Use these calculators to project your 401(k) balance at retirement, estimate the cost of an early 401(k) withdrawal, and find the contribution rate that maximizes your employer match.
Project how much your 401(k) will be worth at retirement.
Estimate the taxes and penalty on an early 401(k) withdrawal.
Find the contribution rate that captures your full employer match.
The 401(k) calculator helps you plan one of the most important parts of your financial future: your employer-sponsored retirement savings. It projects how large your 401(k) balance will grow by the time you retire, based on your current age, salary, contribution rate, employer match, expected investment return, and inflation. It also estimates the real cost of taking money out early, and finds the contribution rate that captures every dollar of free employer match. Whether you are just starting your career or fine-tuning your strategy near retirement, these tools turn abstract percentages into concrete dollar figures.
A 401(k) is one of the most powerful wealth-building tools available to American workers, combining tax advantages, automatic payroll contributions, employer matching, and decades of compound growth. Understanding how those forces work together is the key to a secure retirement.
A 401(k) is a tax-advantaged retirement savings plan offered by employers, named after the section of the Internal Revenue Code that created it. Employees choose a percentage of each paycheck to contribute, and that money is invested - typically in mutual funds, index funds, or target-date funds - where it grows over time. Many employers sweeten the deal by matching a portion of employee contributions, which is essentially free money toward retirement.
The two main types are the traditional 401(k), funded with pre-tax dollars that lower your current taxable income (you pay tax when you withdraw in retirement), and the Roth 401(k), funded with after-tax dollars that grow and are withdrawn tax-free. Both grow tax-deferred, meaning you pay no taxes on the gains year to year.
Your 401(k) balance at retirement depends on five factors working together: your starting balance, your annual contributions, your employer's match, the rate of return your investments earn, and the number of years until retirement. Each year, your contributions (plus the employer match) are added to the account, and the entire balance earns the assumed rate of return. Because gains compound on top of previous gains, the growth accelerates dramatically over long time horizons.
Each year: New Balance = Old Balance × (1 + return) + Annual Contributions
Example: A 30-year-old earning $75,000 with $35,000 already saved, contributing 10% of salary with a 50% employer match on the first 3% of pay, a 3% annual raise, and a 6% return, would accumulate about $1,711,800 by age 65 - equivalent to roughly $608,345 in today's purchasing power after 3% inflation. This shows the extraordinary effect of decades of consistent saving and compounding.
The employer match is the single best feature of most 401(k) plans, and failing to capture it fully is one of the most common and costly retirement mistakes. A typical match is "50% of contributions up to 6% of salary" or "100% up to 3%." This means the employer adds 50 cents (or a full dollar) for every dollar you contribute, up to a limit - an instant, guaranteed 50% or 100% return on your money before it even gets invested.
The Maximize Employer Match calculator above shows exactly what contribution rate you need to capture the entire match. At minimum, you should always contribute enough to get the full match; not doing so is leaving free money on the table. For the example of a 50% match on the first 3% plus 20% on the next 3%, you need to contribute at least 6% of your salary to receive the full $1,575 employer match on a $75,000 income.
The IRS sets annual limits on how much employees can contribute to a 401(k), adjusted yearly for inflation. For 2026, the employee elective deferral limit is $24,500. Workers age 50 and older can make additional "catch-up" contributions, and recent law adds an enhanced catch-up for those aged 60 to 63. Employer contributions do not count against the employee limit, but there is a separate, higher overall limit on combined employee and employer contributions. This calculator applies the contribution limit automatically as your projected salary and contributions grow over time.
These define your savings horizon. The longer the time until retirement, the more powerful compounding becomes - which is why starting early matters so much. Even a few extra years of contributions in your twenties can outweigh much larger contributions later.
Your salary determines your contribution dollars (since contributions are a percentage of pay) and the cap on your employer match. The annual increase models raises over your career, which steadily grows your contributions.
The share of each paycheck you direct into the 401(k). Financial advisors commonly recommend saving 10-15% of income for retirement, including the employer match. Higher contribution rates dramatically increase your final balance.
The match rate (e.g., 50%) and the limit (e.g., up to 3% of salary) determine the employer's contribution. The calculator applies the match only to contributions within the limit.
The assumed average annual investment return drives growth; historically, diversified stock-heavy portfolios have returned around 6-10% over the long run. Inflation reduces the future purchasing power of your balance, which is why the calculator also shows the result in today's dollars.
Withdrawing from a 401(k) before age 59½ is expensive. In most cases the IRS imposes a 10% early withdrawal penalty on top of regular income taxes. Because the withdrawal is added to your taxable income, it is taxed at your federal rate plus any state and local rates. The Early Withdrawal calculator above shows how much of your withdrawal you actually keep after penalty and taxes.
Example: Withdrawing $10,000 with a 25% federal rate, 5% state rate, and the 10% penalty costs $2,500 + $500 + $1,000 = $4,000, leaving just $6,000 - a 40% loss before the money even leaves the account. Beyond the immediate cost, you also lose all the future compound growth that money would have earned, which is often the larger long-term loss.
The 10% penalty is waived in several situations, including: total and permanent disability, separation from service in or after the year you turn 55 (the "Rule of 55"), certain medical expenses, qualified domestic relations orders, and other IRS-specified hardships. Regular income tax still applies even when the penalty is waived. The calculator lets you indicate whether an exception applies.
Choosing between a traditional and Roth 401(k) comes down to when you want your tax break:
Many savers split contributions between both to diversify their future tax exposure. The employer match always goes into a traditional (pre-tax) account regardless of which you choose.
A common guideline is to save 10-15% of your income for retirement, including any employer match. At an absolute minimum, contribute enough to capture the full employer match. If you can afford more, contributing up to the annual IRS limit accelerates your savings significantly.
A typical match is 50% of contributions up to 6% of salary, or 100% up to 3%. Any match is valuable free money, and you should always contribute at least enough to receive the full amount your employer offers.
Withdrawals before age 59½ generally incur a 10% penalty plus regular federal, state, and local income tax, often costing 30-45% of the amount. You also lose the future compound growth on that money. Certain exceptions, such as disability or the Rule of 55, waive the penalty.
For 2026, employees can contribute up to $24,500, with additional catch-up contributions allowed for those 50 and older. Employer contributions do not count toward this employee limit but are subject to a separate, higher combined limit.
It depends on your contributions, employer match, rate of return, and years until retirement. Use the savings calculator above to get a personalized projection, including the value in today's purchasing power after inflation.
Choose traditional if you expect to be in a lower tax bracket in retirement (you get the tax break now), and Roth if you expect a higher bracket later (tax-free withdrawals). Splitting between both is a reasonable way to hedge against uncertain future tax rates.