401(k) Early Withdrawal Calculator

2026 rules

Find out what's left of an early 401(k) or IRA withdrawal once income tax and the 10% penalty are taken out.

Your numbers

Amount to withdraw

Your age

Filing status

Other taxable income this year

Wages and other income before the withdrawal.

State

An exception to the 10% tax applies

For example: rule of 55, disability, 72(t) payments, birth or adoption (up to $5,000).

Result

You keep after tax$20,400

Withdrawal$30,000
Federal income tax on it-$6,600
10% additional tax (under 59½)-$3,000
Net cash$20,400
Total cost as a share32%
Mandatory 20% withholding on a 401(k) payout$6,000

The 20% your plan withholds is a prepayment, not the final bill. The real tax is settled on your return.

How it works

A withdrawal before 59½ is added to your income for the year and taxed at your top bracket, so a large one can push you into a higher rate. The 10% additional tax comes on top.

Exceptions remove the 10% but not the income tax. They include leaving your employer in the year you turn 55 (the rule of 55), 72(t) payments, disability, up to $5,000 per birth or adoption, and a $1,000 emergency withdrawal once a year.

Plans must withhold 20% of a 401(k) cash-out for federal tax. That is a prepayment; the real bill is settled on your return.

2026 figures: IRS Publication 590-B, Appendix B; IRS Rev. Rul. 2026-19 (October 2026 AFRs); IRS Notice 2022-6 (72(t) payments).

Questions

Is a 401(k) loan better than a withdrawal?

A loan avoids tax and the penalty if you repay it, and the interest goes back to your account. If you leave the job, the unpaid balance becomes a taxable distribution.

Do Roth 401(k) withdrawals work the same way?

Contributions and earnings come out pro rata. Earnings in a non-qualified withdrawal are taxable and can face the 10% tax; contributions are not taxed again.