Free Roth vs Traditional IRA Calculator 2026 | Which Wins?


100% Free • No Sign-up • 2026 Limits: $7,500 / $8,600

Roth vs Traditional IRA Calculator (2026)

The whole Roth-versus-Traditional question comes down to one comparison: your tax rate today versus your tax rate in retirement. This calculator grows the same gross contribution both ways and shows you the after-tax winner — often by tens of thousands of dollars.

Compare Roth vs Traditional

From gross pay. 2026 IRA limit: $7,500 ($8,600 if 50+).

Your marginal federal bracket now.

The rate your Traditional withdrawals would face.

Traditional IRA — value at retirement (pre-tax)
Traditional IRA — after retirement tax
Roth IRA — value at retirement (tax-free)
Advantage

Both sides use the same gross pay set aside each year, so the comparison is apples-to-apples: Traditional contributes the full gross amount and is taxed at withdrawal; Roth pays tax first and contributes what is left, then withdraws tax-free. State taxes, RMD effects, and investing a Traditional tax refund separately are not modeled.

The Only Rule That Matters

Traditional and Roth IRAs grow identically. The difference is purely when the tax is collected — and at which rate.

Your retirement rate < today’s rate → Traditional wins  |  Your retirement rate > today’s rate → Roth wins  |  Equal rates → dead tie
  • Early career, low bracket now: Roth usually wins — you pay tax at today’s low rate and never again, and decades of growth come out tax-free.
  • Peak earning years, high bracket now: Traditional usually wins — the deduction saves tax at 24–35% now, and retirement withdrawals often land in the 10–22% range.
  • RMDs tilt the field toward Roth: Traditional balances force taxable withdrawals from age 73, which can raise your retirement rate, tax your Social Security, and lift Medicare premiums. Roth IRAs have no RMDs — see our RMD calculator.
  • Conversions must finish by December 31: moving Traditional money to a Roth is a taxable event for that calendar year — a 2026 conversion must be completed by December 31, 2026, no extensions.

2026 IRA Facts Used Here

Rule Traditional IRA Roth IRA
2026 contribution limit $7,500 ($8,600 at 50+) $7,500 ($8,600 at 50+)
Tax on contribution Deductible (income limits if you have a workplace plan) After-tax — no deduction
Tax on withdrawal Ordinary income rates Tax-free if qualified (59½ + 5-year rule)
Required minimum distributions Yes — from age 73 (75 if born 1960+) None for the owner
Income limits to contribute None (deduction may phase out) Yes — phases out at higher incomes

Project a workplace plan alongside your IRA with our 401(k) calculator, and check the tax on other income with the paycheck calculator.

Related Tools on WebTools

RMD Calculator (2026) →
401(k) Retirement Calculator →
Capital Gains Tax Calculator (2026) →
Paycheck Calculator (2026) →

Frequently Asked Questions

It depends entirely on your tax rates. If your rate in retirement will be lower than today’s, Traditional wins because the deduction is worth more now. If your retirement rate will be higher — common for young savers and anyone expecting big RMDs — Roth wins. Equal rates produce an identical after-tax result.

$7,500 if you are under 50, and $8,600 if you are 50 or older (a $1,100 catch-up), per IRS Notice 2025-67. The limit is shared across all your Traditional and Roth IRAs combined, and you need at least that much earned income to contribute.

Yes — and many people split contributions between them (“tax diversification”) so retirement withdrawals can be managed from both buckets. The combined contributions still cannot exceed the $7,500 / $8,600 annual limit, and each account keeps its own tax rules.

December 31, 2026. A conversion is taxed in the calendar year it happens, and unlike contributions there is no April extension — the money must actually move from the Traditional to the Roth account by New Year’s Eve to count for 2026. Conversions cannot be undone (no recharacterization since 2018).

Traditional withdrawals are forced from age 73 and taxed as income, whether you need the money or not. Large forced withdrawals can push you into higher brackets, make up to 85% of your Social Security taxable, and raise Medicare premiums. Roth balances have no RMDs, so converting some Traditional money in low-income years can shrink every future RMD.

Most people cannot — which is itself an argument for splitting. Holding both account types gives you a taxed and an untaxed bucket in retirement, so you can fine-tune each year’s taxable income. When in doubt, younger savers usually lean Roth (decades of tax-free growth, low current bracket) and peak earners lean Traditional.
Disclaimer: Educational estimate with constant contribution, return, and tax-rate assumptions. It does not model state taxes, income phase-outs for deductions or Roth eligibility, bracket-by-bracket withdrawal taxation, employer plans, or future law changes (including scheduled rate changes). Tax law is individual — consult a tax or financial advisor for decisions about your accounts.



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