By age 67 the account grows to $2,807,522.39, which buys what $1,349,325.95 buys today. You put in $496,306.67, your employer adds $198,522.67 and investment growth supplies $2,087,693.05. This year you contribute $7,500.00 and receive $3,000.00 of match.
What the balance is made of
Current balanceYour contributionsEmployer matchInvestment growth
Balance at 67
Current balance0.9%Your contributions17.7%Employer match7.1%Investment growth74.4%
Year-by-year projection Rows: 37
Age
Year
Salary
You
Employer
Growth
Year-end balance
30
2026
$75,000.00
$7,500.00
$3,000.00
$2,082.76
$37,582.76
31
2027
$77,250.00
$7,725.00
$3,090.00
$2,973.54
$51,371.30
32
2028
$79,567.50
$7,956.75
$3,182.70
$3,949.02
$66,459.76
33
2029
$81,954.52
$8,195.45
$3,278.18
$5,015.80
$82,949.19
34
2030
$84,413.16
$8,441.32
$3,376.53
$6,180.97
$100,948.00
35
2031
$86,945.56
$8,694.56
$3,477.82
$7,452.12
$120,572.50
36
2032
$89,553.92
$8,955.39
$3,582.16
$8,837.41
$141,947.46
37
2033
$92,240.54
$9,224.05
$3,689.62
$10,345.58
$165,206.71
38
2034
$95,007.76
$9,500.78
$3,800.31
$11,986.00
$190,493.80
39
2035
$97,857.99
$9,785.80
$3,914.32
$13,768.74
$217,962.66
How it's calculated S
Years of contributions
N=67−30=37
Your 2026 deferral limit
L=24,500.00
$24,500 for 2026 (IRS Notice 2025-67). Later years rise with inflation, rounded down to the next $500.
Each later year repeats this with a salary 3% higher.
Balance at 67
B37=2,807,522.39
In today's dollars
(1+0.02)372,807,522.39=1,349,325.95
About the 401k calculator
The projection runs one year at a time. Each year your salary grows, your contribution is the percentage you choose capped at the IRS elective deferral limit for your age, and the employer adds its match: a rate on your contributions up to one slice of salary, then a second rate on the next slice. Contributions go in monthly and the balance grows at the return you enter.
With the defaults, a 30-year-old earning $75,000 who saves 10% with a match of 100% on the first 3% and 50% on the next 2% puts in $7,500 this year and receives $3,000. Salary rising 3% a year and a 7% return build $2,807,522.39 by 67, or $1,349,325.95 in today's dollars at 2% inflation.
For 2026 the deferral limit is $24,500, plus $8,000 from age 50 or $11,250 at ages 60 to 63 (IRS Notice 2025-67). Later limits rise with the inflation you enter, in $500 steps. Taxes, fees and vesting schedules are not modeled.
How much will my 401(k) be worth at retirement?
Each year you contribute a share of salary, capped at the IRS limit, your employer adds a match, and the balance grows at your assumed return. Saving 10% of $75,000 from age 30, with $25,000 already invested, a 100%/3% + 50%/2% match, 3% raises and 7% returns, builds about $2,807,522 by 67.
That is money 37 years from now. At 2% inflation it buys what about $1,349,326 buys today. It is also a balance before withdrawal taxes, fees and any vesting schedule.
How the projection works, year by year
Salary. The first year uses your current pay; each later year raises it by your salary growth rate.
Your contribution. The percentage you choose times that year's salary, capped at the deferral limit for your age.
Employer match. Figured from your contribution and your salary under the match formula.
Growth. The opening balance earns the full annual return. The year's contributions go in as 12 equal month-end deposits, growing at the equivalent monthly rate j = (1 + r)^(1/12) − 1.
In the first year of the example, $7,500 from you and $3,000 from the employer go in. The $25,000 grows to $26,750, the deposits plus their growth add $10,832.76, and the year ends at $37,582.76.
By 67, contributions total $694,829 ($496,307 yours, $198,523 the employer's). Investment growth, including growth on the starting $25,000, supplies the other $2,087,693.
How a two-tier employer match works
The employer pays one rate on your contributions up to a first slice of salary, then a second rate on the next slice. The IRS safe harbor basic formula is 100% of the first 3% of pay plus 50% of the next 2%.
On $75,000 that is 100% × $2,250 + 50% × $1,500 = $3,000, earned once you contribute at least 5% ($3,750). Contributing 4% ($3,000) earns $2,625; contributing 2% ($1,500) earns $1,500. The table compares the 10% saver, the 2% saver and a high earner at 61:
Scenario
Employee contribution this year
Employer match this year
Default
7500.00
3000.00
Two percent match
1500.00
1500.00
Super catch-up
35750.00
14400.00
The super catch-up row is a 61-year-old earning $400,000 who elects 20%. The deferral is capped at $35,750, and the match is figured on the $360,000 pay limit: 100% × $10,800 + 50% × $7,200 = $14,400.
Catch-up from age 50: $8,000 more, for $32,500 in total.
Ages 60 to 63: a catch-up of $11,250 instead, for $35,750. At 64 the $8,000 catch-up applies again.
Employee plus employer contributions, excluding catch-up: $72,000 (section 415(c)). If the match would push past it, the match is cut back.
Pay counted for the match: $360,000 (section 401(a)(17)).
Catch-up eligibility follows the age you reach during each calendar year.
If your 2025 wages from the employer sponsoring the plan were above $150,000, your 2026 catch-up contributions must be Roth (after-tax). That changes the tax treatment, not the projected balance.
For later years the projection raises each limit with your inflation assumption, rounded down to $500 steps for deferrals and catch-ups, $1,000 for the $72,000 ceiling and $5,000 for the pay limit. Those future amounts are estimates, not announced IRS limits.
What moves the result most
Return and time dominate. At a 5% return instead of 7%, the example reaches $1,814,452.59, about 35% less. Starting the same plan at 40 instead of 30 gives $1,236,612.84 at 67, less than half, because there are 27 contribution years instead of 37.
Common mistakes
Contributing below the top of the match formula. In the example, 4% of pay leaves $375 of match unclaimed in the first year.
Reading the projection as today's money. Compare the inflation-adjusted figure with what you spend now.
Treating projected limits as law. The 2026 amounts come from Notice 2025-67; later ones are estimates from your inflation input.
Expecting a match on pay above $360,000. The 2026 compensation limit caps the pay the match is figured on.
Assuming every plan pays the formula in full. Vesting schedules, eligibility waits and per-paycheck matching can make the employer's actual contribution smaller than this annual estimate.
Assumptions to check
Current age is your age at the end of 2026, which decides catch-up eligibility each year.
Salary growth applies every year, so a fixed percentage means rising dollar contributions.
Investment return is an effective annual rate. Fees are not deducted, so enter a return net of fund fees if you want them reflected.
Inflation deflates the final balance and indexes future limits; 2% is the Federal Reserve's target.
Age 61 to 63 super catch-up, salary above the compensation limit
Current age
61 years
Retirement age
64 years
Annual salary
400,000
Salary increase (per year)
0%
Your contribution (% of salary)
20%
Employer match, first tier
100%
First tier limit (% of salary)
3%
Employer match, second tier
50%
Second tier limit (% of salary)
2%
Current 401(k) balance
500,000
Investment return (per year)
6%
Inflation (per year)
0%
Your contribution this year
35,750.00
Employer match this year
14,400.00
Your 2026 deferral limit
35,750.00
Your contributions
107,250.00
Balance at retirement
759,509.93
Checked against: IRS Notice 2025-67: 24,500 + 11,250 = 35,750; match on the $360,000 compensation cap = 10,800 + 3,600; balance from exact decimal arithmetic
Age 50 catch-up with limits indexed at 2.5%
Current age
50 years
Retirement age
55 years
Annual salary
200,000
Salary increase (per year)
2%
Your contribution (% of salary)
20%
Employer match, first tier
50%
First tier limit (% of salary)
6%
Employer match, second tier
0%
Second tier limit (% of salary)
0%
Current 401(k) balance
150,000
Investment return (per year)
6%
Inflation (per year)
2.5%
Your contribution this year
32,500.00
Employer match this year
6,000.00
Your contributions
169,000.00
Balance at retirement
432,027.11
Checked against: IRS Notice 2025-67 (24,500 + 8,000); later years and balance from exact decimal arithmetic with increases rounded down to $500
Questions
How much can I contribute to a 401(k) in 2026?
$24,500 of elective deferrals, the limit in IRS Notice 2025-67. From the year you turn 50 you can add a catch-up of $8,000, for $32,500 in total, and in the years you turn 60, 61, 62 or 63 the catch-up is $11,250, for $35,750. Employee and employer contributions together, excluding catch-up, are capped at $72,000 under section 415(c).
How does a 401(k) employer match work?
The employer adds a percentage of what you contribute, up to a share of your pay. Under the IRS safe harbor basic formula, 100% of the first 3% and 50% of the next 2%, a $75,000 earner who contributes at least 5% ($3,750) receives $2,250 + $750 = $3,000. Contributing 2% ($1,500) would earn only $1,500, leaving $1,500 of match unclaimed.
What is the 401(k) super catch-up for ages 60 to 63?
SECURE 2.0 raised the catch-up limit for people who turn 60, 61, 62 or 63 during the year. For 2026 it is $11,250 instead of the $8,000 that applies from age 50, so the total deferral limit at those ages is $35,750. At 64 the regular $8,000 catch-up applies again.
Do high earners have to make catch-up contributions as Roth?
Yes, from 2026. If your 2025 wages from the employer sponsoring the plan were above $150,000, your 2026 catch-up contributions must be designated Roth, meaning they are made after tax (IRS Notice 2025-67, section 414(v)(7)). Your regular $24,500 of deferrals can still be pre-tax. The balance projected here is the same either way.
How much will my 401(k) be worth at retirement?
It depends mostly on the years left and the return. With the defaults, $7,500 a year from you and $3,000 from the employer, both rising 3% a year, grow to $2,807,522.39 over 37 years at 7%. Of that, $694,829.34 is contributions and $2,087,693.05 is investment growth. At a 5% return the same savings reach $1,814,452.59, 35% less.
For planning only. Lenders, tax authorities and markets apply their own rounding, fees and rules; confirm figures with them before you commit.
Checked against references
This calculator includes 5 worked examples with independently sourced answers. They run in the test suite, and you can run them here too.
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