RMD Calculator
Enter your age and your prior year-end balance to see your required minimum distribution, the IRS Uniform Lifetime factor behind it, and a year-by-year projection of how RMDs grow as you age — plus the honest tax angle and the moves that soften it.
Loading the calculator…
How required minimum distributions work
Pre-tax retirement accounts — a Traditional IRA, 401(k), 403(b), or SEP/SIMPLE — let your money grow untaxed for decades. Eventually the IRS wants its cut, so once you reach your required beginning age you must withdraw a minimum amount each year and pay ordinary income tax on it.
The formula is simple: your RMD = prior year-end balance ÷ a distribution-period factor from the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table for your age. At 73 the factor is 26.5, so a $500,000 balance gives a first RMD of about $18,868 — roughly 3.8% of the account.
Two things make RMDs grow over time, and the calculator shows both:
- The factor shrinks: from 26.5 at 73 down to 8.9 at 95, so the required slice climbs from under 4% to over 11% of the balance.
- It's all taxable income: a large RMD can push you into a higher bracket, tax more of your Social Security, and raise your Medicare premiums (IRMAA).
That's why people plan around them: a Qualified Charitable Distribution sends part of the RMD straight to charity and out of your income, and Roth conversions in lower-income years shrink the pre-tax balance before RMDs begin — because Roth IRAs have no RMDs for the original owner. Our Roth vs. Traditional calculator digs into that trade-off.
Common questions
- At what age do RMDs start?
- Under the SECURE 2.0 Act it depends on your birth year: 73 if you were born 1951–1959, and 75 if you were born in 1960 or later (72 for those born in 1950 or earlier). Your first RMD can be delayed to April 1 of the following year, but that stacks two RMDs into one tax year.
- Which accounts have RMDs?
- Pre-tax accounts: Traditional IRAs, 401(k)s, 403(b)s, and SEP/SIMPLE IRAs. Roth IRAs have no RMDs for the original owner, and Roth 401(k)s dropped their RMD requirement starting in 2024. If you're still working, your current employer's 401(k) may let you delay RMDs on that plan until you retire.
- What's the penalty for missing one?
- An excise tax on the shortfall — 25% under SECURE 2.0 (down from 50%), reduced to 10% if you correct it promptly within a two-year window. Many custodians can automate the distribution so you never miss it.
- Is anything saved or sent anywhere?
- No. Every number runs in your browser. Nothing you type is uploaded, stored, or shared — and you can export the full year-by-year projection to CSV with one click.
Plan the withdrawal, not just the balance
Taly turns the big retirement number into a monthly plan you can actually live on — so a required distribution lands as income you've already budgeted, not a surprise. Your paycheck does the math.