IRA Calculator

IRA Calculator

Estimate how much your IRA could grow by retirement, compare Traditional and Roth IRA, and see the inflation-adjusted value of your savings.

Your age today.
Age when you plan to start withdrawing.
Existing Traditional or Roth IRA savings.
Total you plan to contribute each year. This tool does not enforce IRS limits.
Optional yearly increase of your contribution.
Average pre-inflation return (for example, 6–8%).
Used to convert future dollars into today’s dollars.
Compare after-tax value of Traditional vs Roth assumptions.
Used to illustrate Roth vs Traditional trade-offs.
Used to estimate after-tax Traditional IRA value.
Always consult a qualified tax or financial professional before making decisions about IRA contributions and withdrawals.

What Is an IRA Calculator?

The IRA Calculator helps you estimate how much your Individual Retirement Account (IRA) could grow by the time you retire. It evaluates your annual contributions, expected returns, contribution growth, inflation, and tax treatment — giving you a clear and realistic view of your long-term retirement savings. Whether you invest in a Traditional IRA, a Roth IRA, or want to compare both, this calculator provides a complete projection.

An IRA is one of the most popular retirement savings accounts in the United States. According to the IRS IRA guidelines, an IRA allows you to save and invest with tax advantages. But the tax benefits differ depending on whether you choose a Traditional or Roth IRA — and this is exactly where the IRA Calculator helps by showing the long-term impact of each option.

To understand how your IRA fits into your full retirement plan, you can also explore related financial tools such as the 401k Calculator, Investment Calculator, and Compound Interest Calculator.

How the IRA Calculator Works

The calculator simulates every year between your current age and retirement age. For each year, it:

  • Adds your annual contribution
  • Applies contribution growth (if selected)
  • Applies expected investment return
  • Calculates total added contributions
  • Builds your total balance over time

At the end, the calculator displays:

  • Your estimated IRA balance at retirement
  • Your total contributions
  • Your total investment growth
  • Your inflation-adjusted balance (today’s dollars)
  • After-tax value for Traditional IRA
  • Roth IRA estimate with tax-free qualified withdrawals
  • A Traditional vs Roth comparison if you select “Compare Both”

These projections give you a much clearer understanding of how your retirement savings may grow and what your final nest egg might be worth.

Traditional IRA vs Roth IRA – What’s the Difference?

Both Traditional and Roth IRAs offer tax advantages, but at different stages:

Traditional IRA

With a Traditional IRA:

  • Your contributions may be tax-deductible today
  • Your investments grow tax-deferred
  • You pay taxes when you withdraw money in retirement

This can be beneficial if you expect your tax rate to be lower in retirement than it is today. For more details, visit the Investopedia Traditional IRA guide.

Roth IRA

With a Roth IRA:

  • You pay taxes now
  • Your investments grow tax-free
  • Qualified withdrawals in retirement are completely tax-free

This can be beneficial if you expect to be in a higher tax bracket during retirement. Learn more at the Fidelity Roth IRA resource.

The IRA Calculator allows you to test both strategies and compare after-tax outcomes side by side.

Understanding IRA Contribution Limits

The IRS sets a maximum amount you can contribute to an IRA each year. The calculator does not enforce these limits, but you should be aware of them. To see official limits, check the IRS IRA Contribution Limits.

Contribution limits can change annually, especially when adjusted for inflation. Many savers use the IRA Calculator to test different contribution levels and determine whether increasing contributions could significantly improve long-term savings.

If you’re already contributing the maximum and want to see alternative growth paths, you can compare the results with other investment tools like the Investment Calculator.

Investment Growth and Market Returns

IRA accounts grow through compound investment returns. Over decades, compounding can turn even modest contributions into significant wealth — especially when invested in diversified portfolios such as index funds, ETFs, mutual funds, or stocks.

Common IRA investment strategies discussed by financial institutions like Vanguard suggest long-term average returns of 6–8% before inflation for stock-heavy portfolios. The IRA Calculator allows you to choose any return rate, so you can test both conservative and aggressive growth scenarios.

For example:

  • 5% return = conservative diversified portfolio
  • 7% return = historical average for long-term stock-heavy portfolios
  • 9% return = aggressive growth assumption

By adjusting these values, you can see how sensitive your retirement savings are to market performance.

Inflation and Future Value

Inflation erodes purchasing power over time. That’s why the IRA Calculator automatically converts your projected IRA balance into “today’s dollars.” This allows you to see the true value of your retirement savings.

For example:

  • A future balance of $1,000,000 might equal $600,000 in today’s money at 2.5% inflation
  • Inflation-adjusted results help with real-world planning
  • You can test how different inflation scenarios affect your long-term savings

This makes your retirement projections far more realistic.

Contribution Growth and Increasing Deposits

Most people increase their retirement savings over time: when they get raises, bonuses, or promotions. The IRA Calculator lets you simulate this through the “Annual Contribution Growth (%)” field.

Even a small yearly increase can make a huge difference. For example:

  • Increasing contributions by 1% per year
  • Increasing contributions with inflation
  • Adding lump sums some years

This gives you a dynamic, flexible projection that reflects real-life savings behavior.

Why Comparing Traditional and Roth IRA Matters

Taxes play a massive role in retirement planning. The calc

Interpreting Your IRA Calculator Results

The IRA Calculator gives you a detailed breakdown of how your retirement savings grow year by year. When you run the calculation, you’ll see several key numbers that help you understand the long-term impact of your contributions, investment returns, taxes, and inflation.

The final balance represents the amount you may have in your IRA at retirement assuming stable contributions and expected market growth. However, because inflation affects purchasing power, the “value in today’s dollars” is equally important — it shows what your final balance would feel like in real terms.

You’ll also see your total contributions. This separates your actual deposits from the investment growth portion. For long-term savers, investment gains often exceed contributions significantly due to compounding, especially in the final 10–15 years before retirement.

Understanding After-Tax Value for Traditional and Roth IRA

One of the biggest advantages of this IRA Calculator is the ability to see after-tax value, which helps you compare Traditional and Roth IRA outcomes more clearly.

Traditional IRA After-Tax Value

In a Traditional IRA, contributions may be tax-deductible today, but withdrawals are taxed during retirement. The calculator uses your estimated retirement tax rate to display what portion of your final balance may actually be available to spend.

For example, if your balance at retirement is $800,000 and your expected retirement tax rate is 20%, your after-tax value is roughly $640,000. This gives you a much more accurate view of future spending power.

Roth IRA Tax-Free Withdrawals

With a Roth IRA, contributions are made after taxes today, but qualified withdrawals in retirement are tax-free. This means your final balance may be fully available for spending.

This makes Roth IRAs particularly attractive to:

  • younger savers who expect higher future taxes
  • people with rising career income
  • those expecting large Social Security or pension income

You can check official Roth IRA rules at the IRS Roth IRA guide.

Comparing Traditional vs Roth IRA Inside the Calculator

When you select “Compare Both” in the IRA Calculator, you get a fast and intuitive comparison of how your money accumulates under each account type.

The calculator keeps investment growth identical, so the difference comes entirely from taxes:

  • Traditional IRA is reduced by your retirement tax rate
  • Roth IRA stays tax-free for qualified withdrawals

This comparison helps you instantly see which option may offer higher long-term benefits depending on your tax situation.

Using the IRA Calculator for “What-If” Scenarios

A powerful benefit of this tool is the ability to model different scenarios and see how small changes can affect your long-term retirement savings. For example:

  • What if you retire at 67 instead of 65?
  • What if you increase your contribution by 1% each year?
  • What if inflation rises to 3.5%?
  • What if your returns average 6% instead of 7%?
  • What if your retirement tax rate is higher than today?

These scenarios allow you to build a realistic, flexible retirement plan tailored to your needs. For additional planning, tools like the 401k Calculator and Annuity Calculator can help you model income streams and employer-sponsored plans as well.

How Market Returns Influence Your IRA Growth

Investment performance plays a major role in IRA growth. Even small differences in average annual return create huge differences over long horizons.

Consider these examples:

  • At 5% annual return, savings double roughly every 14 years
  • At 7% return, savings double every 10 years
  • At 9% return, savings double every 8 years

These growth rates compound even more when contributions increase over time. Institutions like Fidelity and Vanguard suggest diversified portfolios that historically deliver moderate, long-term returns.

The IRA Calculator lets you experiment with different growth assumptions so you can see both optimistic and conservative projections.

How Inflation Affects Retirement Savings

Inflation steadily reduces buying power over time, making it essential to view retirement savings in “real” dollars. A million dollars 30 years from now will not have the same purchasing power as a million today.

This is why the IRA Calculator displays:

  • Nominal retirement balance
  • Inflation-adjusted balance

For example:

  • $1,000,000 in 30 years at 2.5% inflation ≈ $600,000 today
  • $800,000 in 20 years at 3% inflation ≈ $445,000 today

This helps you understand real-world retirement spending potential.

Increasing Your IRA Contributions Over Time

Many savers increase their retirement contributions as their income grows. That’s why the IRA Calculator includes an “Annual Contribution Growth (%)” setting.

Common strategies include:

  • Increasing contributions by 1% every year
  • Adding contributions after debt repayment
  • Raising contributions after each promotion
  • Matching contributions to inflation

This gradual increase can significantly boost your retirement balance.

IRA Calculator Limitations

While extremely useful for scenario planning, the IRA Calculator cannot perfectly predict the future because it depends on:

  • market volatility
  • inflation variability
  • changes in tax laws
  • IRS contribution limit updates
  • your personal income changes

The IRS updates contribution limits each year. Current limits can be found on the IRS official website.

Still, the calculator provides a solid framework for making informed decisions and building a stronger retirement plan.

Using an IRA Alongside Other Retirement Accounts

Your IRA is just one part of your overall retirement portfolio. Many people also invest through:

  • 401(k) employer-sponsored plans
  • brokerage accounts
  • annuities
  • HSAs (for medical long-term planning)

You can use tools like the 401k Calculator and Investment Calculator to see how your IRA fits into your broader retirement strategy.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

How much will my IRA be worth when I retire?

Your IRA value depends on contributions, investment returns, retirement age, and inflation. The IRA Calculator estimates your future balance and shows the inflation-adjusted value.

Is the IRA Calculator accurate?

It provides a realistic projection using common financial modeling assumptions, but real markets vary. Use it as a planning tool, not a guaranteed prediction.

Should I choose Traditional or Roth IRA?

If you expect higher taxes in retirement, a Roth IRA may be better. If you expect lower taxes later, a Traditional IRA may be more beneficial. The calculator compares both options for you.

Does the IRA Calculator include contribution limits?

The tool does not enforce IRS limits, so you can model any scenario. To check current limits, visit the IRS Retirement Plans page.

Conclusion

The IRA Calculator gives you everything you need to understand how your retirement savings could grow over time. By analyzing contributions, investment returns, inflation, and taxes — and comparing Traditional and Roth IRAs — you gain a crystal-clear picture of your financial future. Using the calculator regularly helps you stay on track, make smarter savings decisions, and build a retirement that matches your long-term goals.