Marginal Tax Rate vs Average Tax Rate
Marginal Tax Rate and Average Tax Rate are two Public Finance & Taxation concepts in AP Economics that students often mix up. In short: marginal tax rate is the marginal tax rate is the tax rate applied to the next dollar of income earned. Meanwhile, average tax rate is the average tax rate is total taxes paid divided by total income. Here is how they compare side by side.
The marginal tax rate is the tax rate applied to the next dollar of income earned.
In a progressive system it is the rate of your top bracket. It drives incentives to work and invest because it determines how much of additional income you keep. It is usually higher than the average tax rate.
The average tax rate is total taxes paid divided by total income.
It measures the overall share of income paid in tax, while the marginal rate applies only to the last dollar. In a progressive system the average rate is below the marginal rate.