BYTETOOLS

Roth IRA Calculator

Compound your annual Roth IRA contributions to retirement and compare the tax-free balance against a traditional account taxed at withdrawal.

$1,074,424
Roth balance (tax-free)
$838,051
Traditional after tax
$255,000
Total contributed
$819,424
Investment growth

At a 22% withdrawal tax rate, the Roth leaves you $236,373 more spendable than a traditional account holding the same contributions. If your tax rate in retirement turns out lower than it is today, that gap narrows or reverses.

Year-by-year growth

AgeTotal contributedRoth balance
31$17,000$17,700
32$24,000$25,939
33$31,000$34,755
34$38,000$44,188
35$45,000$54,281
36$52,000$65,080
37$59,000$76,636
38$66,000$89,000
39$73,000$102,231
40$80,000$116,387
41$87,000$131,534
42$94,000$147,741
43$101,000$165,083
44$108,000$183,639
45$115,000$203,493
46$122,000$224,738
47$129,000$247,470
48$136,000$271,793
49$143,000$297,818
50$150,000$325,665
51$157,000$355,462
52$164,000$387,344
53$171,000$421,458
54$178,000$457,960
55$185,000$497,018
56$192,000$538,809
57$199,000$583,525
58$206,000$631,372
59$213,000$682,568
60$220,000$737,348
61$227,000$795,962
62$234,000$858,680
63$241,000$925,787
64$248,000$997,592
65$255,000$1,074,424

Contributions are added at the end of each year and no contribution limit is assumed — check your own. The traditional comparison applies the same nominal contributions and does not model reinvesting the upfront tax deduction. Estimates only, not tax or financial advice.

What is the Roth IRA Calculator?

The ByteTools Roth IRA Calculator compounds your annual contributions from today until retirement and shows what the account could be worth.

  • Year-by-year compounding of contributions to retirement age
  • Side-by-side Roth vs traditional after-tax comparison
  • Optional annual escalation of your contribution amount
  • Shows total contributed versus total investment growth
  • No hardcoded contribution limits or tax brackets — you set them
  • 100% in-browser, private; estimates only, not tax advice

How to use the Roth IRA Calculator

  1. 1

    Enter your current age, retirement age and current Roth balance.

  2. 2

    Type the amount you plan to contribute each year.

  3. 3

    Set an expected annual return and, optionally, a yearly increase to your contribution.

  4. 4

    Enter the tax rate you expect to pay on withdrawals from a traditional account.

  5. 5

    Compare the tax-free Roth balance with the after-tax traditional balance.

About the Roth IRA Calculator

The ByteTools Roth IRA Calculator compounds your annual contributions from today until retirement and shows what the account could be worth. Because Roth contributions are made with money you have already paid tax on, the projected balance is what you would actually get to spend — no withdrawal tax is deducted.

The tool also runs the same contribution schedule as a traditional or tax-deferred account and applies a withdrawal tax rate you type in, so you can see the gap between the two side by side. The comparison assumes the same nominal contribution and return in both accounts, which keeps the difference down to tax treatment alone.

Every figure runs locally in your browser and nothing is uploaded or stored. Contribution limits, income phase-outs and tax rules differ by country and change every year, so nothing is hardcoded here — you enter your own contribution and tax rate, and the result is a planning estimate rather than tax advice.

Frequently asked questions

How is a Roth IRA balance calculated?

Each year's contribution is added to the running balance and the whole balance grows at your expected rate of return. Repeat that to retirement age and you have the projected value. Because Roth withdrawals are made from already-taxed money, that projected balance is the spendable figure.

Is a Roth better than a traditional IRA?

It depends mainly on whether your tax rate in retirement is higher or lower than it is today. A Roth wins when you expect to pay more tax later; a traditional account wins when you expect to pay less. Try both tax rates in this tool to see where the crossover sits for you.

Why does the traditional balance look smaller here?

Because the comparison contributes the same nominal amount to both accounts and then taxes the traditional withdrawal at the rate you entered. It does not model reinvesting the upfront tax deduction a traditional contribution gives you, which would narrow the gap.

Does this calculator know my contribution limit?

No, and that is deliberate. Annual limits and income phase-outs differ by country and are revised most years, so hardcoding them would ship a tool that is silently wrong within a year. Check your current limit and type the amount you can actually contribute.

What return should I use for a Roth IRA projection?

Use a long-run assumption you are comfortable defending, then re-run it two or three percentage points lower. The spread between those two runs is a better planning range than any single number.

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