Taking the easy way this year may not be the smartest thing to do. The standard deduction may not generate the largest bang for your buck. Become familiar with what deductions you and your family are able to claim and the post that figure next to the standard deduction you are allowed and then obviously take the greater of the two. About 46 million Americans itemize on their 1040s every year. Itemizing could make sure you don't overpay or receive less of a refund than what you should.

Itemizing isn't as easy as just taking the figure the IRS offers, but if you keep track, you could receive way more. Many deductions people usually don’t take into consideration. Clothing bought for job searching, Sales taxes, medical expenses such as health insurance premiums and nursing home expenses, any charitable donations, and any out-of-pocket job expenses not reimbursed are all tax deductable. Moving expenses to take your first professional job, care for a dependant so you can go to work (i.e. a child or mentally or physically disabled spouse), and the interest on student loans up to $2500 are also all tax deductable.

All these deductions add up. It's easy to see that if kept track of, they could very well add up to equated to more than what would be given in a standard deduction and thus put more money in your hands instead of the IRS's. Don't wait 'til tax season to start thinking about it. Keep good records. It doesn’t make sense to do otherwise in an economy where everything is so tight.