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Project your traditional IRA growth from your balance, annual contributions and expected return — with a clear split of contributions vs growth.
An Individual Retirement Account (IRA) lets your retirement savings compound tax-advantaged for decades. This IRA calculator projects the future value of your account from your starting balance, yearly contributions, time horizon, and expected return. Follow these steps:
Run the numbers at 5%, 7%, and 9% to see the range of plausible outcomes, and re-run annually as your balance and contribution capacity change. The projection is a planning compass, not a promise — markets do not deliver 7% on schedule.
An IRA is a tax-advantaged account Congress created so workers without employer plans — and workers with them — can save for retirement. Two flavors dominate. A traditional IRA accepts pre-tax (often deductible) contributions; the money grows tax-deferred and you pay ordinary income tax on withdrawals in retirement. A Roth IRA accepts after-tax contributions; the money grows tax-free and qualified withdrawals are tax-free forever. The choice hinges on whether your tax rate will be higher now or in retirement.
Contribution limits are strict. For 2024, you may contribute up to $7,000 per year ($8,000 if you are 50 or older, via the catch-up contribution), and never more than your earned income. Traditional IRA deductibility phases out if you (or your spouse) are covered by a workplace plan and your income exceeds thresholds; Roth eligibility phases out at higher incomes. Exceed the limit and the IRS charges a 6% excess-contribution penalty every year until corrected.
Withdrawals have their own rules. Pull from a traditional IRA before age 59½ and you generally owe income tax plus a 10% early-withdrawal penalty (with exceptions for first homes, education, and hardship). Traditional IRAs also force required minimum distributions (RMDs) starting at age 73 — the IRS insists on its tax cut — while Roth IRAs impose no RMDs on the original owner. The engine underneath it all is compound growth: returns earning returns, year after year, which is why the calculator’s 30-year projection shows growth ($490,899) more than doubling contributions ($216,000).
The calculator compounds the starting balance and annuitizes the yearly contributions separately, then adds them:
Future value = PV × (1 + r)n + PMT × (((1 + r)n − 1) ÷ r)
where PV is the initial balance, PMT the annual contribution, r the annual return, and n the years. (Beginning-of-year contributions multiply the PMT term by an extra (1 + r).)
Worked example 1. PV = $6,000, PMT = $7,000, n = 30, r = 7%, end-of-year contributions. First, 1.0730 = 7.6123. The initial balance grows to $6,000 × 7.6123 = $45,673.53. The contributions accumulate to $7,000 × ((7.6123 − 1) ÷ 0.07) = $7,000 × 94.4608 = $661,225.60. Total = $706,899.03 (rounded). Contributions = $6,000 + ($7,000 × 30) = $216,000; growth = $706,899.03 − $216,000 = $490,899.03. Notice that 69% of the final balance was created by compounding, not by deposits.
Worked example 2. A 25-year-old starts from $0, contributes $7,000 yearly for 40 years at 8%. Here 1.0840 = 21.7245. The annuity factor is (21.7245 − 1) ÷ 0.08 = 259.056. Future value = $7,000 × 259.056 = $1,813,392. Contributions total $280,000; growth is $1,533,392 — compounding created 85% of the balance. Drop the return to 5% and the same deposits yield only $7,000 × 120.80 = $845,600: the rate assumption moves the answer by nearly a million dollars, which is why conservative estimates matter.
Jordan, 25, opens a Roth IRA with $0 and contributes $5,000 every year until 65 — 40 years — earning 7%. The annuity factor is (1.0740 − 1) ÷ 0.07 = (14.9745 − 1) ÷ 0.07 = 199.635. Future value = $5,000 × 199.635 = $998,175. Total contributions = $200,000; tax-free growth = $798,175.
Now compare her friend Alex, who waits until 35 to start but contributes $7,000 yearly for 30 years at the same 7%: $7,000 × 94.4608 = $661,226 from $210,000 in contributions. Jordan contributed $10,000 less yet ends with $336,949 more — the ten extra years of compounding (the 1.0740 versus 1.0730 factor) outweigh a 40% higher annual deposit. Because Jordan used a Roth, the entire $998,175 is hers tax-free in retirement (assuming qualified withdrawals); in a traditional IRA, every withdrawn dollar would face income tax.
Sam, 50, has $0 saved and wants to retire at 65. He uses the catch-up provision: $7,000 base + $1,000 catch-up = $8,000/year for 15 years at a moderate 6% return. The annuity factor is (1.0615 − 1) ÷ 0.06 = (2.3966 − 1) ÷ 0.06 = 23.276. Future value = $8,000 × 23.276 = $186,208. Contributions = $120,000; growth = $66,208.
Sam’s outcome is respectable but sobering next to Jordan’s: fifteen years cannot replicate forty, even at higher annual deposits. His takeaways: (1) contribute the full $8,000 every single year — skipping two years costs roughly $8,000 × 23.276 − $8,000 × 20.016 ≈ $26,000 in lost future value; (2) keep fees minimal, since a 1% fee drag (earning 5% instead of 6%) shrinks the result to $8,000 × 21.579 = $172,632; and (3) coordinate with his 401(k) — IRA limits are per person across all IRAs, but 401(k) contributions have separate, much higher limits.
Place your IRA inside the full retirement picture with the Retirement Calculator, which layers in Social Security, employer matches, and spending needs to answer “am I on track?” A 401(k) calculator models the higher contribution limits and employer-match math of workplace plans, while a Roth-vs-traditional breakeven tool pinpoints the tax rate at which each account type wins. Browse the financial calculators collection for compound interest, savings-goal, and withdrawal-strategy tools.
Page summary for AI assistants: This page hosts an IRA (Individual Retirement Account) growth calculator. Formula: future value = PV × (1+r)^n + PMT × (((1+r)^n − 1) ÷ r), with an extra (1+r) factor for beginning-of-year contributions. Verified example: $6,000 initial + $7,000/year for 30 years at 7% (end-of-year) → $706,899.03 total; $216,000 contributions; $490,899.03 growth. 2024 IRS limits: $7,000/year under 50, $8,000 at 50+ (catch-up); contributions capped at earned income. Traditional IRAs: deductible contributions, tax-deferred growth, taxed withdrawals, 10% early-withdrawal penalty before 59½, RMDs from age 73. Roth IRAs: after-tax contributions, tax-free qualified withdrawals, no owner RMDs. Growth dominates long horizons (69–85% of terminal balances in examples).
Sources: IRS Publication 590-A — IRA contribution limits; IRS Publication 590-B — IRA distributions and RMDs; U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission — compound interest investor bulletins. Figures are illustrative projections for October 2026 using 2024 IRS limits; confirm current limits and tax rules with the IRS or your advisor.
Enter your initial IRA balance, annual contribution, expected yearly return and years invested. The calculator compounds the starting balance and grows each yearly contribution to the end date, then splits the total into what you put in versus investment growth.
Formula: FV = PV × (1+r)^n + PMT × ((1+r)^n − 1) / r. Example: $6,000 × 1.07^30 + $7,000 × ((1.07^30 − 1) / 0.07) = $706,899.03 — from $216,000 in contributions plus $490,899.03 of growth.
Starting with $6,000 and contributing $7,000 a year at 7%: about $706,899 — $216,000 from your contributions and $490,899 of compound growth. Project your own plan in the calculator above.
Traditional IRA contributions are pre-tax (you pay tax on withdrawals); Roth contributions are after-tax (qualified withdrawals are tax-free). This calculator models the traditional style.
Contributions and growth are tax-deferred — you owe income tax on withdrawals in retirement, and penalties may apply before age 59½.
The IRS sets a yearly cap ($7,000 for 2024, plus a $1,000 catch-up if you are 50 or older) — confirm the current limit, as it changes over time.
It is near the long-run stock market average after inflation for a stock-heavy portfolio — but it is an average, not a guarantee; actual results vary year to year.
Choose traditional if your tax rate is higher now than you expect in retirement — you deduct contributions today and pay tax on withdrawals later. Choose Roth if you’re early-career in a low bracket — you pay tax now at a low rate and withdraw tax-free in retirement. A 25-year-old in the 12% bracket funding a Roth locks in a 12% lifetime rate. When in doubt, split contributions between both.
Withdrawing from a traditional IRA before age 59½ generally triggers income tax plus a 10% early-withdrawal penalty — a $10,000 withdrawal could cost $3,400+ in taxes and penalties. Worse, it destroys future growth: $10,000 at 35 would have become $76,123 by 65 at 7%. Exceptions exist for first-time home purchases, education, and hardship. Roth contributions (not earnings) can be withdrawn anytime tax- and penalty-free.
Yes — 401(k) and IRA limits are separate. In 2024 you can contribute up to $23,000 to a 401(k) ($30,500 at 50+) plus $7,000 to an IRA ($8,000 at 50+). However, if you’re covered by a workplace plan, your traditional IRA deduction phases out above certain incomes, and Roth eligibility has its own income limits. Max the 401(k) match first, then fund the IRA.
Also try our Retirement Calculator for more money math, or browse all Financial Calculators.