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RMD Calculator

Finance & Investment

Calculate your IRS Required Minimum Distribution from traditional IRA and 401(k) accounts. Uses the 2022 Uniform Lifetime Table for ages 72 through 120.

Prior Year-End Account Balance
$
Your Age This Year
yrs

Required Minimum Distribution

$0

Must be withdrawn by December 31

IRS Distribution Period26.5 years
% of Account Balance0.00%
Account Balance Used$500,000

Balance breakdown

RMD (withdraw)
$0
Remaining balance
$500,000

RMD starting ages: 73 (born 1951–1959) · 75 (born 1960+), per SECURE 2.0 Act. The IRS Uniform Lifetime Table is used for most account owners. Failure to take your RMD triggers a 25% excise tax on the undistributed amount.

What is a RMD?

An RMD Calculator computes your Required Minimum Distribution — the IRS-mandated annual withdrawal from Traditional IRA, 401(k), and similar tax-deferred retirement accounts. Starting at age 73 (or 75 for those born in 1960 or later under SECURE 2.0), you must withdraw at least this minimum amount each year, whether you need the money or not, or face a steep excise tax penalty.

The Required Minimum Distribution exists because the federal government deferred taxes on your contributions and growth for decades. Eventually, those taxes must be collected. The RMD rules ensure the money comes out of tax-deferred accounts in a predictable, actuarially driven schedule tied to your remaining life expectancy.

The calculation itself is straightforward: divide your prior December 31 account balance by your IRS distribution period from the Uniform Lifetime Table. The distribution period at age 73 is 26.5 years; at 80 it is 20.2 years; at 90 it is 12.2 years. As you age, the divisor shrinks, so your required withdrawal percentage rises — from roughly 3.77% of your balance at 73 to over 8% by 90.

The 2022 Uniform Lifetime Table (currently in use) was updated by the IRS to reflect longer average life expectancies, which reduced RMDs slightly compared to the prior table. This calculator uses the current 2022 table, which applies to distributions for tax years 2022 and later.

Missing an RMD is one of the most costly tax errors a retiree can make. The excise tax under SECURE 2.0 is 25% of the missed amount — though reduced to 10% if corrected within a two-year window. Beyond the penalty, late distributions can create complications for the following year's calculation.

For those who want to reduce future RMDs, strategic early Roth conversions are a common solution. The Roth vs Traditional IRA Calculator helps you model whether converting Traditional IRA funds to a Roth now makes sense based on current versus expected future tax rates.

How to use this RMD calculator

  1. Enter your Prior Year-End Account Balance — this is the fair market value of your Traditional IRA (or 401k) on December 31 of the prior year. For example, for your 2025 RMD, use your December 31, 2024 balance. Do not use your current account balance — the IRS explicitly requires the prior year-end figure.

  2. Enter your Age This Year — enter the age you will reach (or have reached) during the current calendar year. RMD amounts increase each year as you age, so entering the correct age is critical. Use 73 as the minimum age — the calculator does not apply to accounts where you have not yet reached your RMD starting age.

  3. Read the Required Minimum Distribution — this is the minimum amount you must withdraw from this account this year. If you have multiple IRAs, run the calculator for each account separately, then sum the totals. You may take the combined total from any one or more of your IRAs.

  4. Note the Distribution Period and Percentage — these help you understand the trajectory of your RMDs in future years. If you want to model future years, increase the age by one and adjust the balance to reflect your anticipated year-end value.

  5. Plan around the amount — if your RMD is larger than your spending needs, consider a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) for the excess, which satisfies the RMD without adding to your taxable income. If it would push you into a higher bracket, consider taking it earlier in the year and investing the after-tax proceeds.

Formula & Methodology

RMD formula:

RMD = Prior Year-End Balance ÷ Distribution Period

Where the Distribution Period is the factor from the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table for your age this year.

Sample values from the 2022 IRS Uniform Lifetime Table:

| Age | Distribution Period |
|-----|-------------------|
| 72  | 27.4 |
| 73  | 26.5 |
| 74  | 25.5 |
| 75  | 24.6 |
| 76  | 23.7 |
| 77  | 22.9 |
| 78  | 22.0 |
| 79  | 21.1 |
| 80  | 20.2 |
| 85  | 16.0 |
| 90  | 12.2 |
| 95  | 8.9  |
| 100 | 6.4  |

Percentage of account:

RMD % = (RMD ÷ Prior Year-End Balance) × 100

Worked example:

You are age 73, with a prior year-end IRA balance of $650,000. Distribution period from the table = 26.5.

RMD = $650,000 ÷ 26.5 = $24,528

Percentage of account = ($24,528 ÷ $650,000) × 100 = 3.77%

Next year (age 74), if your account is worth $640,000 (after the distribution and some growth):

RMD = $640,000 ÷ 25.5 = $25,098

Percentage = 3.92% — slightly higher, and this percentage will continue to rise each year.

Key assumption: The calculator uses the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table, which applies when your sole beneficiary is not a spouse more than 10 years younger. If your spouse is more than 10 years younger and is your sole beneficiary, use the IRS Joint Life and Last Survivor Table instead — the distribution period will be longer and your RMD smaller.

Frequently Asked Questions

A Required Minimum Distribution is the minimum amount the IRS requires you to withdraw each year from tax-deferred retirement accounts — including Traditional IRAs, 401(k)s, 403(b)s, and most other employer-sponsored plans. The IRS mandates these withdrawals to ensure that tax-deferred retirement savings are eventually taxed as ordinary income. Roth IRAs are exempt from RMDs during the original account owner's lifetime.
Under SECURE 2.0 Act (enacted December 2022), the RMD starting age depends on your birth year. If you were born between 1951 and 1959, RMDs begin at age 73. If you were born in 1960 or later, RMDs begin at age 75. Those born in 1950 or earlier already follow the prior rules and started RMDs at 72. Your first RMD can be delayed until April 1 of the year after you reach your RMD age, but you must take two distributions in that year — one for the prior year and one for the current year.
Your annual RMD equals your prior December 31 account balance divided by your IRS distribution period from the Uniform Lifetime Table. For example, if your IRA balance on December 31 of last year was $500,000 and you are age 73, your distribution period is 26.5 years, and your RMD is $500,000 ÷ 26.5 = $18,868. This calculation must be repeated each year using the updated balance and the updated distribution period for your current age.
The Uniform Lifetime Table is the IRS-published actuarial table that most IRA owners use to calculate their RMD. It assigns a distribution period (in years) to each age from 72 to 120+. The current table was updated by the IRS in 2022 to reflect longer life expectancies, reducing RMDs slightly compared to the prior table. For example, at age 72 the distribution period is 27.4 years; at 80 it is 20.2 years; at 90 it is 12.2 years. The only exception is if your sole beneficiary is a spouse more than 10 years younger — in that case you use the Joint Life and Last Survivor table.
Failing to take your full RMD results in a 25% excise tax on the amount you should have withdrawn but did not. Under SECURE 2.0, this penalty was reduced from 50% to 25%, and further reduced to 10% if you correct the missed RMD within two years in what the IRS calls a corrective distribution window. The excise tax is in addition to the ordinary income tax you owe on the distribution itself. Missing RMDs is one of the most expensive tax mistakes retirees can make.
Roth IRAs are not subject to Required Minimum Distributions during the original owner's lifetime — this is one of their biggest advantages for estate planning and tax management. Roth 401(k)s previously required RMDs, but SECURE 2.0 eliminated that requirement for distributions after December 31, 2023. However, Roth IRA assets inherited by non-spouse beneficiaries after 2019 are subject to the 10-year rule, requiring the entire account to be distributed within 10 years of the original owner's death.
Yes, you can always withdraw more than your RMD from a Traditional IRA or 401(k). Additional withdrawals above the RMD are also taxed as ordinary income but are never penalized (assuming you are past age 59½). Some retirees choose to take larger distributions in lower-income years to reduce future RMD amounts — a strategy called RMD smoothing or bracket management. Converting excess Traditional IRA funds to a Roth IRA in lower-income years is a related strategy that also reduces future RMDs.
If you own multiple Traditional IRAs, you must calculate the RMD for each account separately using each account's prior year-end balance. However, you can satisfy the total combined RMD by withdrawing the total amount from any one or combination of your IRAs — you do not need to take the exact RMD from each account individually. This aggregation rule applies only to IRAs (including SEP and SIMPLE IRAs); 401(k) and 403(b) accounts must have their RMDs taken from each plan separately.
The RMD Calculator shows your required withdrawal amount as both a dollar figure and a percentage of your account balance, which helps you anticipate the income tax impact. If your RMD combined with Social Security income and other sources pushes you into a higher tax bracket or triggers higher Medicare Part B premiums (IRMAA), you may want to start Roth conversions earlier to reduce your future taxable account balance. Use the [Roth vs Traditional IRA Calculator](/roth-vs-traditional-ira-calculator-us/) to model the long-term impact of early Roth conversions.
Yes, the RMD percentage of your account balance increases each year as you age. At 73, the RMD is approximately 3.77% of the prior year-end balance; at 80 it rises to about 4.95%; at 85 it reaches about 6.76%; at 90 it is approximately 8.20%. This means even if your account grows in value, RMDs force an accelerating draw-down of your tax-deferred assets. Retirees with large Traditional IRA balances often find their RMDs exceed their actual spending needs, forcing them to take distributions they would otherwise prefer to leave invested.
Yes — if you are 70½ or older, you can make a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) directly from your IRA to a qualified charity, up to $105,000 per year in 2025 (indexed for inflation). A QCD counts toward your RMD but is excluded from your taxable income, which is superior to taking the distribution as taxable income and then deducting a charitable contribution. QCDs are particularly effective for retirees who do not itemize deductions.
The 4% rule is a financial planning guideline suggesting you can safely withdraw 4% of your retirement portfolio in year one (adjusted for inflation each year thereafter) with a high probability of not outliving your money. The RMD is a legally mandated withdrawal percentage set by the IRS that starts around 3.77% at age 73 and rises each year. In early retirement the 4% rule often produces larger withdrawals than the RMD; in later retirement the RMD percentage overtakes 4%, forcing larger taxable withdrawals. Understanding both helps you plan your overall retirement income strategy.
Also known as
RMD calculatorrequired minimum distribution calculatorIRA withdrawal calculator401k RMD calculatorIRS uniform lifetime table calculator