Tax widget · Dashboard redesign

Research-led redesign of the dashboard tax tile. Inspired by Origin's "action-first" framing, QuickBooks' KPI cards, and Gusto's tax composition donut.

01

Current widget

Today, on dashboard
Beta

Taxes

Jan 2025 - Aug 2025
CA
Income i
$318,255
Estimated tax i
$25,031
Taxes paid i
$28,172
Estimated tax rate i
7.87%
Balance due i -$3,141
15
Sep
What's not working
  • No clear hierarchy — four equally-weighted stats compete for attention. Nothing tells the user "this is what matters most".
  • Action is buried — Balance due, the only actionable number, sits at the bottom in the smallest type.
  • "-$3,141" is ambiguous — is that a refund or money owed? Negative balance reads like a debit, but it's actually credit.
  • Disconnected date — the "15 Sep" calendar pill is detached from any context. Is it a deadline? A scheduled payment?
  • Static report tone — no comparison, no progress, no story. Just a data dump.
  • "Jan 2025 – Aug 2025" is an odd period. Most people think in tax years or quarters.
02

Research distilled

From Origin, QuickBooks, Gusto, Wise, HoneyBook, Deel

What the best fintech tax widgets do

  • Lead with a single answer — "You're getting back $X" or "Pay $Y by Z". Origin compresses tax to a single line: "File fast and free — 44 days left to file your taxes."
  • Composition over flat numbers — Gusto Mobile uses a donut chart breaking gross pay into Net / Federal / State / Other. Visualisation tells the story faster than four stats.
  • Progress framing — Kakao Pay shows "5% filled / max ₩9M deduction". Treats the tax year as a journey, not a snapshot.
  • Date-anchored CTAs — Origin's countdown ("44 days left") drives engagement far better than a static "15 Sep" pill.
  • Comparison context — QuickBooks' KPI cards always include "Up 100% from FY25". Without comparison, a number is just a number.
  • Explain on demand — Acorns uses inline (10%) → tooltip "We're required to set a 10% default...". Tax language is jargon-heavy; tooltips are mandatory, not optional.

Principles I'm applying

Answer-first headline One visualisation, not four numbers Status-coded color Year-to-date comparison Always-visible CTA Plain-language
03

Primary redesign

Refund state · State (CA) · Tax year 2025
Taxes Beta
Refund expected
Based on your YTD payments through Aug 2025
$3,141
You've overpaid your California estimated tax. Consider reducing your Q4 payment to avoid tying up cash.
EFFECTIVE RATE 7.87%
Tax 7.87% Take-home 92.13%
Income YTD i
$318,255
↑ 18% vs same time last year
Est. tax owed i
$25,031
CA state only
Paid YTD i
$28,172
$3,141 ahead
15
Sep
Next quarterly · 24 days

Design decisions

  • Refund / Owe is now the hero. A green eyebrow chip + large status-coded number answer the user's first question before they read anything else.
  • Effective rate as a donut — replaces the dry "7.87%" stat with a visual showing what slice of income goes to tax. Glanceable.
  • 3-stat strip with deltas — every stat now has comparison context ("↑ 18% vs same time last year", "$3,141 ahead"). Numbers gain meaning.
  • Tax year selector, not period range — "Tax year 2025" is how people actually think. The Jan–Aug range is implied by YTD framing in the eyebrow.
  • Date pill paired with countdown — "15 Sep · 24 days" makes the deadline feel real, not just a calendar icon.
  • Two CTAs, clear hierarchy — "Adjust estimate" (secondary, addresses the overpayment insight) and "View details" (primary, deep-link to full Tax page).
04

States the widget needs to handle

Three variants from the same pattern
Refund state · compact Default, calm tone
Refund expected · CA
Through Aug 2025 · Tax year 2025
$3,141
15
Sep
Next quarterly
Owe state · urgent When user is behind on payments
Payment due · CA
Through Aug 2025 · Tax year 2025
$4,820
You're behind on Q3. Pay by Sep 15 to avoid IRS underpayment penalty.
15
Sep
24 days left
On-track state · neutral When payments match estimate
On track · CA
Through Aug 2025 · Tax year 2025
$0 owed
Your payments cover your estimated liability through Q3.
15
Sep
Next quarterly · 24 days
Compact tile · small dashboard slot For sidebar / dense layouts
Taxes · CA Beta
Refund expected
$3,141
Paid $28,172 Est. $25,031
Next quarterly Sep 15 · 24d
05

Anatomy

Six structural regions, each with a single job
  1. Header — title, beta flag, Federal / State scope toggle.
  2. Sub-nav — state chips (CA, NY…) + tax year selector. Calendar-year period is implicit.
  3. Hero — status eyebrow (refund / owe / on-track) → hero amount → one-line explanation. Status determines colour.
  4. Composition — small donut showing effective rate. Glanceable; rate is no longer just a number.
  5. Stat strip — three KPIs with year-over-year deltas. Comparison turns numbers into stories.
  6. Footer — next-deadline pill + secondary "Adjust" + primary "View details" CTA. Action is always one click away.
06

In dashboard context

How the widget sits among other dashboard tiles
Net worth chart
Taxes Beta
CA · Tax year 2025
Refund expected
$3,141
$3,141 ahead of your YTD estimate
7.87%
15
Sep
Next · 24 days
Cashflow widget
07

Summary of changes

Before After Why
4 equally-weighted stats 1 hero answer + 3 supporting stats Hierarchy answers the user's first question first
"-$3,141" (ambiguous) "Refund expected · $3,141" + green status Sign + colour kills ambiguity
7.87% as a stat Donut showing tax slice of income Visual composition is glanceable
No comparison YoY deltas on every stat A number without context is noise
"Jan 2025 – Aug 2025" "Tax year 2025" + YTD framing Matches how users think about taxes
Floating "15 Sep" pill "15 Sep · Next quarterly · 24 days" Date earns its place in the layout
No CTA "Adjust estimate" + "View details" Dashboard widgets should always offer a next step