401(k) Contribution Calculator

2026 rules

Enter your pay and contribution percentage to see how much goes into your 401(k) in 2026, per paycheck and for the year.

Your numbers

Annual salary

Your age at the end of 2026

Your contribution (% of pay)

Employer match (cents per dollar you contribute)

50 means the employer adds 50 cents per dollar. Use 0 if there is no match.

Match applies up to (% of pay)

Pay periods per year

Result

Your 2026 401(k) contribution$9,000

Your limit (deferral plus catch-up)$24,500
Salary counted (cap $360,000)$90,000
Your contribution at 10% of pay$9,000
Per paycheck$346.15
Employer match$2,700
Total going into the plan$11,700
Pay percentage that reaches your limit27.2%

The $24,500 limit covers all your 401(k), 403(b) and TSP deferrals combined. Catch-up is $8,000 at 50 or older, or $11,250 at 60 to 63.

If your 2025 Social Security wages from this employer were over $150,000, your plan must make catch-up contributions Roth (after-tax).

How it works

The 2026 employee limit is $24,500. At 50 or older you can add $8,000, and at 60 to 63 the catch-up is $11,250 instead. The limit counts your Roth and pre-tax deferrals together and applies across every 401(k), 403(b) and TSP you contribute to.

Your plan takes your chosen percentage of each paycheck until you hit the limit. The calculator shows the dollar total, the cost per paycheck, and the percentage of pay that would exactly reach your limit.

The employer match is separate from your limit. Your match and your contribution together cannot pass the $72,000 annual additions cap, and only the first $360,000 of pay counts.

2026 figures: IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32 (2026 inflation adjustments); IRS Notice 2025-67 (2026 retirement plan limits); CMS 2026 Medicare Parts A & B premiums and deductibles.

Questions

Do I have to make my catch-up Roth?

If your Social Security wages from the employer sponsoring the plan were over $150,000 in 2025, your plan must treat 2026 catch-up contributions as Roth. Below that, you can choose pre-tax or Roth if the plan offers it.

What if I work for two employers with 401(k) plans?

The $24,500 deferral limit is yours, not each plan's. Add deferrals from both jobs. Each employer's match is separate, and a plan won't refund a match because you contributed elsewhere.

What happens if I contribute too much?

Ask a plan administrator to return the excess, with its earnings, by April 15 of the next year. Excess left in the plan is taxed twice, once the year you contributed and again when you withdraw it.