But with the passage of President Donald Trump's tax law, some Americans may be receiving smaller refunds than previous years, but it doesn't mean their taxes went up. In fact, the majority of Americans received a tax cut, Business Insider's Bob Bryan reported .
The tax law instituted new guidelines for how much employers should withhold from employees' paychecks for taxes. The amount withheld is determined by the number of allowances the taxpayer claims, which can be adjusted at any time throughout the year.
"Depending on a filer's tax situation, they may not get as large of a refund this year as they're used to if they didn't adjust their withholdings in 2018. That said, they shouldn't immediately be alarmed if that's the case," Mark Jaeger, the director of tax development at TaxAct , told Business Insider.
"Just because you receive a small refund doesn't mean you didn't get everything back you were owed or that you're worse off financially it most likely means you paid the right amount of federal taxes you owed during the year and didn't overpay," Jaeger said.
The government recommends a single person with no dependents and one job claim two allowances to get as close as possible to covering their tax liability. That person will also take home a bigger paycheck throughout the year than if they claimed one or zero allowances, allowing them to potentially save and invest more.
"Many filers received a boost in their paychecks throughout 2018; that's where the remaining amount of their refund went," Jaeger said. "Instead of waiting to receive their money as a tax refund, they received it all year long."
How we calculated tax refund sizes
To find out how workers fared, we calculated federal tax refund amounts for different income levels based on the following assumptions: A single filer who makes a 10% pretax retirement contribution (up to the 2018 maximum $18,500), takes the standard deduction ($12,000), and claims zero federal withholding allowances.
A person who claims zero allowances will have more money withheld from every paycheck, but likely end up with a tax refund when filing their tax return. "Some individuals like receiving a larger refund because they use it as a savings account," Jaeger said. "It's a way for them to save a significant chunk of money throughout the year."
Below, here's how big tax refunds could be this year for workers at different income levels.
$21,610: Fast-food cooks
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $19,449
Federal income taxes due: $744.90
Waiters and waitresses
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $22,752
Federal income taxes due: $1,099.74
$30,480: Barbers
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $27,432
Federal income taxes due: $1,661.34
$40,840: Travel agent
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $36,756
Federal income taxes due: $2,780.22
$49,650: Chefs and head cooks
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $44,685
Federal income taxes due: $3,731.70
$51,930: Firefighters
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $46,737
Federal income taxes due: $3,977.94
$55,270: Commercial divers
Flickr/Official U.S. Navy Page
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $49,743
Federal income taxes due: $4,338.66
$60,760: Librarians
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $54,684
Federal income taxes due: $5,329.98
$66,990: Insurance sales agents
Shutterstock.com/Monkey Business Images
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $60,291
Federal income taxes due: $6,563.52
$74,680: Dental hygienists
Boston Globe/Contributor/Getty Images
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $67,212
Federal income taxes due: $8,086.14
$77,920: Accountants and auditors
Getty Images / Carl Court
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $70,128
Federal income taxes due: $8,727.66
$87,530: Computer programmers
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $78,777
Federal income taxes due: $10,630.44
$91,790: Civil engineer
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $82,611
Federal income taxes due: $11,473.92
$99,580: Electrical engineers
Strelka Institute for Media, Architecture and Design/Flickr
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $89,622
Federal income taxes due: $13,016.34
$107,480: Nurse practitioners
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $96,732
Federal income taxes due: $14,625.18
$115,300: Aerospace engineers
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center/flickr
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $103,770
Federal income taxes due: $16,314.30
$121,710: Pharmacists
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $109,539
Federal income taxes due: $17,698.86
$141,890: Lawyers
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $127,701
Federal income taxes due: $22,057.74
$161,280: Airline pilots, copilots, and flight engineers
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $145,152
Federal income taxes due: $26,245.98
$196,050: Chief executives
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $177,550
Federal income taxes due: $34,665.50
$208,560: Family and general practitioners
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $190,060
Federal income taxes due: $38,668.70
$229,380: Orthodontists
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $210,880
Federal income taxes due: $45,331.10
$265,990: Anesthesiologists
Taxable income after 10% 401(k) contribution: $247,490
Federal income taxes due: $58,111
SEE ALSO: Experts say small tax refunds are a good thing, but a look at how Americans spend the cash explains why they don't feel the same
DON'T MISS: The 25 states where high-income Americans earning $150,000 a year pay the least in taxes