How this calculator works
- Step 1Dollar limit$7,500$8,600 at 50 or over, for 2026.
- Step 2Income checkModified AGIAgainst your filing status’s phase-out range.
- Step 3Worksheet 2-2$4,000.00Reduced limit inside the range.
- Step 4Projection$758,047.81Yearly contributions at an assumed return.
A Roth IRA takes after-tax contributions, and qualified withdrawals later are tax-free. How much you may put in depends on your income: above a range, the limit shrinks to nothing.
For 2026 the IRS set the limit at $7,500, with a $1,100 catch-up at 50 or over. The single filer phase-out runs from $153,000 to $168,000 of modified AGI.
Worked example: single, modified AGI $160,000
- Reduced limit
limit − limit × (MAGI − start) ÷ width, rounded up to $10
- MAGI − $153,000$7,000
- ÷ $15,000, to 3 places0.467
- $7,500 × 0.467$3,502.50
- $7,500 − $3,502.50, up to the next $10$4,000.00
IRS Publication 590-A illustrates the same worksheet for 2025: a single filer at $151,000 could contribute $6,540. The tests reproduce that figure.
Where you fall in the range
Other situations
- Joint, $245,000, age 55$6,020.00Inside the $242,000–$252,000 range, with catch-up.
- Single, age 50$8,600.00$7,500 plus the $1,100 catch-up.
The limit is cut by the worksheet, not by a simple straight line: the ratio is rounded, the result rounded up to $10, and never set below $200 while above zero.
Other US retirement accounts
A Roth IRA is one of several US retirement accounts, each with its own limits and tax rules.
For a workplace plan with an employer match, use the 401(k) calculator. A traditional IRA’s required withdrawals are worked out by the RMD calculator.
For growth at any rate and compounding, the compound interest calculator shows the year-by-year balance.
Common mistakes
Mistake: Using gross income instead of modified AGI.
Instead: Figure modified AGI with IRS Worksheet 2-1.
Mistake: Contributing to both a Roth and a traditional IRA up to the limit.
Instead: The limit is shared between them.
Mistake: Assuming the projection is guaranteed.
Instead: Returns vary; test a lower rate.
Methodology and sources
A separate script follows Worksheet 2-2 line by line and reproduces the IRS illustrated example.
The 2026 figures come from IRS news release IR-2025-111 (Notice 2025-67). The method comes from IRS Publication 590-A. This is not tax advice. Sources, the review date and the financial disclaimer follow.
Read how we test our calculators, or browse more money calculators.