St. Mary refunds beat La., U.S. averages
Has Uncle Sam been good to you this year?
An analysis by the Upgraded Points website says the average St. Mary Parish income tax refund this year is $4,186. In Assumption, it’s $3,876.
The St. Mary refund is higher than the state average, $4,117, and the national average of about $3,000.
Roughly three-quarters of all tax filers receive refunds.
In Louisiana, approximately 73.0% of returns result in a refund.
About 9% of taxpayers don’t use direct deposit, with paper check use highest in rural areas and in pockets of the northern U.S. In Louisiana, about 91.4% of refunds are issued via direct deposit.
Overall, average refunds increase with household income; however, high-income taxpayers are the least likely to receive refunds.
Generally, average refund amounts are highest in parts of the South and Mountain West, especially Florida, Texas, Wyoming and Nevada.
Refunds rising
Over the past 15 years, the average federal tax refund has generally ranged from $2,800 to $3,000, but the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted that pattern.
During the 2020 filing season, the average refund dropped to $2,549, reflecting widespread job losses and reduced earnings early in the crisis.
In the years that followed, refunds rebounded sharply. A combination of rising wages, expanded tax credits, and other stimulus measures pushed the average refund to a record $3,252 by 2022.
Yet as pandemic-era tax credits expired, fewer taxpayers received refunds. The proportion of returns resulting in a refund dropped from 77.1% in 2021 to just 62.8% by 2025.
However, preliminary data for the 2026 tax season currently shows a higher average refund of $3,571 and a 72.9% refund rate, though early filing trends typically skew these figures upward.
Varying by
income group
Tax refunds vary significantly by income level, with higher-income households receiving larger refunds on average — plus and a smaller share of these households receiving any refund at all. According to the latest IRS data, filers earning less than $50,000 received an average refund of $2,766 after adjusting for inflation, with over 77% of total returns in this group receiving refunds. Receiving a refund was nearly universal among the lowest-income group, with 99.3% of those eligible choosing to receive a refund rather than applying their overpayment to next year’s taxes.
For middle-income filers earning $50,000 to $100,000, the average refund rose to $3,211, though just 68.3% received one. Refunds increased further to $4,820 for those earning $100,000 to $200,000, but only 55.4% of these returns resulted in a refund.
At incomes above $200,000, the average refund surged to $17,668. However, just 35% of returns received a refund, and nearly one-third of filers with overpayments opted to apply their credit to the following year’s taxes instead.
How we file
Just as direct deposit has largely replaced paper checks, the way Americans submit their tax returns has undergone a dramatic transformation. In 2009, 66.1% of all tax returns were submitted using e-file. As consumer tax preparation software became more accessible and the IRS expanded its digital infrastructure, that share steadily climbed, surpassing 80% by 2012 and continuing a gradual upward trajectory throughout the decade.
Much like its impact on refund sizes, the COVID-19 pandemic served as a major catalyst for further digital adoption, pushing the share of e-filed returns past the 90% threshold for the first time during the 2020 filing season. Today, electronic filing is nearly universal. For the 2026 filing season, preliminary data indicates that an unprecedented 98.3% of tax returns will be submitted via e-file, aligning with the overwhelming preference for direct deposit to process returns quickly and securely.
The Upgraded Points analysis uses data from two primary sources provided by the Internal Revenue Service: the Filing Season Statistics and the Individual Income Tax Return (Form 1040) Statistics.
The Filing Season Statistics offer the most up-to-date information on federal tax refunds, including estimates through the 2026 filing season. However, these figures reflect data by filing season, not by tax year, and may differ slightly from specific tax year data.
For more detailed breakdowns (such as refund amounts by income level, state, and county), the most recent available data from the Form 1040 Statistics, which covers Tax Year 2022, was used. The average refund amount was calculated by dividing the total amount of overpayments refunded by the total number of returns that resulted in a refund, which is consistent with the IRS’s standard definition.
Dollar values were adjusted for inflation to better estimate tax refunds in 2026. It is important to note that this does not represent the average total overpayment since some taxpayers elect to have their overpayments credited to the next tax year rather than refunded. However, according to IRS data, approximately 97% of taxpayers choose to receive their overpayment as a refund, making this a reliable estimate of the refund experience for most filers.
While many Americans look forward to receiving a tax refund each year, it’s worth noting that a large refund isn’t necessarily a financial win. A sizable refund often means that too much was withheld from paychecks throughout the year — essentially providing the federal government with an interest-free loan.
For households aiming to optimize their finances, adjusting tax withholdings to better match actual tax liability can free up money for savings, investments, or everyday expenses throughout the year.
The IRS offers a Tax Withholding Estimator (https://www.irs.gov/individuals/tax-withholding-estimator) to help individuals fine-tune their withholding.
