How to Get Your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI)

Your adjusted gross income sits on line 11 of your Form 1040. If you have a copy of last year’s return, that’s the fastest place to look. If you don’t, the quickest ways to get your AGI are through your IRS Online Account at irs.gov or by requesting a free tax return transcript.¹

Look at Your Prior-Year Return

Pull out last year’s Form 1040 and go to line 11. The same line number applies on Form 1040-SR for seniors and Form 1040-NR for nonresidents.¹

If you filed through tax software like TurboTax, H&R Block, or FreeTaxUSA, log back into that account and open or download last year’s return. Your AGI shows up on the first page of the 1040.

Check Your IRS Online Account

No paper copy? The IRS Online Account at irs.gov is the fastest replacement. Once you’re signed in, open the Records and Status tab, pick the tax year you need, and your AGI displays without your having to download a full transcript.¹ Multiple prior years are available in the same place, so an older figure for a loan application is just as easy to grab as last year’s.²

Setting up the account requires identity verification through ID.me. Have your Social Security number or ITIN, a government-issued photo ID such as a driver’s license or passport, and a smartphone or webcam ready for the selfie step.³ If everything matches, verification takes a few minutes.

Request a Free Tax Transcript

If you can’t access an Online Account, order a Tax Return Transcript. It shows most line items from your original filing, including AGI, for the current year and the three prior tax years, at no cost.⁴

Online

With an IRS Online Account, you can download the transcript as a PDF right away using the Get Transcript tool. Choose “Tax Return Transcript” and select the year.⁵

By Mail or Phone

You can also mail or fax Form 4506-T, Request for Transcript of Tax Return, to the address the IRS lists for your state.⁶ Or call the IRS automated transcript line at 800-908-9946. Either way, delivery runs 5 to 10 calendar days and goes to the address the IRS has on file.⁴ If you’ve moved, update your address with the IRS first, or the transcript will land at your old one.⁷

Using Prior-Year AGI to E-File

This is what drives most people to look up their AGI in the first place. The IRS uses your prior-year AGI as an electronic signature to verify your identity when you e-file, and your software will ask for it. If the number doesn’t match IRS records, the return is rejected.⁸

A handful of situations follow special rules:

First-time filer: enter $0.⁹
Prior-year return still processing at the IRS: enter $0.⁸
Filed an amended return last year: use the AGI from the original return, not the amended one.⁹
Changed from joint to single: both former spouses use the total AGI from the prior-year joint return. Don’t split it.⁹
Changed from single to married filing jointly: each spouse enters their own AGI from their separate prior-year return.⁹
Had an ITIN last year but now have an SSN: enter $0.⁹
Negative AGI last year: enter the negative amount exactly as it appeared on the return.⁹

If you have an Identity Protection PIN, you don’t need your prior-year AGI at all. The IP PIN replaces it as your identity verification when you e-file.⁸ Any taxpayer can request one through the IRS Get an IP PIN tool. If you can’t verify online, the alternative application route has income limits of $84,000 for individuals and $168,000 for joint filers.¹⁰

Estimating Your AGI Before You File

Need a rough figure before you have a return? Start with total gross income and subtract the adjustments listed on Schedule 1, Part II. Whatever’s left is your AGI.

Gross income covers almost everything you earned or received during the year: wages, salaries, business income, capital gains, interest, dividends, rental income, retirement distributions, and alimony received under pre-2019 agreements.¹¹

Common adjustments include:¹²

Educator expenses up to $300 for eligible teachers paying out of pocket for classroom supplies.
HSA contributions up to $4,400 for self-only coverage or $8,750 for family coverage in 2026.¹³
Half of self-employment tax if you’re self-employed.
Self-employed health insurance premiums.
IRA contributions up to $7,500 if you’re under 50, or $8,600 if you’re 50 or older in 2026, subject to income limits if you or your spouse have a workplace retirement plan.
Student loan interest up to $2,500 per year, subject to income phase-outs.¹⁴
Alimony paid under divorce agreements finalized before 2019.

These are the “above-the-line” deductions. The standard deduction and itemized deductions are different: they come off after AGI to determine your taxable income, not before.

AGI Is Not the Same as MAGI

Some tax benefits and government programs reference Modified Adjusted Gross Income instead of plain AGI. MAGI starts with your AGI and adds back certain deductions or exclusions, so the number is usually higher. The specific add-backs depend on which benefit is being calculated.¹⁵

For Roth IRA contribution limits, MAGI adds back your traditional IRA deduction and the student loan interest deduction. For Premium Tax Credits on the health insurance marketplace, MAGI adds back tax-exempt interest and nontaxable Social Security benefits.¹⁵ For many filers, MAGI and AGI come out to the same figure because none of the add-back items apply. If a program asks for MAGI, don’t hand it your line-11 AGI without checking which add-backs that program uses.

1
Internal Revenue Service. Adjusted Gross Income
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Internal Revenue Service. Online Account for Individuals
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Internal Revenue Service. Creating an Account for IRS.gov
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Internal Revenue Service. Transcript Types for Individuals and Ways to Order Them
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Internal Revenue Service. Get Your Tax Records and Transcripts
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Internal Revenue Service. Where to File Addresses for Filing Form 4506-T
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Internal Revenue Service. Transcript Services for Individuals – FAQs
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Internal Revenue Service. Validating Your Electronically Filed Tax Return
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Internal Revenue Service. Self-Select PIN Method for Forms 1040 and 4868 Modernized e-File
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Internal Revenue Service. Get an Identity Protection PIN
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Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 U.S. Code 61 – Gross Income Defined
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Internal Revenue Service. Schedule 1 (Form 1040)
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Internal Revenue Service. Notice 26-05 – HSA Inflation Adjusted Amounts
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Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 456, Student Loan Interest Deduction
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Internal Revenue Service. Modified Adjusted Gross Income