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IRS Audit Statistics 2026:

Your Real Odds, by the Numbers

Last updated July 2026

Key Takeaway

The IRS closed 497,621 audits in fiscal year 2025 and recommended $26.8 billion in additional tax — but coverage is wildly uneven. About 0.36% of individual returns get examined overall, while taxpayers reporting $10 million or more have seen 7.9% examination coverage. Your real odds depend almost entirely on what your return looks like.

Every number on this page comes from the IRS’s own published data — the IRS Data Book and its compliance-presence tables — updated as new fiscal-year figures publish. We represent taxpayers in these audits (400+ and counting), so we also note where the official numbers match, or don’t match, what we see in practice.

The headline numbers (FY2025)

497,621 audits closed
$26.8 billion in recommended additional tax — roughly $54,000 per closed audit on average
0.36% of individual returns (tax years 2015–2023) examined by end of FY2025
0.57% examination coverage for corporation returns
7.9% cumulative coverage for returns reporting $10 million+ in total positive income

How do audit rates change with income?

The short version is that the curve is U-shaped at the bottom and steep at the top. Per-year rates from recent Data Book tables:

Total positive income	Audit rate (per 1,000 returns)
No income reported	3
$1 – $25,000	4
$500,000+	6
$1M – $5M	11
$10M+ (cumulative, TY2015–2023)	79

The no-income and low-income rates reflect refundable-credit enforcement (EITC), done mostly by correspondence. The high-income rates reflect field examinations — longer, deeper, and with more dollars at stake.

What actually gets a return selected?

Selection is mechanical before it is human: DIF scoring flags statistical outliers, and the Automated Underreporter program matches every W-2 and 1099 against what you filed. Our audit red flags guide covers the specific items that move a DIF score, and why the IRS audits returns explains the machinery. If you’re past selection and holding a letter, start with audit defense.

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Frequently asked questions

What are my actual odds of an IRS audit?

For most filers, well under half of one percent — about 0.36% of individual returns for tax years 2015–2023 had been examined by the end of FY2025. Odds climb steeply with income: returns reporting $10 million or more show 7.9% examination coverage.

Does making more money increase audit risk?

Yes, sharply. Per the IRS Data Book, recent per-year rates run roughly 4 per 1,000 for modest incomes, 6 per 1,000 above $500,000, and 11 per 1,000 between $1 million and $5 million — with cumulative coverage near 8% at $10 million and up.

How much does the average audit cost the taxpayer?

In FY2025 the IRS closed 497,621 audits recommending $26.8 billion in additional tax — averaging roughly $54,000 per closed audit. Averages are skewed by large cases, but the direction is clear: audits are about money, not paperwork.

Are audit rates going up in 2026?

Coverage of high-income returns and partnerships has been the IRS’s stated priority, while overall individual rates remain historically low. Enforcement staffing and funding shift year to year; the selection systems (DIF scoring and document matching) run regardless.

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