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Roth vs. Traditional IRA Calculator

Compare Roth and Traditional IRA scenarios using your income, savings, eligibility details, and tax-rate assumptions.

IRA details

Tax timing profile

Compare Roth and Traditional IRA paths using your IRA savings amounts and tax timing assumptions.

Modified adjusted gross income
$
Use your expected MAGI for the tax year, before choosing Roth or Traditional IRA treatment.
Covered by a workplace plan
Answer yes if you are covered by a 401(k), 403(b), SIMPLE, SEP, or similar employer retirement plan.
Your age
Retirement age
Annual IRA savings
$
Annual amount you expect to put toward your IRA.
Current marginal tax rate
%
Used to estimate the current value of a Traditional IRA deduction.
Estimated retirement tax rate
%
Used to estimate the after-tax value of Traditional IRA withdrawals.
Estimated rate of return
%
Long-term annual return assumption used for both IRA paths.

IRA comparison

After-tax outcome

2026Single

Roth scenario leads

$134,300

Under these assumptions, the Roth path finishes with the larger after-tax retirement value.

Roth after-tax

$708,456

Projected Roth value at retirement under the return assumption.

Traditional after-tax

$574,156

Traditional value after estimated retirement tax on pretax dollars.

Roth advantage

$134,300

19.0% difference between after-tax outcomes.

Comparison view

Review the visual summary, table, and assumptions behind the comparison.

What drives the comparison

Current marginal tax rate24.0%
Retirement tax rate22.0%
Filing statusSingle
MAGI entered$75,000
Annual IRA savings$7,500
Break-even retirement tax rate24.0%

Current-year mechanics

IRA contribution limit$7,500
Roth contribution room$7,500
Deductible Traditional room$7,500
Roth contribution$7,500
Traditional contribution$7,500
Traditional nondeductible portion$0
Traditional tax savings$1,800

How to use this IRA calculator

Use this as a tax-timing comparison, not a final account recommendation. The model is most useful when you test a few realistic tax-rate scenarios.

Room

Start with your real IRA room

Filing status, MAGI, workplace-plan coverage, age, and IRA savings amounts determine the Roth room and deductible Traditional IRA room used in the comparison.

Taxes

Compare current and future rates

The central tradeoff is whether today’s tax rate or the assumed retirement withdrawal tax rate is more valuable to plan around.

Gap

Read the result as a scenario

Use the projected difference, break-even tax rate, and assumptions together before treating either account type as the obvious answer.

1

Enter the savings decision

Add filing status, MAGI, workplace-plan coverage, age, IRA savings amounts, and the current and retirement tax rates you want to compare.

2

Tune the long-term return

Use an estimated rate of return that fits the investment mix you are comparing across the Roth and Traditional paths.

3

Focus on the size of the difference

A close result may point more toward tax diversification and account-rule flexibility than toward one mathematically dominant choice.

How to Review Your Retirement Plan
Guide

Continue Learning

How to Review Your Retirement Plan

Read the guide

About this tool

What this helps you do

This calculator compares Roth and Traditional IRA outcomes using your filing status, MAGI, workplace-plan coverage, IRA savings amounts, tax-rate assumptions, and after-tax retirement values.

How to interpret results

The leading scenario is a planning signal, not a recommendation. Future tax rates, income limits, deduction rules, and liquidity needs can change the better fit.

Tax-rule notes

The model uses 2026 IRA contribution limits, Roth income phaseouts, Traditional IRA deduction phaseouts, and the age-50 catch-up amount, then holds those rules constant across the projection.

Limitations

This tool does not model every IRA rule, state taxes, spousal IRA compensation eligibility, backdoor Roth/pro-rata rules, excess contribution penalties, or taxable investing of traditional tax savings.

Keep learning

Roth vs. Traditional Retirement ContributionsRoth IRA vs. Traditional IRAHow to Review Your Retirement Plan

IRA comparison notes

This calculator is educational and does not replace individualized retirement, investment, or tax advice. Before acting on the result, confirm IRA eligibility, MAGI, deductibility, contribution limits, and tax assumptions for your situation.