Retirement Savings Calculator (401k/IRA)

What is a Retirement Savings Calculator?

A retirement savings calculator helps you project how much you'll have saved by retirement age based on your current savings, annual contributions, employer matches, and expected investment returns. It shows the power of compound interest and helps you determine if you're on track for your retirement goals.

Planning for retirement is one of the most important financial decisions you'll make. Understanding how your contributions, employer matches, and investment returns compound over time helps you make informed decisions about how much to save and when to start. The foundation of retirement savings is compound interest - learn more with our Compound Interest Calculator to see how your money grows.

How to Use This Calculator

Enter your current age, planned retirement age, current retirement savings, annual contribution amount, employer match percentage, and expected return rate. The calculator instantly shows your projected retirement savings, total contributions, employer match contributions, and investment growth.

Use the chart to visualize how your retirement savings grow over time. Experiment with different contribution amounts and retirement ages to see how they affect your final retirement nest egg.

401(k) growth calculator: how it works

The calculator spreads your annual contribution and your employer's match evenly across the year, adds them each month, and compounds the balance monthly at your expected return until retirement. Contributions above the 2026 IRS employee limit of $24,500 are capped at the limit. The employer match is entered as a percentage of your own contribution.

Example: a 30-year-old with $25,000 in a 401(k) who contributes $6,000 a year, gets a 3% match on that contribution and earns 8% a year reaches about $1.59 million at 65. Of that, $235,000 is their own money (including the starting balance), $6,300 is employer match, and about $1.35 million is investment growth.

IRA and 403(b) growth

403(b) plans, offered by schools, hospitals and nonprofits, work like a 401(k) and share the same IRS employee contribution limit ($24,500 for 2026), so you can use this calculator unchanged, including any employer match.

IRAs (traditional or Roth) have a lower limit of $7,500 a year for 2026 if you are under 50, and no employer match. Set the employer match to 0% and keep the annual contribution at or below $7,500; the calculator only enforces the higher 401(k) limit. For example, contributing $7,500 a year from age 30 to 65 at a 7% return grows to about $1.13 million, from $262,500 of contributions.

Many people use both: contribute enough to a 401(k) or 403(b) to get the full match, then fund an IRA. Run the calculator once for each account and add the results.

Formula Explained

The retirement savings calculation uses compound interest formulas:

Where:

• PV = Present Value (current savings)
• PMT = Monthly contribution (annual contribution plus employer match, divided by 12)
• r = Monthly return rate (annual rate / 12)
• n = Number of months until retirement (years × 12)

The formula accounts for compound growth on both your initial savings and all future contributions. Employer matches are added to your contributions each month.

When to Use This Calculator

Use this calculator when planning for retirement, determining how much to contribute to your 401k or IRA, or evaluating if you're on track for your retirement goals. It's essential for anyone with a 401k, 403b, IRA, or other retirement accounts. For long-term projections that account for inflation, use our Investment Growth Calculator to see real purchasing power.

Financial planners use retirement calculators to help clients understand how much they need to save, the impact of starting early, and the value of employer matches. It's also useful for comparing different retirement scenarios and contribution strategies.

Tips for Best Results

• Start early: The earlier you start saving, the more time compound interest has to work. Starting at 25 vs 35 can mean hundreds of thousands more at retirement.
• Maximize employer match: Always contribute enough to get the full employer match - it's essentially free money and an immediate return on your investment.
• Increase contributions over time: As your income grows, increase your retirement contributions. Aim to save 15% of your income, including employer matches.
• Use realistic return assumptions: Use 7-8% for balanced portfolios. Being too optimistic can lead to under-saving, while being too conservative can lead to over-saving.
• Review annually: Update your projections annually as your situation changes, and adjust contributions as needed to stay on track.
• Track your net worth: Monitor your overall financial health with our Net Worth Growth Calculator to see how retirement savings contribute to your total wealth.

Frequently Asked Questions