2026 401(k) Contribution and Growth Calculator helps you turn Current 401(k) balance, Current annual salary, Your contribution rate (%), Paychecks per year into a consistent estimate without building a spreadsheet from scratch. Use it for planning and comparison, then verify any rate, price, tax rule, or eligibility condition that can change over time.
This page combines the working calculator with a plain-language method, a worked example, scenario guidance, and related investing, savings & retirement tools. Enter realistic figures, review the assumptions, and compare more than one scenario before making a financial or practical decision.
Estimate how your current balance, salary deferrals, employer match, investment return, fees and inflation could shape your 401(k) balance by retirement.
A 401(k) projection is most useful when it separates your contributions, employer money and investment growth. Enter your plan assumptions below, then review how fees, retirement age and contribution rate change the result. For the immediate effect on net pay, use the related paycheck calculator.
2026 401(k) Contribution and Growth Calculator
All money fields are in U.S. dollars. Results are hypothetical and are calculated privately in your browser.
How the 401(k) Calculator Works
The calculator projects one year at a time from your age at the end of 2026 until the selected retirement age. For each year, it grows salary, calculates your contribution from the selected percentage, applies the employer-match formula and caps modeled contributions using the applicable limits.
Employee and employer contributions are spread evenly across 12 months and added at month-end. The account compounds monthly using an effective annual return after the selected fee percentage. This timing convention is a planning approximation; an employer may deposit contributions on every payday, after each payroll or on another schedule.
Because market returns are uneven, the result is not a forecast. It shows what would happen if the same net return and the selected assumptions applied smoothly throughout the projection.
2026 401(k) Contribution Limits
The IRS increased the basic employee elective-deferral limit to $24,500 for 2026. A plan may permit catch-up contributions for participants who are at least age 50 by year-end. SECURE 2.0 provides a higher catch-up amount for participants who attain ages 60, 61, 62 or 63 during the year.
| 2026 limit | Amount | How this calculator uses it |
|---|---|---|
| Employee elective deferral | $24,500 | Caps modeled traditional plus Roth employee deferrals before catch-up. |
| General age-50 catch-up | $8,000 | Applies in projected years when age is 50 or older, except ages 60–63. |
| Ages 60–63 catch-up | $11,250 | Replaces the general catch-up for projected years at those four ages. |
| Defined-contribution annual additions | $72,000 | Caps base employee plus modeled employer contributions; catch-up is added separately. |
| Annual compensation limit | $360,000 | Limits compensation considered in the model for contributions and match. |
| Roth catch-up wage threshold | $150,000 prior-year wages | Displayed here for education; the calculator does not determine whether catch-up must be Roth. |
Future-limit assumption: only the 2026 figures are known. For later years, this calculator grows the 2026 limits by your selected “future annual limit growth” rate. Actual IRS adjustments, plan terms and law changes will differ.
How Employer Matching Contributions Are Calculated
An employer match usually has two parts: the percentage paid for each dollar you contribute and the percentage of salary eligible for matching. For a 50% match on the first 6% of salary, an employee earning $80,000 who contributes at least 6% could receive:
If the employee contributes only 4%, the model matches only that contributed amount. The calculator also caps base employee plus employer additions at the lesser of the projected annual-additions limit or eligible compensation.
Real plans can use per-pay-period matching, annual true-ups, tiered formulas, nonelective contributions, profit sharing, hours requirements and vesting schedules. Enter the closest simple match formula, then compare the result with your Summary Plan Description.
Traditional Versus Roth 401(k) Contributions
Traditional employee deferrals generally reduce current federal taxable wages and are generally taxable when distributed. Roth 401(k) contributions generally use after-tax pay, while qualified Roth distributions may be tax-free. Both contribution types share the same employee elective-deferral limit rather than receiving separate $24,500 limits.
This calculator projects the account balance the same way for traditional and Roth dollars because it does not estimate current tax savings or retirement tax. Use the US income tax calculator for a broader annual federal-tax estimate and the paycheck tool for payroll impact.
Beginning in 2026, certain participants with prior-year wages over the indexed threshold may be required to make catch-up contributions on a Roth basis when the plan offers the applicable feature. Check current plan communications and IRS guidance before changing elections.
Why Investment Fees Matter
Investment operating expenses and plan administrative fees reduce the return that remains in the account. A difference that looks small each year can compound into a large difference over several decades.
Gross return
The investment return assumed before the fee percentage entered in the calculator.
Fee assumption
A simplified annual percentage representing investment and plan costs that reduce growth.
Net return
Calculated as (1 + gross return) × (1 − fee) − 1, then converted to an equivalent monthly rate.
The Department of Labor explains that total annual operating expenses reduce an investment option’s rate of return and that shareholder-type fees may be charged directly to the account. Review the plan’s participant fee disclosure rather than assuming every fund or plan has the same cost.
Inflation and Today’s Dollars
A future account balance is stated in future dollars. The calculator divides that balance by cumulative inflation to show an approximate value in today’s purchasing power:
This adjustment does not predict the price of any specific good or service. Healthcare, housing and other retirement costs can rise at rates that differ from broad inflation.
Catch-Up Contributions at Ages 50 and 60–63
A plan may allow participants age 50 or older by year-end to contribute beyond the basic employee limit. For 2026, the general catch-up amount is $8,000. The higher amount for participants who attain age 60, 61, 62 or 63 in 2026 is $11,250.
The calculator reevaluates your age in every projected year. It applies the general catch-up at ages 50–59 and 64 or older, and the higher catch-up at ages 60–63. Future dollar amounts then use the limit-growth assumption because actual future limits are not yet known.
Catch-up contributions are permitted only if the plan allows them and the participant is otherwise eligible. Compensation and plan-level restrictions can reduce the usable amount.
Example 401(k) Projection
Consider a 35-year-old with a $50,000 balance, $80,000 salary, 10% employee contribution and a 50% employer match on the first 6% of salary. Assume retirement at 65, 3% salary growth, a 7% gross return, 0.5% annual fees, 2.5% inflation and 2.5% future limit growth.
Illustrative result using default inputs
The example assumes steady returns and monthly deposits. Actual returns, fees, salary, contribution elections, employer rules, limits, taxes and withdrawals will change the outcome.
How to Improve a 401(k) Projection
- Use your plan’s exact match: missing part of an available match can materially reduce long-term savings.
- Enter actual fees: check investment expense ratios and plan administrative disclosures.
- Stress-test returns: compare a lower, middle and higher assumption instead of relying on one optimistic number.
- Check contribution limits: coordinate deferrals if you participate in more than one plan during the year.
- Review vesting: employer contributions may be forfeited if employment ends before they vest.
- Update annually: salary, limits, match formulas and retirement goals change.
Investor.gov encourages investors to understand fees, risk tolerance and diversification, and to research investments rather than treating high returns as guaranteed. Browse the Global Calculators directory or other free financial calculators and money tools for related planning estimates.
What This Calculator Does Not Include
The projection does not model market volatility, sequence-of-returns risk, loans, hardship withdrawals, required minimum distributions, Social Security, pensions, tax rates, plan-specific testing, automatic enrollment, after-tax non-Roth contributions, in-plan conversions, forfeitures or vesting.
The displayed monthly withdrawal is simply the selected percentage of the ending balance divided by 12. It is not a safe-withdrawal guarantee, retirement-income plan or tax estimate.
Methodology and Primary Sources
The 2026 limits come from IRS Notice 2025-67 and current IRS retirement-plan guidance. Contribution math follows the employee-deferral, catch-up, annual-additions and compensation limits described by the IRS. Fee education uses Department of Labor participant guidance, while compounding and investor-risk language is informed by Investor.gov.
Last fact-checked: July 19, 2026. Retirement-plan limits, laws and plan terms can change; official sources and your plan documents control.
- IRS: 401(k) limit increases to $24,500 for 2026
- IRS Notice 2025-67: 2026 retirement-plan limitations
- IRS: Catch-up contribution rules
- IRS: 401(k) and profit-sharing contribution limits
- U.S. Department of Labor: Using 401(k) fee and investment information
- Investor.gov: Investor Preparedness Checklist
401(k) Calculator FAQs
What is the 401(k) employee contribution limit for 2026?
The basic employee elective-deferral limit is $24,500 for 2026. Traditional and Roth 401(k) employee deferrals share this limit, and plan terms can impose additional restrictions.
What is the 2026 catch-up contribution limit?
The general catch-up limit is $8,000 for eligible participants age 50 or older. Participants who attain age 60, 61, 62 or 63 in 2026 may have an $11,250 higher catch-up limit if the plan permits catch-up contributions.
How does employer matching work in this calculator?
The calculator matches your modeled employee contribution using the entered match percentage, but only up to the entered percentage of eligible salary. It then applies the modeled annual-additions and compensation limits.
Do employer matches count toward the $24,500 limit?
No. The $24,500 limit applies to employee elective deferrals. Employer matching and nonelective contributions generally count toward the separate $72,000 annual-additions limit for 2026, while eligible catch-up contributions are treated separately.
Can I contribute $24,500 to both a traditional and Roth 401(k)?
No. Traditional and Roth employee deferrals generally share one $24,500 elective-deferral limit for 2026 rather than receiving separate limits.
Are 401(k) returns guaranteed?
No. Investment returns can be positive or negative and vary over time. The calculator applies one smooth assumed return only to illustrate how selected inputs would compound.
How are investment fees included?
The calculator reduces the gross annual return by the entered annual fee assumption using (1 + return) × (1 − fee) − 1, then converts that net annual rate to an equivalent monthly rate.
What does the value in today’s dollars mean?
It discounts the projected future balance by the selected inflation rate over the projection period. It is an estimate of purchasing power, not a prediction of specific future prices.
Does the calculator include taxes on withdrawals?
No. It does not estimate current tax savings, taxes on traditional distributions, qualified Roth treatment, state taxes, required minimum distributions or penalties.
Why might my real 401(k) balance differ?
Actual results depend on market returns, contribution timing, salary, fees, employer-match and vesting rules, future IRS limits, taxes, loans, withdrawals and plan-specific restrictions.
Investment and tax disclaimer: This calculator and article provide hypothetical educational estimates, not investment, tax, legal or retirement advice. Returns are not guaranteed. Verify contribution eligibility and limits with your employer, plan administrator, official IRS guidance and a qualified professional.
Last Updated: July 22, 2026
Financial disclaimer: This calculator provides an informational estimate, not financial, tax, legal, investment, lending, or insurance advice. Verify current rules and obtain professional guidance when appropriate.