Taxes are often a hot topic for the Childfree community. Why is this? It's common to hear about parents who seem to barely pay taxes at all, by virtue of having children and qualifying for child tax credits, while many Childfree people are already claiming zero on their W-4 form and still owing taxes every year.
While it may sting to hear about $3,500 tax credits per child, remember that this doesn't come close to covering all expenses of raising a child: A 2025 study by LendingTree found it costs $297,674 to raise a child to the age of 18 — a more than 25 percent increase from when they conducted the study in 2023.
Even with $3,500 back per year, per child, Childfree people are coming out ahead financially of those who have children.
Taxes Are a Complicated Topic
Americans pay many different kinds of taxes. And for many Childfree people, taxes are pretty simple:
- If you work for an employer, as opposed to being self-employed, you'll have income taxes taken out of your pay.
- If you're self-employed or have a side gig, you'll have to account for your own income taxes.
- If you have investments that you sell, you'll owe capital gains taxes on the amount of appreciation on that asset during the time you held it.
- If you own a home, you'll pay property taxes.
Some states charge income taxes, but if they don't, they often charge higher sales taxes to make up for the lost income.
A lot of our money goes to taxes.
Planning for Taxes
Note that it's important to pay your taxes, and you shouldn't be trying to avoid it — there are consequences when you don't (after all, it was tax evasion, of all things, that took down Al Capone).
So the question isn't, "How do I avoid paying taxes," it's "How do I plan for taxes"?
Here are some other questions to consider:
- When should you hire a tax professional?
- How do changes in the tax laws affect what you pay?
- What is the most efficient way to pay your taxes?
- How can you maximize the deductions that you qualify for?
If tax planning is tripping you up, a Childfree Wealth Checkup with a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PROFESSIONAL® is a great start to smoothing the path for optimizing tax season in 2026 and beyond.
