401(k) Calculator

Enter your current age, intended retirement age, and the age through which you want to project withdrawals. "Life Expectancy" is a planning endpoint you choose — not an actuarial estimate. Add your current 401(k) balance, annual salary, and the percentage of salary you contribute.

The employer match has two inputs. If "Employer Match Rate" is 50% and "Match Applies Up To" is 6% of salary, the model contributes 50 cents for each dollar you contribute, up to 6% of your salary. At the default $75,000 salary and 10% employee contribution:

Your plan may use a different formula, eligibility rule, or matching schedule — check your summary plan description. For a closer look at contributions alone, use the 401(k) contribution calculator. To see how contribution changes affect your take-home pay, try the 401(k) paycheck impact calculator.

"Annual Withdrawal in Retirement" is a target amount starting at your retirement age. The calculator raises it by the inflation rate each year and caps each withdrawal at the available balance. It does not calculate a sustainable withdrawal amount for you. Compare this target with your spending gap after Social Security and pensions using the retirement income calculator.

While you are working, the calculator grows salary by the salary-growth rate and, if auto-escalation is enabled, adds the escalation rate to your contribution percentage each year until the escalation cap. It caps your employee contribution at the age-based IRS dollar limit.

During working years:

employee contribution = min(salary × contribution %, IRS age-based limit)
employer match        = min(employee contribution, salary × match limit %) × match rate
year-end growth       = beginning balance × annual return rate
year-end fees         = beginning balance × fee rate
ending balance        = beginning balance + employee contribution + employer match + growth − fees

During retirement years:

planned withdrawal    = entered annual withdrawal × (1 + inflation)^years_retired
actual withdrawal     = min(beginning balance, planned withdrawal)
ending balance        = (beginning balance − actual withdrawal) × (1 + return − fee rate)

Returns and fees are applied to the beginning balance for that year. New contributions start earning returns the following year. The model uses a constant nominal return with no market variation, midyear deposits, or sequence-of-returns risk.

Understanding the result cards:

• "Balance at Retirement" = the amount before the first retirement withdrawal
• "Your Contributions" = total employee deposits during working years
• "Employer Match" = career match adjusted by estimated vesting at retirement
• "Investment Growth" and "Fees Paid" accumulate over the entire projection (working + retirement years)
• "Lasts Until" = first age where balance hits zero, or your planning endpoint if it stays positive

Using the calculator's defaults ($75,000 salary, 50% match on first 6%, 7% return, 0.5% fees, 3% salary growth, $25,000 starting balance, age 30 to 65):

The employer match is identical in all three scenarios because the match cap is 6% of salary — contributing above 6% doesn't earn more match money, but it does add more personal savings that compound over 35 years.

Going from 6% to 10% costs you $181,387 more out of pocket but produces $535,577 more at retirement — a 2.95x return on the extra savings, powered by compound growth. Going from 10% to 15% adds another $669,471 on an additional $226,732 in contributions.

If you're not sure you can afford a higher rate, the 401(k) paycheck impact calculator shows the actual per-paycheck cost after tax savings. A 10% contribution on a $75,000 salary doesn't reduce your paycheck by $7,500 — the tax deduction softens the impact significantly. Learn more about how much you should save for retirement each month.

Fees compound against you just like returns compound for you. Using the same defaults but varying the fee rate:

A 1% fee difference ($170,885 vs $532,234 lost) is the equivalent of years of additional contributions — money that disappears into fund expenses instead of compounding for your retirement. You can find your plan's fees in its annual fee disclosure document, required under DOL regulation §408(b)(2). If your plan only offers high-cost options, consider contributing enough to capture the full employer match, then routing extra savings to a low-cost IRA or Roth IRA.

The calculator uses these 2026 dollar limits for a standard 401(k), per IRS Notice 2025-67:

The $72,000 annual additions cap (§415(c)) covers regular employee and employer contributions, excluding catch-up contributions. Source: IRS: 401(k) limit increases to $24,500 for 2026

The model reuses 2026 dollar limits in every projected year — it does not forecast future IRS adjustments or law changes. Actual permitted contributions may also be lower due to compensation limits ($360,000 in 2026), plan terms, or nondiscrimination testing. The 401(k) max contribution calculator can help you check your specific annual limit.

Tax estimate: The current tax-reduction estimate in advanced settings multiplies projected Traditional (pre-tax) contributions by your entered tax rate. If you enable the Roth option, the Roth percentage reduces the Traditional portion used in this estimate. The tool does not calculate tax brackets year by year, future tax on withdrawals, or a true lifetime Traditional-vs-Roth comparison.

For a dedicated comparison, use the Roth 401(k) calculator. For withdrawal taxes, use the 401(k) withdrawal tax calculator. Traditional 401(k) distributions are generally taxed as ordinary income; qualified Roth 401(k) distributions are tax-free. IRS: Tax on normal distributions. Read how 401(k) withdrawals are taxed in retirement for a deeper guide.

Vesting: The vesting inputs estimate how much of the cumulative employer match you would own at retirement. Vesting does not reduce the projected balance or alter annual growth in this model. Your actual plan may use graded or cliff vesting — check your plan statement. Typical cliff vesting fully vests after 3 years; typical graded vesting reaches 100% over 6 years.

The tool is a planning estimate, not a prediction. It does not model:

• Market volatility or sequence-of-returns risk. A steady 7% return every year does not reflect real markets, where a large loss early in retirement can be devastating. Use the Monte Carlo retirement calculator to stress-test against variable returns.
• Required Minimum Distributions. Starting at age 73 (or 75 if born 1960+), the IRS requires minimum withdrawals from Traditional 401(k) accounts that may exceed your planned withdrawal amount. Use the RMD calculator and read required minimum distributions explained.
• Taxes on withdrawals. All withdrawal amounts are pre-tax. A $50,000 withdrawal from a Traditional 401(k) in the 22% federal bracket nets approximately $39,000 after federal taxes (state taxes apply separately). See how to withdraw from retirement accounts tax-efficiently.
• Changes in spending. Most retirees spend more in early retirement (travel, projects) and less later (reduced activity), with a potential spike for healthcare costs in late retirement. The withdrawal target here stays constant in real terms.
• Other income sources. Social Security, pensions, rental income, and part-time work are not modeled. The retirement income calculator combines all sources.

Stress-test your projection by lowering the return to 5%, raising inflation to 3.5%, and extending life expectancy to 95 or 100. If the balance runs out under conservative assumptions, test a higher contribution rate, a later retirement age, or a smaller withdrawal target.

This calculator gives you the big picture. For specific aspects of your 401(k) strategy, use these specialized tools:

• Contributions: 401(k) contribution calculator · 401(k) max contribution calculator
• Growth projections: 401(k) compound interest calculator · 401(k) future value calculator
• Roth decisions: Roth 401(k) calculator · 401(k) to Roth IRA conversion calculator
• Withdrawals: 401(k) withdrawal calculator · 401(k) withdrawal tax calculator · 401(k) early withdrawal penalty calculator
• Borrowing: 401(k) loan calculator · 401(k) loan repayment calculator
• Retirement planning: retirement savings calculator · retirement readiness calculator · retirement savings by age

If you're self-employed, the Solo 401(k) calculator models the higher combined limits available to business owners.