RMD Calculator
The balance, your age, and the rate you pay
Your result will appear here
Fill in the fields on the left and this updates as you type.
Know what this estimate is based on
- Jurisdiction
- General mathematical model
- Scope and limitations
- Scenario model, not a forecast. Returns, volatility, inflation, fees, and taxes are assumptions and actual investment outcomes can be lower or negative.
- Source links checked
- Jul 30, 2026
Built and regression-tested by Smart Tools Lab. It has not been individually reviewed by a licensed financial, tax, or legal professional.
How to use
- 01
Enter the account balance as it stood on 31 December last year — the RMD is always figured on the prior year-end balance.
- 02
Enter your age this year. Nothing is required before 73.
- 03
Check the distribution period. It opens at 26.5, the Uniform Lifetime figure for age 73, and falls by roughly one each year of age.
- 04
Add your federal and state rates and anything you have already withdrawn, then read what is still required and the tax it triggers.
Formula
Required distribution = the 31 December balance ÷ the distribution period for your age. Tax = distribution × (federal + state rate). Excise = anything still not withdrawn × 25%.
Example
A $850,000 balance at 73 divides by 26.5, so $32,075 must come out — about 3.8% of the account, or $2,673 a month. At a combined 27% that adds $8,660 of tax and leaves $23,415. Ignore it entirely and the 25% excise adds $8,019 on top.
Definitions
- Distribution period
- The divisor from the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table for your age. 26.5 at 73, falling roughly one per year.
- Prior year-end balance
- The 31 December value of the account, which is what this year's distribution is always figured on.
- Excise tax
- The penalty on a missed distribution: 25%, or 10% if corrected in time.
Good to know
The bill that finally comes due
Every dollar deferred into a traditional 401(k) or IRA was deferred, not forgiven. Required minimum distributions are how the deferral ends: from age 73 you must withdraw a set fraction of the account each year and pay ordinary income tax on it, whether or not you need the money. The amount is simply the prior 31 December balance divided by a distribution period from the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table — 26.5 at 73, falling by roughly one each year of age, so the required fraction rises from about 3.8% in the first year toward 10% and beyond in the nineties. Roth IRAs have never been subject to it, and since 2024 neither are Roth balances inside a workplace plan.
Why the divisor is a field on this page
The Uniform Lifetime Table is a lookup, and a lookup baked into a calculator is a constant that quietly goes stale — and one this engine cannot prefill from your age in any case. Carrying the divisor as an editable field makes it visible and correctable: read the figure for your age from IRS Publication 590-B and type it. It also handles the case a hard-coded table would get wrong. If your sole beneficiary is a spouse more than ten years younger, you use the Joint Life and Last Survivor table instead, which gives a longer period and a smaller required distribution — a real difference that a single-table calculator would silently overstate.
The penalty, and the deferral that costs more than it saves
Missing a distribution is expensive. The excise tax on the shortfall is 25%, reduced from 50% by the SECURE 2.0 Act, and it falls to 10% if you correct it promptly within the correction window and file Form 5329. There is one permitted delay: the very first distribution may be deferred to 1 April of the following year. It is usually a poor idea, because the second one is still due that December, so two distributions land in a single tax year — which can push you into a higher bracket, raise the taxable share of Social Security, and trip the Medicare IRMAA threshold two years later.
Managing the distribution rather than just taking it
A required distribution must leave the account, but you decide where it goes and how it is taxed. A qualified charitable distribution lets someone 70½ or older send up to a set annual amount straight from an IRA to a charity, satisfying the RMD without the money ever appearing in taxable income — better than taking the distribution and deducting the gift, particularly for anyone who no longer itemizes. Distributions can also be taken in kind, moving securities rather than cash. And the years between retiring and 73 are the window in which Roth conversions shrink the pre-tax balance that future RMDs are computed from, which is the only way to make the required amount itself smaller.
Frequently asked questions
Why do I have to type the distribution period myself?
Because it is the honest way to carry an IRS table on a page that must not invent one. The engine cannot prefill one field from another, and hard-coding the Uniform Lifetime Table would silently freeze it. As a field it is visible, correctable, and cannot be wrong without you seeing it.
Where do I find the right period for my age?
The Uniform Lifetime Table in IRS Publication 590-B. It is 26.5 at 73 and falls by about one full year for each year of age. If your sole beneficiary is a spouse more than ten years younger, you use the Joint Life and Last Survivor table instead, which gives a longer period and a smaller distribution.
What happens if I miss it?
The shortfall carries a 25% excise tax, cut from 50% by the SECURE 2.0 Act, and it drops to 10% if you correct it within the correction window and file the right form. It is one of the harshest penalties in the code, and it is entirely avoidable.
Can I defer my first one?
Yes — the first distribution may be delayed to 1 April of the following year. It is rarely a good idea: the second one is still due that December, so two distributions land in one tax year and can push you into a higher bracket or past an IRMAA threshold.
Do Roth accounts have RMDs?
Roth IRAs never did, and from 2024 Roth balances inside a workplace plan no longer do either. Only pre-tax balances — traditional IRAs, 401(k)s, 403(b)s and the rest — are counted here.