Roth IRA Calculator
Project how a Roth IRA grows tax-free between now and retirement. Enter your age, current balance, yearly contribution, and an expected return to see your projected tax-free balance — and how much of it is your own money versus compounding growth.
Watch it in action (26 seconds)
Enter your balance, annual contribution, expected return, and years to retirement — and see the projected tax-free balance the calculator returns.
How a Roth IRA grows tax-free
A Roth IRA is funded with money you have already paid income tax on. That single fact is what makes it powerful: because the tax is paid up front, the account is never taxed again. Dividends, interest, and capital gains inside the account are not taxed year to year, and qualified withdrawals in retirement come out federal-income-tax-free.
The projection runs one year at a time. Each year it adds your contribution to the balance, then applies your expected return to the whole amount: growth = expected return × current balance. That growth joins the balance, so the next year's return is calculated on a larger pool — the compounding effect. Contributions are added at the start of each year, so every dollar you put in earns a full year of growth before the next cycle.
The chart plots three lines by age: your tax-free balance, the cumulative contributions you made, and the cumulative growth on top. Early on the lines sit close together — most of the balance is money you put in. Given enough years, the growth line pulls away, and the gap between the balance and your contributions is the tax that a regular taxable account would have chipped away at along the way.
Contributions vs. growth: reading the two numbers
The result panel splits your ending balance into two parts. Total contributions is the after-tax money you actually put in — your starting balance plus every yearly contribution. Tax-free growth is everything the market added on top. The growth share of balance stat tells you what fraction of the final number is growth rather than your own deposits.
This split is the honest way to judge a retirement projection. A big ending number driven mostly by contributions means you are doing the heavy lifting with savings; a big number driven mostly by growth means time and compounding are doing the work. The longer your horizon and the earlier you start, the more the growth share tends to climb — which is why a Roth opened young can be so effective.
Who a Roth IRA is for
A Roth tends to make the most sense when you expect your tax rate in retirement to be similar to or higher than it is today — you lock in today's rate by paying tax now and skip it later. That often describes younger savers and anyone early in their earning years, who also happen to have the longest runway for tax-free compounding.
It is also valued for flexibility. Because contributions were already taxed, they can generally be withdrawn at any time without tax or penalty, and a Roth has no lifetime required minimum distributions for the original owner — so the balance can keep compounding untouched. Direct contributions phase out at higher incomes, and the rules have details worth confirming, so treat this as background rather than personal advice.
How to read your projection
Change one input at a time to see what actually moves the outcome. Nudging the retirement age up a few years usually adds more than nudging the contribution, because those extra years compound the entire balance. That is the clearest argument for starting early rather than contributing more later.
Be conservative with the expected return. Small changes in the rate swing a multi-decade projection dramatically, and it is easy to talk yourself into an optimistic number. If you want the answer in today's money, enter a real (after-inflation) return; if you want future dollars, enter a nominal one — just do not compare a real projection against a nominal goal. You can save any scenario with the share button and revisit it as your plan changes.
Assumptions & limitations
- Returns are assumed to be a single fixed rate every year. Real markets are volatile, and the order of good and bad years affects real outcomes — this projection smooths that away.
- The same contribution is assumed for every year until retirement. In practice you can skip, pause, or increase contributions, and IRS limits change over time.
- Figures are nominal (future dollars) unless you enter an inflation-adjusted return. The tool applies no tax to growth, matching how a qualified Roth works, and does not model early-withdrawal tax or penalties.
- It does not check your eligibility, income phase-outs, or contribution limits — enter amounts that fit your situation and verify the current rules on IRS.gov or with a tax professional.
Frequently asked questions
- How does a Roth IRA grow tax-free?
- You fund a Roth IRA with money you have already paid income tax on. In return, the account grows without any tax on the gains along the way, and qualified withdrawals in retirement come out federal-income-tax-free. There is no annual tax drag on dividends, interest, or capital gains inside the account, so every dollar of growth stays invested and keeps compounding.
- What is the difference between contributions and growth in the projection?
- Contributions are the after-tax dollars you put in — your starting balance plus each yearly contribution. Growth is everything the market adds on top: compounding returns on both your contributions and on prior growth. In a Roth, that growth is the part that would normally be taxed in a regular brokerage account but is not here. Over a long horizon the growth portion often ends up larger than everything you contributed.
- Is this a Roth IRA growth calculator?
- Yes. It runs a year-by-year growth projection: each year it adds your contribution, then applies your expected return to the whole balance, and charts the tax-free balance against your cumulative contributions and cumulative growth by age. That lets you see not just the ending number but how the growth curve pulls away from what you put in.
- How much can I contribute to a Roth IRA?
- The IRS sets an annual contribution limit that applies across all of your IRAs, with a higher catch-up limit once you reach age 50. Eligibility to contribute directly also phases out above certain income levels. Both the dollar limits and the income thresholds change over time, so enter the amount that fits your situation and check the current figures for your tax year on IRS.gov. This tool does not enforce a limit — it projects whatever contribution you enter.
- When are Roth IRA withdrawals tax-free?
- Your own contributions can generally be withdrawn at any time without tax or penalty, because they were already taxed. Earnings are different: a withdrawal of earnings is generally tax- and penalty-free only if it is "qualified" — typically once you are at least 59½ and the account has been open for at least five years. Taking earnings out earlier can trigger income tax and a penalty, with some exceptions. Rules have nuances, so confirm your specifics with a tax professional or IRS guidance.
- What return should I assume?
- Use an assumption you can defend, not a best case. Historically, a broad US stock index has returned roughly 7% per year after inflation, or about 10% before inflation, over long periods — but any single decade can be far higher or lower, and past performance does not guarantee future results. If you want your projection in today's purchasing power, use a real (inflation-adjusted) return; if you want future dollars, use a nominal return.
- Does the calculator account for taxes or inflation?
- It assumes tax-free growth, which is the whole point of a Roth — so no tax is applied to the compounding. It does not adjust for inflation: the figures are in nominal (future) dollars unless you deliberately enter a real, inflation-adjusted return. It also cannot know your personal eligibility, other retirement accounts, or state rules. Treat the result as an educational estimate, not tax advice.
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