Public conceptDeductions and rates
Marginal tax bracket
A progressive schedule where only the dollars inside a band use that band's rate.
In one sentence
A marginal bracket describes the rate on the next slice of taxable ordinary income.
Model
sum(amount in each band × that band's rate) = bracket tax
Worked example
Crossing from the 12% band into the 22% band applies 22% only to dollars above the boundary.
What to notice
Follow this mechanism in a related lesson, where the same calculator engine exposes every intermediate value.
Common misconception
Crossing a bracket does not retroactively raise the rate on dollars in lower bands.
See it in motion