RMDs are table-driven. Age, account balance, and spouse rules decide the minimum withdrawal.
A required minimum distribution (RMD) is the minimum amount you must pull out of a tax-deferred retirement account each year once you reach age 73. It exists because traditional IRAs and 401(k)s grew tax-free for decades — the government wants its deferred income tax eventually. This calculator is for anyone with a traditional IRA, SEP/SIMPLE IRA, or pre-tax 401(k)/403(b)/457(b) who is at or near RMD age and wants the exact number, the monthly equivalent to set aside, and how much keeps compounding after the withdrawal.
Educational, not tax advice. RMD rules carry real penalties and interact with your full tax picture. Confirm your situation with IRS Pub. 590-B or a CRTP/CPA before acting.
The IRS publishes the Uniform Lifetime Table — a list of divisors that fall as you age (because your remaining life expectancy shrinks). You take your account balance on December 31 of the prior year and divide it by the divisor for the age you turn this year. A smaller divisor at older ages means a larger required percentage. Most original account owners use the Uniform Lifetime Table; a sole spouse beneficiary more than 10 years younger uses the Joint Life Table, and inherited accounts use the Single Life Table.
RMD — required minimum distribution for the yearBDec 31 — account balance as of December 31 of the prior yearDage — Uniform Lifetime Table divisor for the age you reach this yearThe required percentage starts near 3.65% at age 73 (divisor 27.4) and climbs steadily — about 5.3% at 80, 8.2% at 90. RMDs are designed to draw the account down over your remaining lifetime, not to drain it overnight.
At a 22% marginal tax rate that RMD adds roughly $5,813 of federal income tax. Notice the account still grew despite the withdrawal — at age 75 the required percentage is below a 5% return, so the balance keeps rising for now.
| Age | Divisor | Required % |
|---|---|---|
| 73 | 26.5 | 3.77% |
| 75 | 24.6 | 4.07% |
| 80 | 20.2 | 4.95% |
| 85 | 16.0 | 6.25% |
| 90 | 12.2 | 8.20% |
| 95 | 8.9 | 11.24% |
| 100 | 6.4 | 15.63% |
| IRS Uniform Lifetime Table (effective 2022). Inherited and joint-life situations use different tables. | ||
Under SECURE 2.0, RMDs begin at age 73 for anyone who turns 72 after December 31, 2022. The starting age rises to 75 in 2033. Your first RMD is for the year you reach 73; you may delay only that first distribution until April 1 of the following year — but then you would take two RMDs in one calendar year.
Take your account balance as of December 31 of the prior year and divide it by the life-expectancy divisor for your age from the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table. At age 75 the divisor is 24.6, so a $650,000 balance produces a $26,422.76 RMD.
SECURE 2.0 cut the excise tax for a missed RMD from 50% to 25% of the shortfall, and to 10% if you correct it within the two-year correction window. You report it and request a waiver on IRS Form 5329; the IRS often waives the penalty for reasonable cause if you fix the shortfall promptly.
Traditional IRAs, SEP and SIMPLE IRAs, and pre-tax 401(k), 403(b), and 457(b) accounts all require RMDs. As of 2024, designated Roth 401(k) accounts no longer have lifetime RMDs, and Roth IRAs never did for the original owner.
No. Starting in 2024, SECURE 2.0 eliminated lifetime RMDs from designated Roth accounts inside a 401(k) or 403(b), aligning them with Roth IRAs. Beneficiaries who inherit a Roth 401(k) may still face distribution rules.
If you are still employed past age 73, not a 5%-or-more owner of the company, and your employer's plan allows it, you can delay RMDs from that employer's 401(k) until you retire. The exception does not apply to IRAs or to old 401(k)s from former employers.
A Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) lets an IRA owner age 70-1/2 or older send up to $108,000 (2025, inflation-indexed) directly from the IRA to a qualified charity. It counts toward your RMD but is excluded from taxable income — more powerful than an itemized deduction because it also keeps your AGI (and IRMAA) lower.
Most non-spouse beneficiaries must empty an inherited IRA within 10 years under SECURE Act rules, and if the original owner had already started RMDs, annual distributions are also required in years 1–9. Eligible designated beneficiaries (surviving spouses, minor children, disabled or chronically ill people) instead use the Single Life Table. This calculator models original-owner Uniform Lifetime math, not inherited accounts.
You must calculate the RMD for each account separately. You may then take the total from any one or any combination of your IRAs. The same flexibility applies within 403(b)s, but 401(k) RMDs must each be taken from that specific plan and cannot be aggregated with IRAs.
A traditional-account RMD is taxed as ordinary income in the year you take it — there is no extra penalty for taking it correctly. Large RMDs can push you into a higher bracket and raise Medicare IRMAA surcharges, which is why some retirees do Roth conversions before 73. See the Roth Conversion Calculator to model that trade-off.
This calculator is educational and is not tax or financial advice. Inherited IRAs, joint-life situations, and multi-account aggregation have special rules — confirm your figures with IRS Pub. 590-B or a qualified tax professional before withdrawing.