# Roth IRA Calculator: Limits, Growth and Roth vs Traditional

> Check your 2026 Roth IRA contribution limit with the IRS income phase-out, project tax-free growth year by year, and compare a Roth with a traditional IRA.

Source: https://www.themoneypocket.com/tools/roth-ira-calculator

For 2026 you can put up to **$7,500** in a Roth IRA, or **$8,600** if you are 50 or older by December 31, as long as you have at least that much taxable compensation and your modified AGI is below **$153,000** (single or head of household) or **$242,000** (married filing jointly). Between those amounts and **$168,000** / **$252,000**, the limit phases down. Above them, you can't contribute directly. The calculator below figures your exact limit with the IRS worksheet method, projects the account's tax-free growth, and compares the same money in a traditional IRA and a taxable brokerage account.

**Which calculator do I need?** If your income is over the limit, use the [backdoor Roth calculator](https://www.themoneypocket.comtools/backdoor-roth-calculator). If you want to move pre-tax IRA or 401(k) money into a Roth, use the [Roth conversion calculator](https://www.themoneypocket.comtools/roth-conversion-calculator). If you already put in too much, use the [excess Roth IRA contribution calculator](https://www.themoneypocket.comtools/excess-roth-ira-contribution-calculator).

> Interactive calculator: https://www.themoneypocket.com/tools/roth-ira-calculator
The calculator is for informational purposes only, and its results are estimates with no guarantee of accuracy. The limits come from IRS publications, but the growth figures depend on a return you choose. No one knows what markets will return, so treat every projected balance as an illustration.

## How much does a Roth IRA grow? Quick table

These balances assume you put in the 2026 limit of $7,500 at the start of every year, start from zero, and earn the same assumed return each year. They are illustrations at assumed returns, not a forecast. Real returns are uneven and can be negative for years at a time.

| Years of contributions | Total contributed | Balance at an assumed 5% | Balance at an assumed 7% |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | $75,000 | $99,051 | $110,877 |
| 20 | $150,000 | $260,394 | $328,989 |
| 30 | $225,000 | $523,206 | $758,048 |

With the age-50 catch-up, the yearly limit is $8,600. At that amount, the 10-, 20- and 30-year balances are $113,578, $298,586 and $599,943 at 5%, and $127,139, $377,241 and $869,228 at 7%. In a Roth IRA, all of the growth above your contributions comes out tax-free once a withdrawal is qualified. At 7% over 30 years, that is $533,048 of the $758,048.

Two choices in this table move the result more than people expect. The first is timing. Contributing on January 2 rather than at the April filing deadline gives each deposit up to 15 extra months of growth. Switch the calculator to end-of-year deposits and the 10-year figure at 7% drops from $110,877 to $103,623. The second is the return itself. Two percentage points of return turn $523,206 into $758,048 over 30 years. The calculator's default is 6%, a middle value, and you should try a lower one too.

## 2026 Roth IRA contribution limit

The yearly limit for all your IRAs together is $7,500 for 2026, up from $7,000 for 2025. The extra catch-up for people who are 50 or older by the end of the year rises from $1,000 to $1,100, so their total limit is $8,600 ([IRS Notice 2025-67](https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-irbs/irb25-49.pdf), indexing the amounts in [26 U.S.C. §219(b)(5)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/219)). The IRS states the rule this way: your total contributions to all traditional and Roth IRAs for the year can't be more than that amount, or your taxable compensation if it is less ([IRS: IRA contribution limits](https://www.irs.gov/retirement-plans/plan-participant-employee/retirement-topics-ira-contribution-limits)).

Three things follow from that sentence.

- **The limit is shared.** If you put $2,000 in a traditional IRA for 2026, your Roth limit drops to $5,500 (under 50). Employer SEP or SIMPLE IRA contributions don't count against it ([IRS Publication 590-A](https://www.irs.gov/publications/p590a)).
- **Compensation caps it.** Compensation means wages, salaries, tips, bonuses, commissions, net self-employment income, nontaxable combat pay, military differential pay, taxable alimony under older divorce agreements, and taxable non-tuition fellowship and stipend payments. Interest, dividends, rental income, pensions and annuities don't count, and neither does foreign earned income you exclude. With $4,000 of wages, $4,000 is the most you can contribute.
- **There is no age limit.** You can keep contributing to a Roth IRA at any age, as long as you have compensation (Pub. 590-A).

You can contribute for 2026 at any time during 2026 or until the due date of your 2026 return, not counting extensions. For most people that is April 15, 2027. Roth contributions aren't deductible, and you don't report them on your return.

## 2026 Roth IRA income limits by filing status

Your eligibility depends on your **modified AGI for Roth IRA purposes**. That is your AGI with a few items added back, such as a traditional IRA deduction, the student loan interest deduction and the foreign earned income exclusion, and minus any income from a Roth conversion (Pub. 590-A, Worksheet 2-1). The [MAGI calculator](https://www.themoneypocket.comtools/magi-calculator) walks through the add-backs. The 2026 ranges are set by Notice 2025-67 under [§408A(c)(3)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/408A):

| Filing status | Full contribution if MAGI is below | Reduced contribution | No direct contribution at or above |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single or head of household | $153,000 | $153,000 – $168,000 | $168,000 |
| Married filing separately, lived apart from your spouse all year | $153,000 | $153,000 – $168,000 | $168,000 |
| Married filing jointly or qualifying surviving spouse | $242,000 | $242,000 – $252,000 | $252,000 |
| Married filing separately, lived with your spouse at any time in the year | $0 | $0 – $10,000 | $10,000 |

The married-filing-separately range of $0 to $10,000 is set in the statute and isn't indexed for inflation. That is why filing separately while living together nearly rules out a direct Roth contribution. For 2025 the ranges were $150,000 to $165,000 and $236,000 to $246,000.

## How the reduced contribution is figured

If your MAGI falls inside the range, IRS Publication 590-A's Worksheet 2-2 reduces your limit in proportion to how far into the range you are. The calculator follows its method, using the exact ratio (rounding line 5 to three decimals, as the worksheet allows, can add $10):

1. Subtract the start of your range from your MAGI. For a single filer with $160,000: $160,000 − $153,000 = $7,000.
2. Divide by the width of the range: $15,000 for single, head of household, and separate filers who lived apart all year, and $10,000 for joint filers and separate filers who lived with their spouse. $7,000 ÷ $15,000 = 0.4667.
3. Multiply that share by your starting limit, which is the lesser of $7,500 ($8,600 at 50+) or your compensation. $7,500 × 0.4667 = $3,500.
4. Subtract it from the starting limit and **round up to the next $10**: $7,500 − $3,500 = $4,000.
5. If the result is above zero but below **$200**, use $200.
6. Finally, take the lesser of that figure and your starting limit minus any traditional IRA contributions for the year.

The $10 rounding and the $200 floor come from [§219(g)(2)(B)–(C)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/219), which §408A(c)(3) applies to the Roth phase-out. The table shows the result at a few MAGI levels for a single filer:

| Single MAGI, 2026 | Limit under 50 | Limit at 50+ |
|---|---|---|
| $153,000 or less | $7,500 | $8,600 |
| $155,000 | $6,500 | $7,460 |
| $158,000 | $5,000 | $5,740 |
| $160,000 | $4,000 | $4,590 |
| $163,000 | $2,500 | $2,870 |
| $165,000 | $1,500 | $1,720 |
| $167,000 | $500 | $580 |
| $167,900 | $200 | $200 |
| $168,000 or more | $0 | $0 |

For joint filers, every $1,000 of MAGI above $242,000 removes 10% of the limit: $244,000 leaves $6,000 ($6,880 at 50+), $248,000 leaves $3,000 ($3,440), and $251,500 leaves $380 ($430).

## Worked examples

**Single, 45, MAGI $160,000, wages $160,000.** Inside the $153,000–$168,000 range. Reduction: $7,500 × ($160,000 − $153,000) ÷ $15,000 = $3,500. Limit: $7,500 − $3,500 = **$4,000**. The other $3,500 of the IRA limit can still reach a Roth through a nondeductible traditional contribution and a conversion. The [backdoor Roth calculator](https://www.themoneypocket.comtools/backdoor-roth-calculator) shows the tax on that conversion.

**Married filing jointly, 52, MAGI $247,000.** The catch-up raises the starting limit to $8,600. Reduction: $8,600 × ($247,000 − $242,000) ÷ $10,000 = $4,300. Limit: $8,600 − $4,300 = **$4,300** each, if both spouses are 50 or older and each has enough compensation.

**Near the top of the range.** Single, under 50, MAGI $167,900. Reduction: $7,500 × $14,900 ÷ $15,000 = $7,450, which leaves $50. Because the result is above zero but under $200, the limit is **$200**. At $168,000 it drops to zero.

**Spousal Roth IRA.** A married couple filing jointly with MAGI of $60,000. One spouse earns $60,000 and puts $7,500 in their own Roth IRA. The other has no pay. Under the spousal rule in [§219(c)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/219), the spouse with less compensation can count the other's compensation minus that spouse's own IRA contributions: $60,000 − $7,500 = $52,500. That is more than $7,500, so the non-working spouse can also contribute **$7,500**, for $15,000 in total.

**Low compensation and a traditional contribution.** Single, wages $4,000, and $1,000 already put in a traditional IRA. The starting limit is the lesser of $7,500 and $4,000, so $4,000. Subtract the traditional contribution, and the Roth limit is **$3,000**.

**Growth.** A $10,000 Roth balance plus $7,500 at the start of each year for 30 years, at an assumed 6%. The existing $10,000 grows to $10,000 × 1.06³⁰ = $57,435. The contributions grow to $7,500 × [(1.06³⁰ − 1) ÷ 0.06] × 1.06 = $628,513. Projected balance: **$685,947**, from $235,000 of your own money ($10,000 + $225,000). The other $450,947 is growth. If the withdrawals are qualified, none of it is taxed.

## Roth IRA vs traditional IRA vs taxable account

The calculator puts the same yearly dollar amount into each of three accounts, earning the same assumed return, and shows what you keep after tax. It counts new contributions only, not your existing balance.

- **Roth IRA.** You contribute after-tax money. Growth is untaxed, and qualified withdrawals are tax-free, so the after-tax value is the whole balance.
- **Traditional IRA.** The contribution is deducted now, saving it times your current tax rate each year. The account grows untaxed, but every dollar you withdraw is taxed at your retirement rate. Putting $7,500 in a traditional IRA costs you only $7,500 minus the tax saved, so for a fair comparison the calculator also invests those yearly savings in a taxable account and adds them to the traditional side. Then all three options cost the same out of pocket.
- **Taxable account.** Each year's growth is taxed at the "tax drag" rate you enter, so a 6% return with a 15% drag compounds at 5.1%. Nothing more is owed at the end. This is a deliberately simple model. It fits interest and frequently realized gains well and overstates the tax on a buy-and-hold index fund, whose gains are mostly deferred until sale and then taxed at long-term capital gains rates. If you hold that kind of fund, enter a lower drag.

With the defaults ($7,500 a year for 30 years at 6%, 22% tax now and in retirement, 15% drag), the results are:

| Account | After-tax value |
|---|---|
| Roth IRA | $628,513 |
| Traditional IRA after a 22% tax at withdrawal | $490,240 |
| + $1,650 a year of deduction savings, invested in a taxable account | $117,213 |
| Traditional IRA, savings included | $607,453 |
| Taxable account | $532,787 |

When your tax rate is the same now and later, a Roth and a traditional IRA would come out equal if the deduction savings could also grow tax-free. They can't, because they have to sit in a taxable account. That is why the Roth edges ahead here, by $21,060. A Roth also lets you shelter more money at the same limit, since $7,500 of after-tax Roth money is worth more than $7,500 of pre-tax money.

The answer flips when you expect a clearly lower rate in retirement. With $7,500 a year for 20 years at 7%, 22% today and 12% in retirement, the Roth is worth $328,989. The traditional IRA keeps $289,510 after tax, plus $63,963 from the invested savings, for **$353,473**. The rates you enter decide the comparison more than anything else. State income tax counts too: moving from a high-tax state to a no-tax state in retirement favors the traditional IRA.

The comparison assumes the traditional contribution is fully deductible. If you or your spouse has a workplace retirement plan, the deduction phases out for 2026 at MAGI of $81,000–$91,000 (single or head of household), $129,000–$149,000 (married filing jointly, contributor covered by a plan) and $242,000–$252,000 (contributor not covered, spouse covered), per Notice 2025-67. A nondeductible traditional contribution has no up-front savings, and its growth is still taxed at withdrawal. For most people who can make a direct Roth contribution, that makes it the weakest of the options.

## How Roth IRA withdrawals work

Every Roth withdrawal is sorted in a fixed order under [§408A(d)(4)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/408A), and that order is why a Roth is more flexible than it looks ([IRS Publication 590-B](https://www.irs.gov/publications/p590b), Ordering Rules for Distributions):

1. **Regular contributions come out first.** You can take back what you put in at any age, for any reason, with no tax and no 10% additional tax.
2. **Conversion and rollover contributions come next**, oldest first, with the part that was taxable at conversion before the part that wasn't. These are never taxed again. But if you are under 59½ and take money from a conversion within 5 years, the taxable part of it is hit by the 10% additional tax. Each conversion starts its own 5-year clock on January 1 of the year of the conversion.
3. **Earnings come out last.** Earnings are tax-free only in a **qualified distribution**: one made at least 5 years after January 1 of the first year you contributed to any Roth IRA, *and* after you reach 59½, become disabled or die, or used for a first home up to a $10,000 lifetime limit ([§408A(d)(2)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/408A)). Earnings taken out earlier are taxable and may owe the 10% additional tax unless an exception applies.

The qualified-distribution clock starts with your first contribution to any Roth IRA, and it counts from January 1 of the year the contribution is *for*. A 2026 contribution made in April 2027 starts the clock on January 1, 2026. A small contribution now starts that clock even if you plan to contribute more later.

A Roth IRA has **no required minimum distributions** while the original owner is alive. The rules that force traditional IRA withdrawals from age 73 or 75 don't apply ([§408A(c)(4)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/408A); Pub. 590-B). Your beneficiaries will have distribution rules after your death. To estimate tax on a withdrawal that isn't qualified, use the [IRA withdrawal tax calculator](https://www.themoneypocket.comtools/ira-withdrawal-tax-calculator). The guide to [IRA withdrawal tax rules and penalties](https://www.themoneypocket.comarticles/ira-withdrawal-tax-rules-and-penalties) lists the exceptions to the 10% additional tax.

## Inputs explained

- **Filing status and the "lived with spouse" box.** These pick your phase-out range. Married filing separately uses the single range only if you didn't live with your spouse at any time in the year.
- **Age.** Your age on December 31. If you are 50 or older, the calculator adds the $1,100 catch-up.
- **Modified AGI.** Use the Roth version from Pub. 590-A Worksheet 2-1. Roth conversion income doesn't count, but a traditional IRA deduction is added back.
- **Compensation, spouse's compensation and spouse's IRA contributions.** These set the compensation cap and apply the spousal rule on a joint return.
- **Traditional IRA contributions.** They come out of the same yearly limit.
- **Growth inputs.** The current balance, years until you withdraw, the yearly contribution (your 2026 maximum by default, or any amount you type, for example to model future years), the assumed return and deposit timing. Future limits are indexed for inflation in $500 steps, and the catch-up in $100 steps (§219(b)(5)(C)), so a flat amount slightly understates what you will be allowed to put in later.
- **Comparison rates.** Your combined federal and state marginal rate today, your expected rate on traditional withdrawals, and the taxable account's yearly tax drag.

## Common mistakes

- **Using AGI instead of Roth MAGI.** Add back the deductions the worksheet lists. Leave out conversion income, or a conversion can look like it blocked your contribution.
- **Forgetting the shared limit.** A $7,500 Roth contribution plus any traditional contribution for the same year is an excess. The excess is taxed 6% for every year it stays in the account. The [guide to fixing an excess Roth contribution](https://www.themoneypocket.comarticles/excess-roth-ira-contribution-fix) shows how to remove it before the deadline.
- **Counting investment income as compensation.** Someone living on dividends or a pension, with no wages or self-employment income and no working spouse, can't contribute.
- **Projecting at a fixed high return.** At 10% the 30-year figure is about $1.36 million, almost 80% more than at 7%. Test the plan at 4% or 5% too.
- **Assuming one 5-year rule.** The qualified-distribution clock and each conversion's clock are separate. Rolling a pre-tax 401(k) into a Roth IRA starts a new conversion clock (Roth 401(k) money rolled into a Roth IRA does not). See [how to roll a 401(k) to a Roth IRA without penalty](https://www.themoneypocket.comarticles/how-to-rollover-401k-to-roth-ira-no-penalty).

## Related calculators and guides

From the 2027 tax year, Roth IRA contributions can count toward the federal Saver's Match under [§6433](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/6433). The match itself can't go into a Roth IRA, though. It is deposited into a traditional IRA or a non-Roth workplace account. The [Saver's Match calculator](https://www.themoneypocket.comtools/savers-match-calculator) estimates it. Once you are near retirement, the [RMD calculator](https://www.themoneypocket.comtools/rmd-calculator) shows what your traditional accounts will force you to withdraw, a cost the Roth side doesn't have. The [retirement planning hub](https://www.themoneypocket.comhub/retirement-planning) collects the other tools, including the [Roth conversion ladder guide](https://www.themoneypocket.comarticles/roth-conversion-ladder-strategy-retirement-tax-planning) for early retirees.

Sources: [IRS Notice 2025-67 (IRB 2025-49)](https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-irbs/irb25-49.pdf); [IRS Publication 590-A](https://www.irs.gov/publications/p590a) (contributions, Worksheets 2-1 and 2-2, spousal IRA limit); [IRS Publication 590-B](https://www.irs.gov/publications/p590b) (qualified distributions, ordering rules, minimum distributions); [IRS: IRA contribution limits](https://www.irs.gov/retirement-plans/plan-participant-employee/retirement-topics-ira-contribution-limits); [26 U.S.C. §408A](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/408A) and [§219](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/219).