Project how a Traditional or Roth IRA could grow over time using current annual contribution limits, your expected return, and your selected time horizon.
The IRA Growth Calculator projects how an Individual Retirement Account could grow with recurring annual contributions and compound investment returns. For 2026, the standard IRA contribution limit is $7,500 and the age-50+ catch-up brings the total to $8,600. Whether you are comparing Traditional and Roth IRAs or simply checking a savings target, the main drivers are contribution level, return assumption, and time horizon.
This page supports both Traditional and Roth projections. Traditional IRAs may provide a deduction up front but are typically taxed at withdrawal; Roth IRAs usually do not provide a current deduction but qualified withdrawals are tax-free.
Enter your starting balance, annual contribution, expected return, years to grow, and IRA type to see the projected balance and an after-tax estimate. The page is a planning worksheet rather than a portfolio forecast and does not try to predict future contribution-limit changes or market volatility.
Visualizing the long-term path of an IRA makes tradeoffs easier to see. This page helps you compare contribution levels, test return assumptions, and get a rough after-tax comparison between Traditional and Roth accounts.
For each year: Balance = (Previous Balance + Annual Contribution) × (1 + Return Rate) Traditional After-Tax = Final Balance × (1 − Withdrawal Tax Rate) Roth After-Tax = Final Balance (all tax-free if qualified)
Result: Projected Roth IRA balance: $872,232 (all tax-free)
Starting with $15,000 and contributing $7,500 per year at 7% for 30 years produces about $872,232. Total contributions would be $240,000, so roughly $632,232 of the ending balance would come from investment growth. In a Roth IRA, the page treats that final balance as tax-free if the distribution is qualified.
IRAs generally offer a wider investment menu than most workplace plans, but they also have lower annual contribution limits. For 2026, the standard IRA limit is $7,500 while the standard 401(k) employee deferral limit is $24,500. Many savers use an IRA as a supplement to, not a replacement for, an employer plan.
Contributing $7,500 per year for 30 years at 7% grows to roughly $758,000 even when starting from zero. The total contributions would be $225,000, which means most of the ending balance would come from compounded investment growth rather than new deposits alone.
The difference between a Traditional and a Roth IRA is mostly about when tax is paid. This page applies the withdrawal tax rate you enter only to the final Traditional IRA balance, so it works best as a simple planning comparison rather than a full tax model.
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This page adds the entered annual contribution to the balance once per year and then applies the entered annual return to the updated balance. It repeats that process for the selected number of years. For Traditional IRA projections, it applies the user-entered withdrawal tax rate to the final balance to estimate an after-tax value. For Roth IRA projections, it leaves the final balance unchanged and assumes a qualified tax-free distribution.
The calculator does not cap the contribution you enter, does not model inflation, fees, sequence-of-returns risk, future contribution-limit changes, or required minimum distributions, and should be read as a planning worksheet rather than a forecast.
For 2026, the standard IRA contribution limit is $7,500. If you are age 50 or older, the catch-up contribution is $1,100, for a total of $8,600. The limit applies to the combined total of your Traditional and Roth IRA contributions, and you generally cannot contribute more than your earned income.
That depends on when paying tax is more attractive. Traditional IRAs are often favored when you expect a lower tax rate later, while Roth IRAs are often favored when you expect a similar or higher future tax rate or value tax-free withdrawals more.
Yes. IRAs and 401(k) plans have separate contribution limits. If you are covered by a workplace retirement plan, deduction of a Traditional IRA contribution may phase out at higher incomes, but the growth worksheet is still useful for comparing contribution levels and account types.
That depends on the investment mix. A stock-heavy portfolio can have higher long-run expected returns but more volatility, while a more conservative mix often has lower expected returns. This page is most useful when you test a range of scenarios instead of relying on one number.
For 2026, you can make a full Roth IRA contribution if your modified AGI is below $153,000 (single) or $242,000 (married filing jointly). Direct contributions phase out between $153,000 and $168,000 for single filers and between $242,000 and $252,000 for married filing jointly.
Early withdrawal rules depend on the account type and the reason for the withdrawal. Traditional IRA withdrawals can trigger both income tax and penalty unless an exception applies. Roth IRA contribution withdrawals are usually more flexible than Roth earnings withdrawals.