How does the top 1% tax share in 2022 compare to their share of wealth and capital gains?

1. Top 1% tax contribution: a concentrated share of income‑tax revenue

Multiple reports using IRS data agree that in tax year 2022 the top 1% of earners paid about 40% of federal income taxes. Visual Capitalist reports the top 1% paid $854.5 billion and accounted for 40% of federal income taxes in 2022 ^[1]. The National Taxpayers Union Foundation cites IRS data showing the top 1% paid roughly 40.43% of income taxes ^[3]. Other summaries and compilations put the top‑1 share in the same neighborhood, while noting differences in definitions and whether payroll taxes are included ^{[4] [6]}.

2. How much tax they paid and their average rates

Sources give similar magnitude figures: Visual Capitalist and related graphics list total federal individual income tax receipts at roughly $2.1–$2.14 trillion for 2022, with the top 1% responsible for roughly $854–864 billion of that burden ^{[2] [1]}. Average federal income‑tax rates cited for the top 1% range from about 23.1% (Tax Foundation summary cited by Visual Capitalist) to 26.1% depending on how the average is calculated and which returns are included ^{[6] [4]}. Reports emphasize these figures exclude payroll taxes and other levies that affect lower earners proportionally more ^{[1] [2]}.

3. Wealth share and income share: separate measures, different stories

Available sources do not provide a single, explicit number for the top 1%’s share of national wealth in 2022 within this set of documents; instead, reporting emphasizes income shares and the role of capital gains. The American Enterprise Institute–style and other analyses cited note that the top 10% earned nearly half of all income in 2022 ^[5]. Our World in Data and the World Inequality Database are referenced for income‑share series but the supplied snippets do not quote a top‑1 wealth share for 2022 within these results ^{[7] [8]}. Therefore, direct comparison of the top 1%’s tax share versus wealth share is limited by the absence of a single wealth‑share figure in the provided material: not found in current reporting.

4. Capital gains: a key driver of year‑to‑year swings

Several sources highlight that capital‑gains realizations heavily influence the top 1%’s reported income and tax shares in a given year. The Tax Foundation summary and other reporting note 2021 was an outlier because capital gains spiked, boosting the top‑1 income and tax shares; by 2022 the top‑1 income share and their tax share fell from those peaks as capital gains normalized ^[6]. Visual Capitalist and NTUF materials also warn that the measured tax share can move substantially with capital‑gains timing and business‑cycle effects ^{[1] [3]}.

5. Two ways to frame the “burden” debate

Reporting in the sources frames competing viewpoints. One line of analysis emphasizes progressivity and the large contribution of the top 1% to federal income‑tax revenue—arguing they already bear a disproportionate share ^{[3] [2]}. Other analyses stress that rising income concentration (and large capital gains in some years) inflate the top 1%’s tax share while their wealth-to-income ratio and use of preferential capital‑gains treatment complicate judgments about fairness ^{[6] [5]}. The American Institute for Economic Research–style account cites a view that high earners already shoulder outsized tax burdens relative to transfers received ^[5].

6. What to watch and the limits of the data

Look for three items in future data releases: definitive wealth‑share estimates from WID or UBS referenced by the visualizations, a breakdown of realized capital gains versus other income for the top 1%, and whether analyses include payroll taxes and after‑tax transfers ^{[1] [7] [2]}. Current sourcing does not present a single Wealth‑share number for the top 1% in 2022, so any precise comparison of “tax share vs. wealth share” is incomplete with the documents provided: available sources do not mention that explicit wealth‑share figure ^{[7] [8]}.

Summary takeaway: in 2022 the top 1% paid roughly 40% of federal individual income taxes (about $854–864 billion) and faced average federal income‑tax rates in the mid‑20s percent, but evaluating whether that contribution is large or small relative to their wealth requires wealth‑share data not provided in these sources and careful attention to capital‑gains timing that drives year‑to‑year volatility ^{[1] [3] [2] [6] [5]}.