2026 contribution limits calculator: every dollar you're allowed to stash

By Tom, CPA · Updated October 25, 2026

TL;DR: Enter your age, whether you have a workplace plan, and your HSA coverage to see your 2026 limits: $24,500 401(k)/403(b)/457(b) deferral, $8,000 catch-up at 50+ or $11,250 at 60–63, $7,500 IRA plus $1,100 at 50+, and $4,400/$8,750 HSA plus $1,000 at 55+.

Educational only, not tax, legal, or investment advice. Examples are illustrations, not predictions. Rules and limits change; verify current figures and talk to a qualified professional about your situation.

Every year the IRS sets new limits, and every year someone discovers in April that they could have saved more, or that they saved too much. This calculator takes your age and accounts and shows every dollar you’re allowed to stash in 2026. Limits are hard-coded from official sources and dated, so check back after the IRS releases 2027 numbers.

CPA Warning Label: Limits shown are 2026 figures from IRS Notice 2025-67 and Rev. Proc. 2025-19, as of Oct 2026. Roth IRA eligibility, plan rules, and Roth-only catch-up for higher earners can change what you can actually contribute.

Inputs (age, plans, income)

• Age at end of 2026: catch-ups depend on your age at year-end, so someone turning 50 in December qualifies for the whole year.
• Workplace plan: enter 1 if you have a 401(k), 403(b) or governmental 457(b).
• HSA coverage: 0 if not HSA-eligible, 1 for self-only, 2 for family.

Income affects which type of account you can use (for example, direct Roth IRA eligibility and Roth catch-ups) more than the dollar limits themselves, so it’s covered below instead of as an input. Defaults are examples.

Limits applied

Catch-up logic

• Age 49 or younger: no catch-up.
• Age 50–59 and 64+: $8,000 deferral catch-up.
• Age 60–63: $11,250 super catch-up, if the plan offers it.
• IRA: $1,100 at 50+.
• HSA: $1,000 at 55+, but none once you enroll in Medicare.

For 2026, if your prior-year FICA wages from the employer exceeded the indexed threshold, plan catch-ups must be Roth. See savings order for where to put each dollar.

Interaction rules

• The $24,500 deferral limit is per person across all 401(k) and 403(b) plans, even with multiple employers. A governmental 457(b) has its own separate limit, so some people can defer to both.
• Employer contributions don’t count toward your deferral limit.
• The IRA limit is shared between traditional and Roth IRAs and can’t exceed your earned income (a spouse’s income can count for a spousal IRA).
• Roth IRA direct contributions phase out at $153,000–$168,000 single and $242,000–$252,000 married filing jointly.
• Family HSA limits are shared between spouses.

This calculator counts one workplace plan limit; if you also have a governmental 457(b), add another deferral limit.

How to use this calculator

1. Gather your numbers from statements and last year’s return; estimates are fine for a first pass.
2. Replace every example default with your own figure.
3. Change one input at a time to see which assumption moves the result most.
4. Save or screenshot the results with the date, since limits and rates change.
5. Bring the output to whoever prepares your return as a starting point, not a final answer.

What this calculator leaves out

• Employer contributions and the overall annual additions limit for defined contribution plans.
• SEP IRA and solo 401(k) employer contributions, which depend on self-employment income.
• SIMPLE IRA plans, which have their own lower deferral limits.
• A second, separate governmental 457(b) limit, which some public employees can add on top.
• Partial-year HSA eligibility, which can reduce the HSA limit by month.
• Earned income caps: you can’t contribute more to an IRA than your taxable compensation.

If any of these apply, treat the total as a floor or a rough guide and check the specific rules.

Why limits change every year

Most of these limits are indexed for inflation and rounded down to set increments, so they rise in steps rather than every year. The IRS typically announces retirement plan limits in the fall, usually in a notice, and HSA limits earlier in the spring. Recheck your payroll election each January: many employers don’t raise your percentage automatically, and the super catch-up only applies in the years you are 60 through 63, so it starts and stops by itself.

Examples

Illustrations (calculator output):

• Age 45, 401(k), self-only HSA: $24,500 + $7,500 + $4,400 = $36,400.
• Age 61, 401(k), family HSA: $35,750 + $8,600 + $9,750 = $54,100.
• Age 55, no workplace plan, self-only HSA: $8,600 IRA + $5,400 HSA = $14,000.
• Age 64, 401(k), no HSA: $32,500 + $8,600 = $41,100. The super catch-up ends after 63.

Frugal Fran fills these from the top of her funding order; Lavish Larry just learned the number exists. Related reading: the early access guide, HSA as a retirement account and the Roth ladder planner.