not set the 2026 list until November 2026. The text now gives the 2025 facts (California 1.2 points, an effective FUTA rate of 1.8%; Virgin Islands 4.5 points, 5.1%) and says 2026 is not final. The Self-Employment Tax and Quarterly calculators also now say their federal estimates do not apply the 20% qualified business income deduction. The calculation formulas were checked against IRS sources and were correct.
Source: IRS Form 1040; IRS Publication 505; IRS Topic 759; payroll.org / UHY summaries of the Department of Labor 2025 credit-reduction announcementQuarterly Estimated Tax Calculator →Payroll Tax Estimator →Self-Employment Tax Calculator → - Correction
Income Tax Calculator: Head of Household and Additional Medicare Tax fixed
Choosing Head of Household in the Income Tax Calculator used the Single brackets and the $16,100 Single standard deduction instead of the Head of Household brackets and $24,150 deduction. It also left out the 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax on wages above $200,000 (Single / Head of Household) or $250,000 (Married Filing Jointly). Both are fixed. Separately, the Head of Household 24% bracket ended at $201,775 in our tables; the IRS figure is $201,750, corrected in the calculators and the guides. Single and Married Filing Jointly brackets were checked against the same table and were correct.
Source: IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32; IRS Topic 560Income Tax Calculator →Paycheck Calculator →Tax Bracket Calculator → - Correction
Savings Bond Calculator: minimum holding period corrected
A note on the early-redemption result said bonds must be held 3 months before they can be cashed. The rule for Series EE and Series I bonds is 12 months from the issue date; the 3 months is the interest forfeited if you cash a bond in before five years. The note now says so, and the calculator flags any holding period under 12 months as not yet redeemable. The interest formulas were checked against Treasury's regulations and were correct.
Source: 31 CFR Part 359 (Series I) and 31 CFR Part 351 (Series EE)Savings Bond Calculator → - Correction
50/30/20 Budget Calculator: savings status label was reversed
The status line under "Savings & Debt Payoff — Actual" said "Over Target" when you were saving less than 20% of income and "Under Target" when you were saving more. The dollar amounts, the warning highlight and the overall verdict were correct; only that one label was backwards. It now reads "Under Target" when you are saving less than the 20% guideline.
- Correction
ACA Subsidy Calculator: Alaska and Hawaii poverty-guideline increments corrected
For households of two or more in Alaska and Hawaii, the calculator used a per-additional-person poverty guideline that was $10 too low ($6,870 in Alaska and $6,320 in Hawaii, instead of the published $6,880 and $6,330 for the 2025 guidelines that govern 2026 marketplace coverage). The effect on a result is small, a shift of a few dollars in the credit for larger households near a band edge, but it is now exact. The 48-state figures and the 2026 applicable-percentage table were checked against IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-25 and were already correct.
Source: HHS 2025 Poverty Guidelines (Federal Register, January 17, 2025); IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-25ACA Subsidy Calculator → - Correction
Income-Driven Repayment Calculator: RAP added, ICR payments no longer capped
The calculator capped every plan's monthly payment at the standard 10-year payment. Federal Student Aid says only PAYE and IBR payments are capped; ICR (20% of discretionary income) is not. When the ICR option is selected, the calculator now shows the uncapped payment, which is higher than before for borrowers whose income-based payment exceeds the standard payment. We also relabeled the forgiveness-term options to match Federal Student Aid (20 years for PAYE and IBR for loans first borrowed after July 1, 2014; 25 years for older IBR and ICR). ICR is actually the lesser of 20% of discretionary income and a 12-year fixed payment adjusted for income; the calculator uses only the 20% figure, so its ICR estimate can run high, and it now says so. We also added the new Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP): a flat 1% to 10% of your adjusted gross income by $10,000 income band ($120 a year at or below $10,000), minus $50 a month for each dependent, with a $10 monthly minimum, no payment cap, unpaid interest waived while you pay on time, and forgiveness after 30 years. The Department of Education's matching principal payment of up to $50 a month is not modeled, so RAP payoff dates are slightly conservative.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, Federal Student Aid: Income-Driven Repayment Plans; Federal Student Aid loan servicer RAP page (Edfinancial)Income-Driven Repayment Calculator → - Correction
529 College Savings Calculator: college cost reference figures corrected
The calculator's help text and our 529 guide labelled $11,600 (in-state public), $30,800 (out-of-state public) and $43,400 (private nonprofit) as 2025-26 averages. Those were the prior year's figures. The College Board's 2025-26 published tuition and fees are $11,950, $31,880 and $45,000. Only the reference text changed: the default annual cost ($25,000) and every calculation are unchanged. The tax treatment the calculator describes (tax-free earnings when used for qualified education expenses) was checked against IRS Publication 970.
Source: College Board, Trends in College Pricing 2025; IRS Publication 970529 College Savings Calculator → - Correction
State income tax rates and brackets updated to 2026 law
Our state income tax table was largely a 2024 snapshot. It now reflects the 2026 rates published by state revenue agencies and the Tax Foundation. Flat-rate changes: Georgia 4.99% (was 5.39%), Indiana 2.95%, Kentucky 3.50% (was 4.0%), Mississippi 4.00% on income above $10,000 (was 4.7% with no zero bracket), North Carolina 3.99% (was 4.25%), Idaho 5.30% (was 5.695%) and Utah 4.45% (was 4.55%). Bracketed states with new rates or thresholds: Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio (now a flat 2.75% above $26,050), Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina (1.99% below $30,000, 5.21% above), Vermont, West Virginia (top rate 4.58%) and Wisconsin. Depending on state and income, the estimated annual state tax for a single filer earning $50,000 to $100,000 moves by roughly $100 to $1,000. Standard deductions and personal exemptions were not part of this update, and local income taxes (for example New York City) are not included.
Source: State revenue agencies and governors' offices (GA HB 463, SC H.4216, WV SB 392, Utah S.B. 60, NCDOR); Tax Foundation, 2026 State Individual Income Tax Rates and BracketsPaycheck Calculator →Cost of Living Calculator → - Financial Data & Assumptions
Default interest rates updated after the Fed's September rate increase
Calculator starting rates now reflect the latest published figures: 30-year fixed mortgage 7.03% (was 6.55%) and 15-year fixed 6.42% (was 5.93%) per Freddie Mac's Sep 24 survey; prime rate 7.00% (was 6.75%) after the Federal Reserve raised its target range to 3.75%–4.00% effective Sep 17; typical HELOC rate 8.00% (was 7.75%, prime plus a 1.00% margin); and a representative top high-yield savings APY of 4.10% (was 4.00%). These are only starting values, and you can change any of them to match your own offer.
Source: Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey; Federal Reserve implementation note, Sep 16, 2026HELOC Calculator (Mortgage & Housing) →HELOC Calculator (Loans & Debt) → - Correction
Rent vs Buy now honors zero inputs and adds state-level housing costs
The calculator previously treated an entered value of 0 (for example a 0% property tax rate or $0 maintenance) as blank and substituted a default. Zero is now respected. It also now finds the year buying overtakes renting over a 30-year window, reports first-year monthly ownership cost and home equity, and can pre-fill property tax, insurance and typical home value for any state. Default results are unchanged.
Source: Zillow ZHVI (March 2026, middle tier); Tax Foundation (2025); Bankrate (2026)Rent vs Buy Calculator → - Correction
Safe Withdrawal Rate historical results now use each year's actual inflation
The historical cohort results previously subtracted one flat inflation assumption (3% by default) from every year's stock return, which understated the effect of the 1970s. They now apply the BLS CPI reading for each year. On a $1,000,000 portfolio over 30 years, a $40,000 withdrawal moves from 94.2% to 92.8% historical success, and a $50,000 withdrawal moves from 92.8% to 78.3%. The calculator also reports the highest withdrawal rate that would have lasted from every historical start year, by retirement length, and the FI Number and FIRE calculators now check your withdrawal rate against the same history.
Source: BLS CPI-U annual averages; S&P 500 total returns (Damodaran, NYU Stern)Safe Withdrawal Rate Calculator →FI Number Calculator →FIRE Calculator → - Financial Data & Assumptions
Child Tax Credit updated to $2,200 per child
Reflects the permanent increase set by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), effective tax year 2025 onward, with the refundable Additional Child Tax Credit capped at $1,700.
Source: IRS Schedule 8812 instructions; OBBBA Sec. 70104Child Tax Credit Calculator → - Financial Data & Assumptions
Gift and lifetime estate tax exemption figures updated
Annual gift exclusion set to $19,000 per recipient; lifetime exemption set to $15,000,000 per individual — a permanent statutory figure under OBBBA §70411, not routine inflation indexing.
Source: IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32Gift Tax Calculator → - Financial Data & Assumptions
FSA and Dependent Care FSA limits updated for 2026
Health FSA limit set to $3,400 with a $680 maximum carryover. Dependent Care FSA (DCAP) limit set to $7,500 for joint filers — a statutory increase under OBBBA, the first change to that figure since 1986, and not annually inflation-indexed the way the health FSA limit is.
Source: IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32; OBBBAFSA Calculator → - Correction
Safe Withdrawal Rate Calculator's retirement-success modeling corrected
The calculator's copy described a full Monte Carlo simulation, but the underlying engine was a static historical lookup table that did not actually vary with the return assumption entered. Replaced with a genuine 1,000-run Monte Carlo simulation using the user's own return and volatility inputs.
- Financial Data & Assumptions
PMI rate bands added by credit score
Typical market private mortgage insurance rates now range 0.46%–1.50% of the original loan amount depending on credit band.
Source: Urban Institute Housing Finance Policy CenterPMI Calculator → - Financial Data & Assumptions
Texas title insurance rates updated
Reflects a 6.2% cut to basic premium rates ordered by the Texas Department of Insurance, effective March 1, 2026.
Source: TDI Commissioner's Order No. 2025-9697Title Insurance Calculator → - Financial Data & Assumptions
2026 ACA marketplace premium tax credit rules confirmed
The enhanced (ARPA/IRA-era) premium tax credits expired December 31, 2025; 2026 coverage runs on the original ACA structure, including the 400% federal poverty line eligibility cliff and higher applicable percentages at every income band. This area is still legislatively unsettled — a bill to restore the enhanced credits passed the House in January 2026 but has not become law — and will be re-checked before the 2027 plan year.
Source: IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-25ACA Subsidy Calculator → - Correction
ACA Subsidy Calculator poverty-guideline year corrected
An early version would have applied the 2026 federal poverty guidelines to 2026 marketplace coverage; coverage for a given plan year is always priced against the prior year's guidelines. Using the wrong year would have overstated eligibility for subsidies near the 400% income cliff by roughly $1,240 for a single filer. Corrected before the calculator's public launch.
- Correction
Savings Bond Calculator's default interest rates corrected
Initial default rates were placeholder estimates rather than sourced figures. Replaced with the actual current Treasury-published rates, with the calculation now shown to match TreasuryDirect's published composite rate exactly.
- Financial Data & Assumptions
US savings bond rates reset
Series EE fixed rate set to 2.40% annual. Series I composite rate set to 4.26% (0.90% fixed + 1.67% semiannual inflation component), applying to bonds issued May–October 2026. Rates reset again every May 1 and November 1; next reset November 1, 2026.
Source: TreasuryDirectSavings Bond Calculator →
Notice a figure that looks out of date, or think a calculator gave you a different answer than it should have? Tell us — every report is checked against the primary source directly, and confirmed corrections are added to this page.