Limits · calculator
401(k) contribution limits for 2026
How much you can defer from your pay in 2026, with the age-based catch-ups and the new Roth rule.
401(k) limit and the contribution per paycheck
Your 2026 employee deferral limit
$24,500
$942 per paycheck for the 26 paychecks left
- Base limit$24,500
- Catch-up (from age 50)$0
- Share of each gross paycheck25.8%
- Employee + employer cap (section 415(c))$72,000
- Catch-up must be Roth if 2025 FICA wages exceeded$150,000
Ages 60 to 63 get the larger catch-up; at 64 it falls back to the age-50 amount.
For 2026 an employee can defer up to $24,500 of salary into a 401(k), 403(b), governmental 457 plan or the Thrift Savings Plan, up from $23,500 in 2025, according to IRS Notice 2025-67. Workers aged 50 or older by the end of the year can add a catch-up of $8,000, for $32,500 in all, and those who turn 60, 61, 62 or 63 in 2026 get a larger catch-up of $11,250 instead, for $35,750. At 64 the catch-up falls back to $8,000. Employer matching and profit-sharing contributions come on top, but employee and employer money together cannot exceed $72,000, plus catch-ups, under section 415(c). New for 2026: an employee whose Social Security wages for 2025 exceeded $150,000 must make any catch-up contributions as Roth contributions. The limit is per person across all plans, and it runs on the calendar year of payroll, closing on December 31; a 401(k) cannot be funded after year-end for 2026.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How we calculate
Limits by age for 2026
| Age at December 31, 2026 | Base deferral | Catch-up | Employee total |
|---|---|---|---|
| under 50 | $24,500 | $0 | $24,500 |
| 50 to 59 | $24,500 | $8,000 | $32,500 |
| 60 to 63 | $24,500 | $11,250 | $35,750 |
| 64 or older | $24,500 | $8,000 | $32,500 |
SIMPLE plans have their own limits: $17,000 of salary deferrals for 2026, plus $4,000 at 50. The compensation that a plan can take into account is capped at $360,000.
What a deferral saves in tax
A traditional pre-tax deferral lowers taxable income at your marginal rate: $10,000 deferred by someone in the 22% bracket saves $2,200 of federal income tax this year, and the money is taxed when withdrawn. Social Security and Medicare are still due on deferred wages. Roth deferrals save nothing now but come out tax-free in retirement. A deferral also lowers AGI, which can help with the Roth IRA income limit or the phase-outs of the overtime deduction and the senior deduction.
Employer contributions and the overall cap
Matching and profit-sharing contributions do not count against the $24,500 employee limit, but everything added to the account for the year, employee and employer together, cannot exceed $72,000 or 100% of compensation, catch-ups excluded. Self-employed people with a solo 401(k) play both roles: $24,500 as the employee, plus an employer contribution based on net earnings, within the same overall cap. After-tax contributions, where the plan allows them, also count toward it.
Spreading the deferral over the year
The calculator divides what is left of your limit by the paychecks left in the year. Front-loading early in the year can cost part of the employer match if the plan matches per paycheck without a true-up, because contributions stop once the limit is reached. Late in the year, the per-paycheck amount needed to reach the maximum can exceed what the plan or your take-home pay allows; a raise in the deferral percentage takes effect only on future paychecks.
Source: IRS Notice 2025-67: 2026 limits for retirement plans and IRAs, read on October 11, 2026.