YOUR TAX DOLLARS AT WORK

Find out what your lifetime of federal taxes actually bought. Spoiler: it's not roads and schools.

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Defense spending methodology

YOUR SHOPPING CART

Items purchased with your defense tax contribution (greedy allocation)

PROGRESS BAR OF DESPAIR

YOUR RECEIPT

Keep for your records. Or don't. Nobody asked you.

WHAT ELSE THAT MONEY COULD BUY

The road not taken (literally — we didn't fund that road either)

SOURCES & METHODOLOGY

All figures are based on publicly available data from government agencies, Congressional reports, and reputable defense journalism. Prices reflect approximate unit costs and may vary by contract, configuration, and fiscal year. This is satire — but the numbers are real.

TAX BRACKETS

2025 Federal Income Tax Brackets & Standard Deductions
All four filing statuses (Single, Married Filing Jointly, Married Filing Separately, Head of Household) with standard deductions. Based on IRS Revenue Procedure 2024-40, which sets the inflation-adjusted figures for tax year 2025.
IRS — Federal Income Tax Rates and Brackets
IRS Revenue Procedure 2024-40 (PDF)

DEFENSE SPENDING RATES

13% — Share of Total Federal Budget
Defense spending as a percentage of total federal outlays (~$6.1T in FY2024). This is the lowest estimate because it includes mandatory spending (Social Security, Medicare) in the denominator.
Congressional Budget Office — Budget Topics
25% — Income Tax Allocation
Methodology that allocates spending proportionally to revenue source. Since income taxes fund ~50% of the federal budget and defense is ~50% of that allocation, approximately 25% of your income tax goes to defense. This is our default.
National Priorities Project — Federal Spending
52% — Share of Discretionary Spending
Defense spending as a percentage of federal discretionary spending only (excluding mandatory programs like Social Security and Medicare). This is the highest estimate.
National Priorities Project — Discretionary Spending

MILITARY EQUIPMENT — BIG TICKET

Gerald R. Ford Aircraft Carrier (CVN-78)
$13.3 billion
Total procurement cost per Navy FY2026 budget submission (~$13.2B). Most expensive warship ever built. Experienced significant cost growth from initial $10.5B estimate.
CRS Report RS20643 — Navy Ford (CVN-78) Class Aircraft Carrier Program
Virginia-class Submarine (Block V)
$4.5 billion
Block V submarines with Virginia Payload Module. FY2025 budget requested $5.76B for one boat (includes advance procurement). At the standard two-per-year rate, cost is ~$4.5B each.
CRS Report RL32418 — Navy Virginia-Class Submarine Program
USNI News — Virginia-Class Sub Costs
Arleigh Burke Destroyer (DDG-51 Flight III)
$2.5 billion
Current Flight III destroyers with AN/SPY-6 radar cost ~$2.5–2.7B each. FY2026 budget requests two at a combined ~$5.4B.
CRS Report RL32109 — Navy DDG-51 and DDG-1000 Programs
B-2 Spirit Stealth Bomber
$2.0 billion (program cost per unit)
Total program cost (~$44.75B in 1997 dollars) divided by 21 aircraft built = ~$2.13B per unit. Manufacturing cost alone was ~$737M per aircraft. Only 20 remain operational.
USAF Fact Sheet — B-2 Spirit

MILITARY EQUIPMENT — AIRCRAFT

F-35A Lightning II
$82.5 million (airframe, excluding engine)
Unit Recurring Flyaway Cost for Lots 18-19 (~$82.4M). Does NOT include the F135 engine (~$20.4M) or other government-furnished equipment. With engine, all-in flyaway cost is ~$103M.
Air & Space Forces Magazine — F-35 Lots 18/19 Deal
AH-64E Apache Guardian
$52 million (fully equipped)
Base flyaway cost is ~$35-36M. Fully equipped with enhanced armor, upgraded weapons, and advanced systems: ~$50M+. U.S. Army awarded Boeing $4.685B for new-build AH-64Es in Nov 2025.
Wikipedia — Boeing AH-64 Apache (with cited DOD sources)
MQ-9 Reaper Drone
$32 million (full system)
Airframe alone: ~$16-17M. Full system (aircraft + ground control station + sensors + satellite link): ~$30-32M per USAF fact sheet.
USAF Fact Sheet — MQ-9 Reaper
UH-60M Black Hawk
$21 million
Flyaway cost ranges ~$21-25M depending on configuration. Dec 2025 Army contract: $433M for 24 helicopters (~$18M/unit in bulk).
Wikipedia — Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk (with cited DOD sources)

MILITARY EQUIPMENT — GROUND & MISSILES

M1A2 SEPv3 Abrams Tank
$8 million
Unit cost varies by context: $6-10M depending on configuration. CBO amortized acquisition cost puts it at ~$8-9M for a fully equipped M1A2 SEPv3.
CRS In Focus IF12495 — The Army's M1 Abrams Tank Program
Patriot PAC-3 MSE Missile
$4.1 million
PAC-3 MSE interceptor: ~$4.0-4.2M per unit per Army budget documents. Older PAC-3 variant: ~$3.73M.
Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance — Interceptors by Cost
Tomahawk Cruise Missile (Block V)
$1.9 million
Current Block V production: ~$1.75-2.0M per missile. Recent large orders brought per-unit cost to ~$1.75M. Historically ~$2.2M; current production is cheaper.
Defense Express — Tomahawk Production Costs
FIM-92 Stinger Missile
$400,000
New-production costs are significantly higher than historical ($38-120K). Current new-production unit cost estimated at ~$400-500K based on recent European procurement contracts.
Wikipedia — FIM-92 Stinger (with cited procurement data)
FGM-148 Javelin Missile
$240,000 (complete system: missile + CLU)
The expendable missile round: ~$175-178K. The reusable Command Launch Unit (CLU): ~$125-150K. Our figure reflects the total system cost; the CLU is reused across many rounds.
CSIS Missile Threat — FGM-148 Javelin
HMMWV (Humvee)
$220,000 (up-armored)
Original unarmored: ~$70K. Up-armored variants: ~$160-220K. Being replaced by the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) at ~$340K/unit.
Wikipedia — Humvee (with cited DOD sources)

MILITARY EQUIPMENT — SMALL ITEMS

Air Force Coffee Maker
$7,600
10-cup aircraft coffee maker reported by airmen at Travis Air Force Base, 1984. Separate from the 2018 controversy over $1,280 heated coffee cups on C-5/KC-10 aircraft.
Air Force Times — The $1,300 Coffee Cup (2018)
Military Toilet Seat (C-5 Aircraft)
$640
One-piece molded plastic toilet cover for a C-5 aircraft lavatory, discovered during 1980s procurement scandals. By 2018, Sen. Grassley found the Air Force was paying $10,000 for a similar part.
Sen. Grassley — $10,000 Toilet Seat Cover (2018)
Pentagon Hammer
$435
Appeared on a unit-price list for the T-34C trainer in 1983. The hammer itself was ~$15; the remaining $420 was overhead allocated equally across all spare parts. Sometimes misquoted as "$600" (that's the toilet seat).
Government Executive — "The Myth of the $600 Hammer"
MRE (Meal, Ready-to-Eat)
$12.50
Defense Logistics Agency FY2025 pricing: case of 12 MREs at ~$150, or ~$12.53 per meal.
MRE Info — Buying MREs (cites DLA pricing)
5.56 NATO Round
$0.45
Government procurement average: ~$0.49/round across all 5.56mm types. The M855A1 Enhanced Performance Round costs ~$0.68/round. Our figure reflects bulk contract pricing.
U.S. Army FY2025 Ammunition Budget Justification (PDF)

CIVILIAN COMPARISONS

Average Teacher Salary
$65,000/year (BLS median)
BLS median: ~$63,100. NEA national average (mean): ~$74,177 for 2024-25. We use a figure between the two.
NEA — Educator Pay Data 2025
4-Year College Tuition
$100,000 (total cost of attendance)
Public 4-year in-state total cost (tuition + room & board): ~$24,920/year or ~$99,680 over 4 years. Tuition-only is ~$46,440 over 4 years.
College Board — Trends in College Pricing
Annual Healthcare Per Capita
$15,500
U.S. healthcare spending reached $15,474 per capita in 2024 (total NHE: $5.3T), growing 7.2% year-over-year. Projected ~$16,570 for 2025.
CMS — National Health Expenditure Fact Sheet
Median US Home Price
$420,000
National median existing-home price hovered $400-415K through 2025. Our figure is slightly above the median but within a reasonable margin for late 2025.
FRED — Median Sales Price of Houses Sold