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Key Takeaways

The best overall tax relief company for May 2026 is Community Tax Relief, which stands out for its affordable fees, money-back guarantee, strong customer reviews and bilingual services.
Other companies we ranked include Precision Tax Relief, Anthem Tax Services, Larson Tax Relief, Victory Tax Lawyers, Optima Tax Relief, Tax Defense Network and J. David Tax Law.
We contacted the companies listed to gather information and conducted interviews with experts. We then evaluated firms using 16 research-based data points, organized into four categories: availability, cost, credibility and services.

Falling behind on your debt to Uncle Sam can be stressful — but you’re not alone. According to the latest IRS data, Americans owed more than $157 billion in back taxes, penalties and interest for the 2022 tax year.
Another silver lining? Help is available.
If you’re in this position, your first move should be to directly contact the IRS. The agency will help you come up with a plan. You can find the IRS’s contact information, plus summaries of its tax relief offerings and advice, on its website.
But if you don’t have the time to do that or you simply decide you need more help, you may want to consider hiring a tax relief company — generally, a firm that helps taxpayers manage tax debt by negotiating with the IRS or state tax agencies on their behalf.
Tread carefully, though: These firms can be predatory, or at the very least overconfident, often guaranteeing to resolve your debt issue when they don’t actually have the power to do so. You’ll need to do careful research.
To help you navigate your options, we’ve reviewed and rounded up the eight best tax relief firms available today.

How we chose our top picks
Our editors and writers reviewed a variety of tax relief companies to ensure our content is precise and guided by editorial accuracy. We contacted the companies listed to gather information and conducted interviews with experts. We ultimately decided our ranking based on 16 data points, including minimum debt relief required, fees, money-back guarantees and customer reviews.
Read the full methodology to learn more.
Our top picks for tax relief companies
Community Tax Relief — Best Overall
Precision Tax Relief — Best Customer Service
Anthem Tax Services — Best Guarantee
Larson Tax Relief — Most Affordable Fees
Victory Tax Lawyers — Best for Large Tax Debts
Optima Tax Relief — Best for Nationwide Availability
Tax Defense Network — Best for Bilingual Services
J. David Tax Law — Best for Complex Legal Issues

Pros

Has a mobile app
Bilingual services available
Offers tax preparation, filing and assurance services

Cons

Not available in Minnesota

Limited state tax relief options

HIGHLIGHTS

Minimum debt required:
$10,000

Certifications and memberships:
IRS Approved Continuing Education Provider

Cost:
$549 for investigation fees, $2,000 to $7,000 for total tax relief

Money-back guarantee:
14 days

Why we chose this company: Community Tax Relief secured its title as best overall tax relief company due to its affordable fees, money-back guarantee, positive customer reviews and bilingual services. Investigation fees are $549 for personal cases and $999 for business cases on average. The company generally has a minimum debt threshold of $10,000 and offers discounts to certain groups, like veterans.
The company is fully staffed with native English and Spanish speakers, and it offers a money-back guarantee if it’s unable to help. There is also a mobile app, which is rare for these types of companies, in both English and Spanish.
Read Money’s full Community Tax Relief review.

Pros

30-day money-back guarantee
Positive customer review ratings
Offers tax preparation and bookkeeping to help prevent future tax issues

Cons

Limited state tax relief options
No minimum debt requirement means it may not be worth the money for some customers

HIGHLIGHTS

Minimum debt required:
None

Certifications and memberships:
American Society of Tax Problem Solvers, National Association of Enrolled Agents, American Institute of CPAs

Cost:
Starts at $500 for clients only needing tax return help and $4,400 for those needing representation

Money-back guarantee:
30 days

Why we chose this company: Precision Tax Relief stands out for its customer service reviews, including a 5 rating out of 5 on TrustPilot. The reviews say that clients are assigned to one person who becomes familiar with your situation as opposed to a team that might not know your particular case as thoroughly. They also mention that the tax professionals on staff are knowledgeable and helpful.
While the company doesn’t have a minimum requirement for a balance owed to the IRS and will not turn away someone who owes less than $10,000, Precision Tax Relief tells Money that taxpayers who owe less than $10,000 often don’t find the value in hiring it. The fees start at $500 for clients only needing tax return help and $4,400 for those needing representation.
Read Money’s full Precision Tax Relief review.

Pros

Money-back guarantee with no time limit
Assistance with filing for wage garnishment and tax levy release

Generally positive customer reviews

Cons

Monthly income requirement
Some customers complained of waiting a long time to get their issue resolved

HIGHLIGHTS

Minimum debt required:
$10,000

Certifications and memberships:
National Association of Tax Professionals, National Association of Enrolled Agents, California Tax Education Council, American Society of Tax Problem Solvers

Cost:
Starts around $2,900 for tax resolution/relief

Money-back guarantee:
100% if your tax situation does not improve

Why we chose this company: While money-back guarantees are common in this industry, most have a time limit. That’s not the case for Anthem Tax Services, which offers a 100% money-back guarantee if your tax situation does not improve.
The company charges a flat rate fee upfront that can vary widely per individual customer. Some services start at $500; generally, however, relief/resolution starts around $2,900 (the price can change if extra services are required along the way). Clients cannot be in active bankruptcy, and they also must have a monthly income of at least $2,000. Anthem Tax Services usually services tax liabilities above $10,000 but can make exceptions starting at $7,500.
Read Money’s full Anthem Tax Services review.

Pros

Comparatively affordable fees
Positive customer service ratings
Provides business tax relief

Cons

Minimum $10,000 tax debt required

Can be hard to get updates from staff on your case

HIGHLIGHTS

Minimum debt required:
$20,000

Certifications and memberships:
National Association of Enrolled Agents

Cost:
Starts at $400 for tax returns and $2,500 for tax representation

Money-back guarantee:
30 days

Why we chose this company: When you’re drowning in tax debt, the last thing you want to do is pay a ton of money to fix the issue. Larson Tax Relief charges less than some others on this list: Fees start at $400 to file tax returns and a minimum of $2,500 for full tax relief services. (The company also offers a $250 comprehensive account review option.)
Larson Tax Relief experienced an uptick in good reviews in 2025, especially from customers who said they liked how frequent communication was throughout the tax relief process.
Larson Tax Relief dropped its minimum debt requirement to $10,000. The company could be a good option if you’re specifically seeking business tax relief.
Read Money’s full Larson Tax Relief review.

Pros

Wide range of services, including tax liens, audit representation and tax preparation
All consultations are with a licensed attorney

Cons

No money-back guarantee

$25,000 minimum debt required

High minimum fee

HIGHLIGHTS

Minimum debt required:
$25,000

Certifications and memberships:
American Society of Tax Problem Solvers, regulated by the California State Bar

Cost:
Starts at $5,500

Money-back guarantee:
None

Why we chose this company: Victory Tax Lawyers has a high minimum debt requirement ($25,000) and higher minimum cost than others on this list ($5,500), but it could be a good choice if you are dealing with large tax debts. Victory Tax Lawyers is a law firm, not just a resolution company, which means your consultation will take place with a licensed attorney.
Although the firm offers a wide range of services, it’s the only company on our list with no money-back guarantee. This information — as well as what’s listed above — is current as of 2025, the last time we were able to get in touch with the company.

Pros

Expert staff of enrolled agents, CPAs and attorneys
Two-phase approach
Offers tax identity theft protection services

Cons

15-day money-back guarantee is shorter than some others

Lower BBB customer ratings than others

HIGHLIGHTS

Minimum debt required:
$10,000

Certifications and memberships:
IRS Continuing Education Provider, National Association of Tax Professionals, member of the Business Consumer Alliance

Cost:
Starts at $495

Money-back guarantee:
15 days

Why we chose this company: Optima Tax Relief previously stood out for offering a mobile app — a rarity in the tax relief industry — but has since retired the app. (It says a new version is in development.) Even without the app, Optima remains one of the largest tax relief providers in the country and offers a structured, two-phase resolution process backed by a 15-day money-back guarantee.
As for tax relief services, the investigation fee is generally about $495. According to the company, this fee covers a review of a client’s IRS transcripts and financial situation to determine the most viable resolution option.
Optima can help with both IRS and state tax relief, though a $10,000 minimum debt is usually required for the service to make financial sense. For taxpayers with smaller balances, the company offers a free resource platform called Optima Tax Shield Free, which includes tools such as IRS balance tracking and identity theft alerts.
Of note: Optima Tax Relief recently dropped to an A rating on the BBB website, which says it has received over 770 complaints about the company in the past three years. BBB ratings take into account factors such as complaint response and resolution, not just complaint volume. Optima says it views these metrics as an opportunity to improve its processes.
Read Money’s Optima Tax Relief review from 2024.

Pros

Fully bilingual customer service

$5,000 minimum debt requirement

Robust tax education resources

Cons

Reviews highlight service issues

HIGHLIGHTS

Minimum debt required:
$5,000

Certifications and memberships:
National Association of Enrolled Agents, American Society of Tax Problem Solvers, National Association of Tax Professionals, Association of International Certified Public Accountants

Cost:
Varies, but the average fee is $3,500

Money-back guarantee:
30 days

Why we chose this company: The Tax Defense Network is the clear winner of our best bilingual services category thanks to its English- and Spanish-speaking tax specialists and full website in both languages. The company also accepts a much lower minimum tax debt than its competitors at $5,000 — though, as always, customers should research whether the cost of services are worth the help they will receive.
The Tax Defense Network offers both IRS and state tax relief services, as well as specialized business tax solutions including close corporate filing services for when businesses need to shut down permanently.
The BBB put an alert on the Tax Defense Network’s profile recently due to “a pattern of complaint [sic] alleging contract/service issues.” Tamara Krause, senior manager of digital marketing at the Tax Defense Network, tells Money the company has addressed those issues internally by hiring additional case managers and implementing a new ticketing system, which have led to a “significant decrease in complaints.”
Read Money’s full Tax Defense Network review.

Pros

Staffed by tax attorneys
Several locations nationwide
Positive customer reviews

Cons

No clear pricing information available
No money-back guarantee

HIGHLIGHTS

Minimum debt required:
None

Certifications and memberships:
National Association of Tax Professionals, American Society of Tax Problem Solvers

Cost:
Unclear but website says “most tax attorneys charge between $200 and $500 per hour”

Money-back guarantee:
None listed

Why we chose this company: At J. David Tax Law “only a tax attorney will handle your case,” giving those with complex financial situations peace of mind throughout a stressful process. The company has both an English and Spanish version of its website available. It doesn’t appear to have a minimum debt requirement, though it’s likely best for large balances or disputes.
What sets J. David Tax Law apart is its highly trained staff and 20 in-person locations, which stretch from Miami to Los Angeles. In addition to typical state and nationwide tax relief services, J. David Tax Law offers support for IRS passport revocation or denials, tax litigation and payroll tax compliance. But while prospective customers can get a free consultation, it doesn’t appear to have a money-back guarantee. J. David Tax Law did not return our requests for clarification on pricing or details.
J. David Tax Law was sued in 2024 by former customers alleging malpractice and unreasonably high fees. A proposed class-action lawsuit was dismissed with prejudice in January 2025.

Other tax relief companies we considered
We assessed many more tax relief companies that ultimately did not make the cut. Below are several companies that were not named on our list but that may still be a fit depending on your situation.
Priority Tax Relief
Priority Tax relief offers both federal and state tax relief services nationwide, as well as bookkeeping, tax planning and more. As with the other companies on this list, the company offers complimentary tax consultations and will then provide a customized price for customer-specific services with fees starting as low as $500. However, the three-day money-back guarantee is much shorter than the guarantees of most companies on our list.
Perfect Tax Relief
Perfect Tax Relief offers both state and federal tax relief to people across the country, and its fees are relatively low ($2,000 to $7,500). While there’s a $10,000 minimum debt requirement if no tax preparation is needed, there’s no minimum if tax preparation is required. It does not offer a money-back guarantee. This information is current as of 2025.
The bottom line on tax relief
If you owe the IRS, don’t panic. You have options. The first step you should take is to speak to the IRS directly or use its online tools to see whether you can resolve the issue through one of its channels or programs (like by setting up a payment plan). If you owe state taxes, you’ll need to check on what’s possible through your state’s revenue department.
But if you’re not able to make a plan to get out from under the debt with the IRS itself, there are professionals you can hire to help you. Enter tax relief companies, which will take on the burden of negotiating a payment plan with the IRS for a fee. That fee can be quite high and, in many cases, it may not be worth it (again, you should always check with the IRS directly about your options before hiring a third party).
Read below for more on how tax relief works, the types of tax relief and how to choose a company. You can also read Money’s full guide to tax relief.
How does tax relief work?
Tax relief companies generally work with the IRS or your state’s revenue office to lower your tax burden. The process typically involves three steps:

Free consultation. You will meet, often by phone, with the tax relief company to go over your specific financial situation, and it will let you know if you’re a fit for its services. Many companies have a minimum requirement, such as $10,000. While that may seem high, it’s often the threshold of what you need to owe in order for a company’s services to be worth the cost, which can be high ($2,000 to $7,000, for example). Don’t be swayed by tax relief companies boasting a free consultation as a huge selling point; this is common practice.
Investigation. Once you’ve hired the tax relief company, it will do a deeper analysis of your situation, start communicating with the IRS or your state on your behalf, and review your options.
Resolution (ideally). In a best-case scenario, you’ll eventually be able to lower your tax burden. This can take several months or even years.

How to choose a tax relief company
Tax relief companies can be predatory, so if you choose this route, you need to do careful research. To reiterate: It’s always best to first determine whether you can directly set up a payment plan with the IRS or your state, or use another government-approved tool, to lower your tax burden. Only then may it make sense to work with a qualified tax attorney or tax relief company.
“I would put [third-party tax relief] at the bottom of the list,” says Christine Damico, a certified financial planner with Domain Money.
Here are a few factors to consider when selecting a tax relief company.
Credibility
Check the BBB website to make sure that the company you’re considering is accredited. Firms will also usually include certifications and memberships — the National Association of Tax Professionals or National Association of Enrolled Agents, for example — on their website. It’s also a good idea to check customer reviews on Trustpilot, Yelp, the BBB and other review sites.
If any company is telling you that you definitely qualify for tax relief, that’s a red flag, Damico says.
“Only the IRS or the state can actually make that determination,” she adds. Another red flag is if a tax relief company provides any upfront guarantee about the results, like that you’ll only pay 10% of your tax burden. Companies cannot guarantee a certain outcome like this.
You should also be wary of providers that push you to buy services immediately. After a consultation, you’ll want to revisit the IRS website to make sure what the company is telling you about your situation is accurate — and take the time to comfortably and thoroughly explore all your options.
Cost
Tax relief companies tend to have opaque fee structures because the amount you owe will come down to your specific situation (and how much work the company will have to do). None of the firms on our list provide specific fee information on their website, but once contacted by Money, many said the fees can begin at $2,000 to $3,500 for full tax relief services.
Be careful of companies asking for a high lump sum payment upfront or high monthly fees, since they can drag out the process to increase your bill, Damico says.
“The fee structure should be tied into the questions that are being asked,” she adds. “Are they trying to understand how this tax bill came into being in the first place, or is there a rush to get the payment from you before realizing what’s actually happening in your tax situation?”
Services and availability
Consider what the tax relief company can actually offer you. If your tax situation is simple, like if you need more time to pay your tax bill, you may only need help negotiating a payment plan with the IRS (though this is something you should likely first try to do on your own). But if your situation is more complicated, like you’ve owed the IRS thousands of dollars for multiple years, you may want help negotiating options like wage garnishments.
You also want to make sure the company in question can help with both IRS and state relief, if that’s what you need, and that it operates in your state. Some companies also provide extra services like audit representation, bookkeeping and tax prep, while others don’t.
Latest tax relief news
Tax season is here
The 2025 tax filing deadline has passed, but taxpayers who requested extensions still have additional time to file and should be working to submit returns before the October deadline. Early IRS data shows the average tax refund is up roughly 11.3% compared with last year, with refunds averaging $3,275 for individual filers so far this filing season.
This was the first tax season since President Donald Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act into law. The OBBBA enacted a slew of tax changes, including extended income tax cuts, an expanded child tax credit and a larger standard deduction. The law also eliminated federal income taxes on cash tips and overtime.
Those tax breaks come at a cost: To help pay for them, the law included deep rollbacks to safety net programs like Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. According to estimates from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, roughly 15 million people could lose health coverage as a result of the Medicaid cuts.
The law also created a new government-backed savings account for children, offering a $1,000 “baby bonus” for babies born from 2025 through 2028. These birth-based custodial accounts, often referred to as “Trump Accounts,” are designed as long-term, tax-preferred investment vehicles that remain tied up until the beneficiary turns 18.
2026 brackets and standard deduction update
The IRS has released the inflation-adjusted tax brackets and standard deduction amounts for the 2026 tax year, which applies to returns most people will file in spring 2027. The standard deduction will increase to $16,100 for single filers, $24,150 for heads of household and $32,200 for married couples filing jointly.
Income ranges for each tax bracket have also been raised to prevent modest pay increases from pushing taxpayers into a higher tax rate, with the maximum rate for 2026 remaining at 37%.

Tax relief FAQs
What is tax relief?
Tax relief is an umbrella term for strategies that can help people pay off or lower their tax burden, which is what you owe either the IRS or state government — or both. (Your tax burden can also be referred to as your tax bill or tax liability.) These strategies for paying it off can include setting up a payment plan, an offer in compromise — which is when you settle your tax debt for less than the full amount — wage garnishment and more. Options for tax relief vary widely depending on your specific situation and where you live, so make sure to check with the IRS or your local government about what may make sense for you.
What is a tax relief company?
Although you should always try to resolve your tax troubles with the IRS first, sometimes it can make sense to bring in a professional in the form of a company that provides tax relief services. These firms can review your paperwork and individual financial situation — which usually takes place via free consultation — then provide you with options, help with the paperwork and communicate with the IRS for you. Their teams are typically made up of tax professionals and sometimes include attorneys.
But working with these companies can come with risks, explains Steve O. Oniya, financial advisor and president of the Houston-based financial advisory firm OM Investments. Those risks can include paying large fees, not getting the result you expected, being deceived, and losing your time and energy with little (or even no) gain.
“A tax relief company could be considered for those burdened with tax situations they cannot handle and cannot find better alternatives to ‘relieve’ the situation,” Oniya adds. “One would have to really exhaust nearly all options for this to be suitable.”
What are the types of tax relief?
There’s a wide variety of tax relief programs that may be available to you, depending on your specific case and where you owe taxes. Many state and local governments offer similar relief programs to the IRS, which include:

o Payment plans: You can apply for a payment plan via the IRS’s website to pay off your balance over a set period of time.

o Offer in compromise (OIC): These programs allow you to settle your debt for less than what you owe based on factors like your income, expenses and ability to pay. It used to be called the Fresh Start program, which is language you may still see some tax relief companies use.

o Penalty abatement: This is relief offered via a waiver under specific circumstances. The IRS says first-time abatement is the most common administrative waiver for both individuals and businesses. Eligible penalties include failure to file your taxes, failure to pay when the return is due, and failure to deposit the money to the IRS in the proper account or manner. You may qualify if you have a history of good tax compliance.

o Currently not collectible (CNC) status: CNC is when the IRS agrees to delay when you need to pay your taxes, usually because you’re not currently able to pay. The agency will review your situation regularly but won’t attempt to collect the money you owe until you’re able to pay.

o Innocent spouse relief: If your spouse makes an error while filing, the IRS will not necessarily hold you accountable. Innocent spouse relief protects you from penalties that may be owed due to a mistake your spouse made, as long as you didn’t know about the error.

Our methodology for picking the best tax relief companies
To create our methodology, we did extensive research and pinpointed 16 data points we could use to assess companies. These fell into four categories: availability, cost, credibility and services.
Credibility made up 35% of our weighting for each company, because tax relief companies can be predatory and illegitimate. Cost made up 30% of the scores, as it’s one of the main factors that customers should consider when deciding to work with these companies. Availability and services were weighed at 20% and 15%, respectively, because they determine how many people can actually use a given tax relief service.
Below are more details on the data points considered within each category.

Availability: We considered the minimum debt required to work with a company, whether it provided both IRS and state tax relief, nationwide availability and whether it offered a mobile app.
Cost: For cost, we considered fees, whether the company offered a free consultation and money-back (or service) guarantees. These prices were accurate as of January 2026 if not otherwise specified.
Credibility: We checked that the companies were accredited by the BBB and evaluated their customer reviews from the BBB, TrustPilot, Yelp and other sources. We also assessed their certifications and memberships, like those with the National Association of Tax Professionals and American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, given that professional organizations often help develop guidelines and ethical standards that can hold members to a higher standard.
Services: The services factor included the type of tax relief and other tax-related services offered, customer service availability and hours, and whether there were bilingual services.

Summary of our top picks for tax relief
Community Tax Relief — Best Overall
Precision Tax Relief — Best Customer Service
Anthem Tax Services — Best Guarantee
Larson Tax Relief — Most Affordable Fees
Victory Tax Lawyers — Best for Large Tax Debts
Optima Tax Relief — Best for Nationwide Availability
Tax Defense Network — Best for Bilingual Services
J. David Tax Law — Best for Complex Legal Issues
More from Money:
How to Get Free Tax Help From the IRS and Others
Here Are the Top 10 Tax Friendly States in the U.S.
Why Millions of Taxpayers Could Get Bigger Refunds This Year

The Senate agreed unanimously to revise its rules to ban members and their staffs from wagers on prediction markets platforms.

“I do better than many citizens because I’ve contributed at the highest level.”

Microsoft (MSFT) is a software giant, known for its Windows operating system and Office software suite. It is also a hyperscaler. The biggest driver for the stock is artificial intelligence.The company’s revenue comes from three different business segments. These include Productivity and Business Processes, Intelligent Cloud, and More Personal Computing. Microsoft’s cloud computing platform is called Azure, and the main AI product is Microsoft 365 Copilot. The stock is down approximately 16% year to date, at the time of writing, Thursday afternoon, April 30, according to Yahoo Finance. Meanwhile, the SPDR S&P 500 index (SPY) is up slightly above 5% in the same period.The stock is tumbling following the company’s Q3 earnings report on April 29, trading 4.6% lower near $405, with the most likely culprit being high capital expenditures (capex), which negatively impact free cash flow.Other key news for the stock:Microsoft revised its partnership with OpenAI; it no longer has an exclusive license for its models. This isn’t surprising after the company’s absence from the latest OpenAI founding round.Microsoft made major leadership changes to improve its AI strategy, with the most important being the naming of Jacob Andreou as EVP for Copilot.The company launched Copilot Cowork in March for Frontier (early access program).Key facts from Microsoft’s earnings reportMicrosoft’s Q3 revenue increased 18% (up 15% in constant currency) to $82.9 billion.Chairman and CEO Satya Nadella touted the company’s AI growth during the earnings call.“In knowledge work, it was another record quarter for Microsoft 365 Copilot seat adds, which increased 250% year-over-year, representing our fastest growth since launch. Quarter over quarter, we continue to see acceleration and now have over 20 million Microsoft 365 Copilot paid seats.”More Tech Stocks:BofA resets Google stock price target after earnings smasherBank of America reassesses Nvidia stock, sets new forecastBank of America resets Intel stock price target after earningsThe company’s remaining performance obligations are growing and, according to its 10-Q Form, totaled $633 billion as of March 31, 2026, with the commercial portion at $627 billion.The form included one caveat, however. “We expect to recognize approximately 30% of our total company remaining performance obligation revenue and 25% of our commercial remaining performance obligation revenue over the next 12 months and the remainder thereafter.”

Bank of America raised its Microsoft EPS estimates.jewhyte/Getty Images

Microsoft CFO Amy Hood provided guidance for Q4:Revenue should be between $86.7 billion and $87.8 billion.Expected capex will increase to more than $40 billion.
Source: Microsoft Q3 earnings call
She added that the sequential increase in capex includes approximately $5 billion from higher component pricing and the impact of finance leases. Hood said that for calendar year 2026, she expects approximately $190 billion in capex, including approximately $25 billion from higher component pricing.Bank of America raises Microsoft EPS estimatesFollowing the report’s release in a research note shared with me, Bank of America analyst Tal Liani and his team updated their opinion on Microsoft stock. The team noted that Azure revenue growth of 39% in constant currency beat the Wall Street consensus estimate at 38.2%. Analysts said revenue growth of 15% and EPS of $4.27 were also above Wall Street consensus estimates of 13.3% and $4.04, respectively.Related: BofA resets Google stock price target after earnings smasherLiani said CoPilot added 5 million paid users, increasing the total to 20 million and representing growth of 33% quarter over quarter or 250% YoY. He also noted that the 2026 capex guidance of $190 billion is $37 billion above Wall Street expectations.A similar trend can be seen with other hyperscalers, who collectively increased capex by $50 billion, Liani added. He said he estimates 2026 hyperscaler capex at over $800 billion, and a path toward more than $1 trillion by 2027.The team said approximately $25 billion of Microsoft’s capex increase represents higher component pricing rather than pure volume expansion.Analysts raised their Microsoft EPS estimates for 2026, 2027, and 2028 to $17.38, $19.19, and $22.36, respectively; from $17.19, $19.10, and $22.30, respectively.Liani reiterated a buy rating for Microsoft stock and a price target of $500, based on a 24 multiple of his estimate for the price-to-earnings ratio for 2027. This is higher than the peer group, which is in the range of 18 to 22. He believes that sustained revenue growth and margin profile warrant this high multiple.Analysts noted downside risks for Microsoft:Near-term gross margin pressureAI applications and model providers that may innovate at a faster rate than MicrosoftThe highly cyclical nature of enterprise application spendingRelated: Bank of America reassesses Nvidia stock, sets new forecast

The average rate on a 30-year mortgage is still lower than it was a year ago.

Three weeks ago, Robinhood Markets secured what looked like the deal of a generation. The U.S. Treasury Department selected the company as the broker and sole initial trustee for Trump Accounts, the federal program that deposits $1,000 into investment accounts for every child born between 2025 and 2028.Then the first-quarter earnings report dropped on April 28, and the celebration turned into a sell-off. Robinhood told investors it would need to spend an additional $100 million to build and operate the Trump Accounts infrastructure, sending shares down nearly 7% in extended trading to $76.44, Bloomberg reported.The decline wiped roughly $5 billion from the company’s market valuation in a single session. The question investors are now wrestling with is direct and uncomfortable. Can a program designed to bring 4 million eligible children into the financial system justify its cost before it starts generating meaningful revenue for Robinhood?Robinhood’s Q1 earnings reveal the real cost of the Trump Accounts dealThe headline numbers showed the actual cost of the deal. Revenue climbed 15% year over year to $1.07 billion, funded customers rose to 27.4 million, and total platform assets reached $307 billion, a 39% increase from the prior year, Robinhood’s earnings release showed.But operating expenses jumped 18% during the quarter, and the updated full-year expense outlook of $2.7 billion to $2.825 billion now includes the extra $100 million earmarked for building the Trump Accounts app.More Tech Stocks:Morgan Stanley sets jaw-dropping Micron price target after eventNvidia’s China chip problem isn’t what most investors thinkQuantum Computing makes $110 million move nobody saw comingThese apps run dedicated customer support, producing educational content, and managing custody of account assets, the earnings release showed. Adjusted operating expenses in Q1 already included $14 million tied to the Rothera prediction exchange and Trump Accounts.  CEO Vlad Tenev framed the initiative as a long-term play during the company’s earnings call. The Trump Accounts program is an opportunity to engage with the next generation of investors and demonstrate Robinhood’s capability as a government partner, Tenev said, according to the Q1 earnings call transcript.How Trump accounts became Wall Street’s most unusual government contractThe program originated from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, passed by Congress last year. Every U.S. child with a Social Security number born between January 1, 2025, and December 31, 2028, qualifies for a $1,000 government deposit into a tax-deferred investment account. Parents or guardians can enroll by filing IRS Form 4547 with their 2025 tax returns or through TrumpAccounts.gov.The Treasury Department shared on April 6 that Robinhood and Bank of New York Mellon would jointly operate the program. BNY serves as the designated financial agent handling initial account setup, while Robinhood builds and runs the standalone app and serves as the initial trustee, CNBC reported. Contributions open July 4.“The IRS has been working closely with the Treasury Department to make the election process as simple and easy as possible by permitting taxpayers to fill out a one-page form when they file their tax return,” said IRS CEO Frank Bisignano.As of March 31, taxpayers had enrolled more than 4 million children, and over 1 million were eligible for the Treasury’s $1,000 pilot deposit, the IRS reported. Madeline Brown, a senior policy associate at the Urban Institute, told CNBC that significant questions remain about what the app interface and financial coaching integration will look like for account holders.

Trump Accounts launch with $1,000 deposits for children, as Treasury partners with Robinhood and BNY Mellon to manage program rollout nationwide.Bloomberg/Getty Images

Robinhood’s broader business shows growth alongside mounting costsBeyond the activity of the Trump Accounts, Robinhood’s growth was evident in other business ventures. Robinhood Gold subscribers reached 4.3 million, up 36% year over year, and net deposits totaled $17.7 billion reflecting a 22% annualized growth rate, the earnings release showed.The company also secured approval from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to offer brokerage services and launched a public testnet for its blockchain platform. However, securities lending revenue declined as lower volatility and fewer IPOs reduced special rebate rates.Regulatory uncertainty around prediction markets adds another layer of risk as some states push back on jurisdiction, Tenev acknowledged, as GuruFocus indicated. The company repurchased $250 million in stock during Q1 and authorized a refreshed $1.5 billion buyback program.What Robinhood’s government bet means for your portfolioRobinhood’s Trump Accounts deal sits at the intersection of scale and uncertainty, and the company’s latest earnings make clear that those two forces are now pulling in opposite directions. On the one hand, the program puts Robinhood’s technology in front of approximately 60 million potential future users, according to Tenev on the Q1 2026 earnings call, a reach that no marketing campaign or referral program could realistically replicate.Early enrollment figures already show traction, with millions of children registered and over one million qualifying for initial deposits. That level of adoption, combined with Robinhood’s role as the standalone app provider and initial trustee, as Bloomberg notes, positions the company at the center of a generational onboarding effort into financial markets.On the other hand, the financial burden is immediate and measurable. The additional $100 million in projected costs adds to already rising operating expenses, which climbed 18% year over year, compressing the gap between revenue growth and profitability. Even with revenue reaching $1.07 billion and platform assets climbing to $307 billion, the market reaction shows how quickly sentiment can shift when long-term bets begin to weigh on near-term margins.  Diluted earnings per share came in at $0.38, barely outpacing expense growth at just 3% higher than a year ago. For investors holding HOOD shares, the question is whether the government partnership represents a foundation for lasting growth or an expensive distraction from the company’s core brokerage and fintech ambitions. Whether that trade proves worthwhile will depend less on the size of the opportunity and more on execution. The company must convert early enrollment into sustained engagement, manage costs without eroding the user experience, and navigate a rapidly shifting regulatory landscape. The Trump Accounts program has already proven it can move markets in a single earnings cycle. The larger question is whether, over time, it becomes a defining growth engine or a costly experiment that reshapes expectations without delivering proportional returns.Related: Robinhood enters premium credit card fray with new Platinum Card

No-exam life insurance policies have a reputation for offering skimpy coverage at high prices. Recent innovations in data analytics and artificial intelligence (AI), though, allow companies to better evaluate risk and extend coverage to more applicants without requiring a medical exam.
Today’s marketplace for no-exam life insurance includes AI-based fintechs that use sophisticated risk modeling algorithms as well as traditional insurance companies that offer instant approval policies with no exam. The best no-medical-exam life insurance policies of 2026 offer high coverage limits, multiple rider options, efficient online application processes and instant approvals.
Check out our list of the best no-exam life insurance coverage, which includes offerings with attractive features from innovative companies. We’ve also included a guide to no-exam life insurance to help you as you evaluate your life insurance options. Read on to learn more.

Key Takeaways

The best overall no-exam life insurance company for 2026 is Nationwide, which stands out for its affordable premiums, flexible terms, variety of available policies and financial strength. Other companies we ranked include Banner Life, Ethos, Mutual of Omaha and USAA.
No-exam life insurance has typically been more expensive and offered lower coverage levels than traditionally underwritten policies that include a medical exam.
Methodology: We evaluated more than 30 insurance companies and dozens of policy details, including costs, coverage maximums and terms. We also prioritized ease of obtaining coverage, along with providers’ financial strength and customer satisfaction data.

Our top picks for best no-exam life insurance

Nationwide — Best Overall
Ethos — Best Online Agency
Banner Life — Best for High Coverage Amounts
USAA — Best for Members of the Military
Mutual of Omaha — Best for Final Expense Coverage

Pros

Multiple no-exam policies offered
High customer satisfaction rating

Cons

Not all term policies can be converted

Not all policies can be purchased online

HIGHLIGHTS

Policy types
Term, universal, whole, variable

Terms available
10, 15, 20 or 30 years

Coverage amounts
$100K to $5 m

Why we chose it: We chose Nationwide as best overall because of the variety of affordable no-exam policies it offers, with premiums that start at about $15 a month.
Nationwide’s no-exam Life Essentials term policy is available for people between the ages of 21 and 55, with coverage levels from $250,000 to $1.5 million available.
Along with term life, Nationwide also has numerous types of permanent life insurance available, including whole, universal, indexed universal and variable universal. A large number of policy riders let customers tailor their policy to fit their specific circumstances.
The company says many customers are eligible to obtain policies other than Life Essentials without an exam. Eligible applicants include people in good health, age 18 to 50, applying for $100,000 to $5 million in coverage, and those 51 to 60 applying for up to $1 million. The company says 70% of clients meeting these criteria are able to obtain a policy without undergoing an exam, as the company employs an intelligent underwriting process that pre-screens individuals. This process pulls digital health records and allows the healthiest applicants to bypass the exam.
AM Best rates Nationwide as A+ in financial stability. The company also ranked in the top five in JD Power’s 2024 Individual Life Insurance Study oF customer experience.
Read our full review of Nationwide Life Insurance.

Pros

A lot of coverage levels for both term and guaranteed issue policies

Simple application process, same-day coverage available
Free will- and estate-planning tools

Cons

Not available in NY
Limited availability of policy riders

HIGHLIGHTS

Policy types –
Term and permanent

Terms available –
10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 years

Coverage amounts –
$5K to $3 m; coverage range from Guaranteed Whole Life is $2K to $100K

Why we chose it: Ethos is an easy-to-use online life insurance agency that offers a variety of options for coverage and fast, streamlined service. Applicants can get quotes and apply for policies online, a process which can take as little as 10 minutes. Many customers can even get same-day coverage, the company says.
People age 20 to 65 are eligible to apply for no-exam term life insurance coverage through Ethos. Available policies have coverage levels between $5,000 and $3 million, and available terms range from 10 to 40 years, which gives customers choice and flexibility.
Ethos is an insurance agency, not a life insurance company. It sells policies from a number of insurance providers, including Legal & General America, TruStage, Ameritas Life Insurance Corp., John Hancock and Protective. All of these insurance carriers have high ratings for financial stability with AM Best, Moody’s and S&P. The company also offers free will- and estate-planning tools worth nearly $900.
Read our full review of Ethos Life Insurance.

Pros

Up to $4 million in no-exam coverage

Premiums start at $8/month

Cons

Not all customers qualify for no-exam coverage

HIGHLIGHTS

Policy types
term, permanent

Terms available
10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35 and 40 years

Coverage amounts
Up to $4M

Why we chose it: Banner Life offers eligible applicants up to $4 million in life insurance with no exam, making it our top pick for people looking for high-coverage no-exam life insurance. The company has a couple of different policy options (with some variations by state) for eligible customers age 20 to 60 to get life insurance coverage with no exam.
According to a spokesperson, 73% of term life applicants are approved with no exam necessary, and 42% of applicants receive an instant decision.
Rates are also affordable, with premiums for traditionally underwritten policies starting at $8 a month. Keep in mind, the premium you’ll pay depends on physical factors like your age and health as well the coverage level and term duration you choose.

Pros

Available to military and non-military applicants
Same-day decisions

Cons

No riders
Rates increase annually

HIGHLIGHTS

Policy types –
term and permanent

Terms available –
10 – 30 years

Coverage amounts –
$100K to $10M

Why we chose it: USAA’s no-exam life insurance policy is designed for young, working adults and military members, but isn’t limited to active duty members. Anyone between the ages of 18 and 60, including civilians, can apply for this coverage.
USAA’s Eagle Express policy offers between $100,000 and $1 million in term life insurance for adults who are in good health, with a quick application process and the possibility of obtaining coverage the very same day.
If you need more coverage, USAA’s traditionally-underwritten level term life policy offers coverage of up to $10 million for applicants between the ages of 18 and 70.
AM Best rates USAA as A++ for financial stability, its very highest rating, which reflects top-notch.
Read our full review of USAA Life Insurance.

Pros

Least expensive for guaranteed issue policies

$2,000 to $25,000 coverage available
Applicants age 45-85 eligible

Cons

Low maximum coverage for guaranteed issue insurance
Different age eligibility in NY (50-75)

HIGHLIGHTS

Policy types
term, whole and universal (guaranteed issue is a whole life policy)

Terms available
term policies are 10, 15, 20 and 30 years; guaranteed issue is not a term policy

Coverage amounts
$2K to $25K for guaranteed issue/final expense whole life coverage

Why we chose it: Mutual of Omaha is a well-regarded life insurance company that offers a wide range of policy types, including a flexible and relatively affordable guaranteed issue policy. We made it our top pick for guaranteed issue, which is sometimes called “final expense” coverage. (Read more about these policies below.)
The company’s no-exam whole life policy is is available for people aged 45 to 85 (50 to 75 in New York). It offers coverage ranging from $2,000 to $25,000 ($5,000 minimum in Washington).
Because an applicant can’t be rejected due to their health, guaranteed issue is the most expensive type of life insurance. We found that the monthly premium for a $5,000 policy for a 50-year-old woman was roughly $16 a month; for a $25,000 policy, roughly $75. This policy, like most guaranteed issue policies, has a graded death benefit — in which the full benefit is available only some years after the policy begins.
Other no-exam life insurance companies we considered
The life insurance market is competitive, and there are many options available. Here are a few other companies with offerings we deemed noteworthy.
Ladder
Ladder’s insurance partners are well-known names like Legal & General and Allianz, and you can adjust or “ladder” your coverage as your needs change. It has an easy online application process and offers high coverage term life insurance without an exam, although policyholders don’t have the ability to add riders or convert term coverage to permanent.
Progressive
Progressive had lower coverage maximums compared to some of its competitors, but it stands out for a unique one-year, no-exam life insurance product. While this particular policy is narrowly targeted, young and healthy adults who need life insurance for a short duration can get coverage starting at $11 a month.
TruStage
TruStage has both a term and a whole-life policy that are no-exam. A term policy can be converted to a whole life policy if your needs change over time. TruStage is the insurer behind many big credit unions’ life insurance offerings and has a good track record of customer satisfaction.
Wysh
Wysh uses technology to offer a fast online application and approval process, although its eligible maximum age of 50 to apply for no-exam life insurance is lower than some competitors. Wysh stands out for letting policyholders choose non-standard amounts of coverage and terms. If, for instance, you need $248,000 worth of coverage for 17 years, Wysh lets you tailor a policy to your exact terms.
Life insurance guide
In this section we will explain everything you need to know about no-exam life insurance. We’ll explore what the product is, how it works, how to get it, and the benefits of this type of policy. We’ll also take a look at the different types of no-exam life insurance, as the product is available in term, permanent and other options depending on the issuer.
What is no-exam life insurance?
No-exam life insurance is a life insurance policy that does not require you to undergo a medical exam. Traditional life insurance policies are subject to medical underwriting, which typically entails a medical exam, blood work, blood pressure check, urinalysis and other health tests.
Life insurance issuers require these exams to protect themselves from insuring someone who may have a serious pre-existing medical condition. A no-exam policy incurs more risk on the insurers part, so no-exam coverage options vary widely by issuer. Some companies only offer final expenses coverage with no medical exam, while others employ third-party medical data to offer much higher coverage limits to the healthiest individuals.
How does no-exam life insurance work?
No-exam life insurance approval and coverage is usually quick, as you don’t have to submit to any health tests or medical exams to qualify. Instead, you’ll have to answer a series of questions about your health. Insurers will also make use of third-party data regarding your medical and prescription histories when making their decision whether or not to insure you. A growing number of companies are using algorithmic tools that incorporate AI to assist in evaluating applicants.
You must be completely honest in your responses to your health questionnaire. if your insurer finds any discrepancies — for example, you falsely claim that you don’t use tobacco products when you actually do — your policy could be voided.
Often, the policies can be purchased completely online and without speaking to an agent. No-exam life insurance can go into effect immediately, unlike traditional life insurance which can take three to six weeks while the insurance company reviews your information before underwriting.
Types of no medical exam life insurance
No-exam approval can technically be offered for any type of life insurance policy. It all depends on the company. Below you’ll find descriptions for different kinds of life insurance and how no-exam functions within these life insurance policies. The two primary categories of life insurance are term life insurance and permanent life insurance (different types of permanent life insurance include whole life insurance and universal life insurance). You can find both term and permanent (generally whole) life policies that are no-exam, but not all companies offer all types — and some big insurance companies don’t offer no-exam life insurance at all.
Simplified issue
Simplified issue life insurance does not require a medical exam. Instead, you provide information about your health via a questionnaire, typically through the insurance company or agency’s website or mobile app. These policies have the advantage of being more convenient and less intrusive than traditionally underwritten life insurance policies that include a medical exam, and approval can be granted within days or even same-day. However, these policies also tend to be more expensive and may have lower maximum death benefits because insurers have less visibility into your health profile. In addition, approval is not guaranteed with simplified issue policies and eligibility might be limited to younger applicants. Term policies are more common with simplified issue policies. Certain medical conditions or even high-risk hobbies (e.g. skydiving) could lead to your application being denied.
Accelerated underwriting
Accelerated underwriting life insurance is similar to simplified issue in that it offers a faster and more efficient application and approval process and is often, although not exclusively, used for term policies. Simplified issue application is a streamlined process because insurers require less information about your health history than conventional underwriting requires. However, accelerated underwriting uses sophisticated data analytics and algorithmic tools, along with data from third-party sources, to serve as a proxy for a medical exam. Like simplified issue, the appeal of accelerated underwriting is that it offers a minimally-invasive, streamlined application process, one in which approval can be granted as quickly as same-day. However, like simplified issue, your age or other circumstances like a serious medical condition might make you ineligible for coverage.
Guaranteed issue
Guaranteed issue life insurance, sometimes called final expense insurance, is a type of whole life insurance wherein approval is guaranteed — with no medical exam required. This option is ideal for seniors, people with serious medical conditions and anyone who’s been denied life insurance coverage in the past.
The trade-off is that these policies tend to be more expensive — sometimes significantly so — and coverage levels tend to be meager, often $50,000 or less. The death benefits these policies offer is intended to pay for funeral and burial costs, and to pay off any debts that might otherwise pass onto your heirs.
Another important thing to know about these policies is that they usually feature a graded death benefit. This means that if you die before the waiting period (often two or three years), your beneficiaries will not receive the full death benefit.

Pros

No health exam or blood tests required

Quick application and approval compared to traditional underwriting

Application likely to be online

Cons

Low coverage limits

Only the healthiest individuals may qualify for substantial coverage

Higher premiums than traditional coverage

Age restrictions

How to compare no-exam life insurance policies
Comparing no-exam life insurance options is much the same as comparing traditional life insurance options. Among other factors, customers should evaluate monthly premium costs, term lengths, available riders and the issuers’ reputation and financial strength.
However, no-exam policies also present their own specific features that are different from traditional life insurance, which we will consider here.
Coverage limits – Depending on the insurer, no-exam policies can have significantly lower coverage limits than policies that require a medical check. Many companies only have the no-exam option to cover final expenses. Additionally, companies that do offer significant coverage may only do so for the healthiest applicants.
In these situations, approval will not only be contingent on answering medical questions, but also on an analysis of the applicant’s medical and prescription histories. In comparing companies, make sure you understand how much coverage they are prepared to extend to you without a medical exam. Also, be aware they will likely be diving into your medical history to determine whether or not they will cover you.
Costs – No-exam life insurance policies can have higher premiums than traditional life insurance. In all reality, you could get a better deal going the traditional route if you are fairly healthy.
Although the lowest rates will be reserved for those in optimal health, be sure to get life insurance quotes from multiple issuers as they all have different standards for who they will accept and what they will charge without a medical exam.
Term lengths – No-exam term lengths could be limited by your age. For example, if you are over 40, the maximum term you might expect could be 20 years. Compare the term lengths different issuers are prepared to offer you. Additionally, find out if you will be given the option to extend the term or convert to a permanent policy at the term’s end.
Financial strength – Research the financial stability and reputation of the insurance company offering the policy. Look for ratings from independent agencies like AM Best, Standard & Poor’s and Moody’s to assess the insurer’s ability to pay claims.
Alternatives to no medical exam life insurance
Although companies are beginning to offer no-exam policies with high coverage limits, as mentioned before, these are usually reserved for those applicants who pre qualify because of their age and optimal physical condition. Those who may not fall into this category and require higher coverage limits may choose to go the traditional route and opt for a fully underwritten policy.
The prospect of taking a medical exam may provoke anxiety, but there’s a possibility you may be offered a better premium and higher coverage limits with one, not to mention more policy flexibility when it comes to riders and designating beneficiaries.

Best No Exam Life Insurance FAQ
How much life insurance can you get without a medical exam?
You can get policies in the millions of dollars without a medical exam, however, these offers are usually reserved for the healthiest of applicants with unblemished medical records. For most people, no-exam policies are going to have lower coverage limits than traditional life insurance policies because they are riskier for the insurer. They also cost more.
How long is the waiting period for no-exam life insurance?
Since you don’t have to submit to any health tests or medical exams to qualify, no-exam policies can be approved and go into effect relatively quickly. Some policies can be active immediately or within 24 hours, but it depends on the insurer.
Can you get a whole life insurance policy without a medical exam?
Yes, it’s possible to get a whole life insurance policy without a medical exam. One example is guaranteed issue whole life insurance, which typically provides enough to cover final expenses.
Is a no-exam life insurance policy worth it?
A no-exam life insurance policy may be worth it — despite the possibility of paying a higher premium than a fully underwritten policy — if you want to avoid the hassle of a medical exam. A Guaranteed Issue policy with no medical exam, which is typically costlier than other kinds of life insurance policies, may also be worth it if you’ve been denied coverage in the past.

How we chose the best no-exam life insurance
We evaluated life insurance companies as well as online agencies that provide quotes and policies from a variety of carriers. We evaluated costs and coverage limits, focusing on policies with affordable premiums and high levels of coverage. We looked for companies that offer a variety of coverage options, including riders and other add-ons. Companies with informative, transparent websites and those with high financial strength received extra credit. We also rewarded companies that made it quick and easy to get quotes, and those for which the application process can be conducted wholly online.
Rates and cost
Life insurance rates are based on the applicant’s health, age, policy type and coverage amount. We prioritized companies that have rate generators on their websites and used those tools to compare quotes. We gave additional points to companies that were transparent about policy details and premium increases.
Customer service and reputation
We looked at public feedback from third-party review sites and information available via the Better Business Bureau. If policyholder review ratings were poor, we also considered the number of reviews in relation to the ratings. Finally, we considered each company’s AM Best financial strength rating and eliminated companies rated B and below.
Coverage limits and amounts
No-exam policies often offer lower coverage amounts because of the higher risk for the insurance company. We prioritized companies offering over $100,000 in coverage (with the exception of our final expense category, where coverage limits tend to be lower) as well as riders or any other add-on options.
Summary of Money’s 5 Best No-Exam Life Insurance of 2026

Nationwide — Best Overall
Ethos — Best Online Agency
Banner Life — Best for High Coverage Amounts
USAA — Best for Members of the Military
Mutual of Omaha — Best for Final Expense Coverage

One of the key challenges of building effective AI agents is teaching them to choose between using external tools or relying on their internal knowledge. But large language models are often trained to blindly invoke tools, which causes latency bottlenecks, unnecessary API costs, and degraded reasoning caused by environmental noise. To overcome this challenge, researchers at Alibaba introduced Hierarchical Decoupled Policy Optimization (HDPO), a reinforcement learning framework that trains agents to balance both execution efficiency and task accuracy. Metis, a multimodal model they trained using this framework, reduces redundant tool invocations from 98% to just 2% while establishing new state-of-the-art reasoning accuracy across key industry benchmarks. This framework helps create AI agents that are not trigger-happy and know when to abstain from using tools, enabling the development of responsive and cost-effective agentic systems.The metacognitive deficitCurrent agentic models face what the researchers call a “profound metacognitive deficit.” The models have a hard time deciding when to use their internal parametric knowledge versus when to query an external utility. As a result, they blindly invoke tools and APIs, like web search or code execution, even when the user’s prompt already contains all the necessary information to resolve the task.This trigger-happy tool-calling behavior creates severe operational hurdles for real-world applications. Because the models are trained to focus almost entirely on task completion, they are indifferent to latency. These agents frequently hit exorbitant tool call rates. Every unnecessary external API call introduces a serial processing bottleneck, turning a technically capable AI into a sluggish system that frustrates users and burns through tool budgets.At the same time, burning computational resources on excessive tool use does not translate to better reasoning. Redundant tool interactions inject noise into the model’s context. This noise can distract the model, derailing an otherwise sound chain of reasoning and actively degrading the final output.To address the latency and cost issues of blind tool invocation, previous reinforcement learning methods attempted to penalize excessive tool usage by combining task accuracy and execution efficiency into one reward signal. However, this entangled design creates an unsolvable optimization dilemma. If the efficiency penalty is too aggressive, the model becomes overly conservative and suppresses essential tool use, sacrificing correctness on arduous tasks. Conversely, if the penalty is mild, the optimization signal loses its value and does not prevent tool overuse on simpler tasks.Furthermore, this shared reward creates semantic ambiguity, where an inaccurate trajectory with zero tool calls might yield the same reward as an accurate trajectory with excessive tool usage. Because the training signals for accuracy and efficiency become entangled, the model can’t learn to control tool-use without degrading its core reasoning capabilities.Hierarchical decoupled policy optimizationTo solve the optimization dilemma of coupled rewards, the researchers introduced HDPO. HDPO separates accuracy and efficiency into two independent optimization channels. The accuracy channel focuses on maximizing task correctness across all of the model’s rollouts. The efficiency channel optimizes for execution economy.HDPO computes the training signals for these two channels independently and only combines them at the final stage of loss computation. The efficiency signal is conditional upon the accuracy channel. This means that an incorrect response is never rewarded simply for being fast or using fewer tools. This decoupling avoids situations where accuracy and efficiency gradients cancel each other out, providing the AI with clean learning signals for both goals.The most powerful emergent property of this decoupled design is that it creates an implicit cognitive curriculum. Early in training, when the model still struggles with the task, the optimization is dominated by the accuracy objective, forcing the model to prioritize learning correct reasoning and knowledge. As the model’s reasoning capabilities mature and it consistently arrives at the right answers, the efficiency signal smoothly scales up. This mechanism causes the model to first master task resolution, and only then refine its self-reliance by avoiding redundant, costly API calls.To complement HDPO, the researchers developed a rigorous, multi-stage data curation regime that tackles severe flaws found in existing tool-augmented datasets. Their data curation pipeline covers supervised fine-tuning (SFT) and reinforcement learning (RL) stages.For the SFT phase, they sourced data from publicly available tool-augmented multimodal trajectories and filtered them to remove low-quality examples containing execution failures or feedback inconsistencies. They also aggressively filtered out any training sample that the base model could solve directly without tools. Finally, using Google’s Gemini 3.1 Pro as an automated judge, they filtered the SFT corpus to only keep examples that demonstrated strategic tool use.For the RL phase, the curation focused on ensuring a stable optimization signal. They filtered out prompts with corrupted visuals or semantic ambiguity. The HDPO algorithm relies on comparing correct and incorrect responses. If a task is trivially easy where the model always gets it right, or prohibitively hard where the model always fails, there is no meaningful mathematical variance to learn from. The team strictly retained only prompts that exhibited a non-trivial mix of successes and failures to guarantee an actionable gradient signal.Metis agent: HDPO  in actionTo test HDPO in action, the researchers used the framework to develop Metis, a multimodal reasoning agent equipped with coding and search tools. Metis is built on top of the Qwen3-VL-8B-Instruct vision-language model. The researchers trained it in two distinct stages. First, they applied SFT using their curated data to provide a cold-start initialization. Next, they applied RL using the HDPO framework, exposing the model to multi-turn interactions where it could invoke tools like Python code execution, text search, and image search.The researchers pitted Metis against standard open-source vision models like LLaVA-OneVision, text-only reasoners, and state-of-the-art agentic models including DeepEyes V2 and the 30-billion-parameter Skywork-R1V4. The evaluation spanned two main areas: visual perception and document understanding datasets like HRBench and V*Bench, and rigorous mathematical and logical reasoning tasks like WeMath and MathVista.On all tasks, Metis achieved state-of-the-art or highly competitive performance, outperforming existing agentic models — including the much larger 30-billion-parameter Skywork-R1V4 — across both visual perception and reasoning tasks.Equally important is the anecdotal behavior Metis showed in the experiments. For example, when presented with an image of a museum sign and asked what the center text says, standard agentic models waste time blindly writing Python scripts to crop the image just to read it. Metis, however, recognizes that the text is clearly legible in the raw image. It skips the tools entirely and uses a single inference pass.In another experiment, the model was given a complex chart and asked to identify the second-highest line at a specific data point within a tiny subplot. Metis recognized that fine-grained visual analysis exceeded its native resolution capabilities and could not accurately distinguish the overlapping lines. Instead of guessing from the full image, it invoked Python to crop and zoom in exclusively on that specific subplot region, allowing it to correctly identify the line. It treats code as a precision instrument deployed only when the visual evidence is genuinely ambiguous, not as a default fallback.The researchers released Metis along with the code for HDPO under the permissive Apache 2.0 license.“Our results demonstrate that strategic tool use and strong reasoning performance are not a trade-off; rather, eliminating noisy, redundant tool calls directly contributes to superior accuracy,” the researchers conclude. “More broadly, our work suggests a paradigm shift in tool-augmented learning: from merely teaching models how to execute tools, to cultivating the meta-cognitive wisdom of when to abstain from them.”