401(k) Calculator
Project your 401(k) balance with employer match
A 30-year-old earning $70,000 who saves 6% with a 50% employer match, starting from $25,000, reaches about $1,233,207 by 65 at a 7% return, and the match alone puts in $73,500. Enter your own salary, contribution rate and match, including tiered and safe harbor formulas, to project your balance against the 2026 IRS limits.
What your employer match is really worth
An employer match is the only guaranteed return in investing, and it is enormous. That is the reason most people looking for a 401k calculator with match are really asking one question: how much is my employer actually adding? Take the figures this 401k calculator starts with: age 30, $70,000 salary, $25,000 already saved, contributing 6% with a 50% match up to 6%, 7% annual return, retiring at 65.
Over 35 years your employer puts in $73,500. By retirement that money and its growth account for $315,184 of the balance. Turn the match off and the same contributions land at $918,023 instead of $1,233,207. Nothing else on this page comes close to a guaranteed 50% on day one, which is why "contribute at least to the match" is the one piece of retirement advice that is genuinely universal.
The trap is the match limit, not the match rate. A 50% match up to 6% of salary stops growing the moment you pass 6%, so the ninth percent you contribute earns you nothing extra from your employer. Used as an employer match calculator, the tool makes that ceiling obvious.
How to enter a tiered or safe harbor match
Most plans do not use a single rate. Safe harbor formulas in particular are tiered: "100% of the first 3%, then 50% of the next 2%". There is no separate tiered 401k match calculator here, because a tier converts exactly into the two fields above:
Match rate to enter = employer's contribution as a % of salary ÷ your contribution %, × 100. Match limit to enter = your own contribution rate.
| Your plan's formula | You contribute | Employer adds | Match rate | Match limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50% of the first 6% | 6% | 3.0% of salary | 50% | 6% |
| 100% of the first 4% (safe harbor enhanced) | 4% | 4.0% | 100% | 4% |
| 100% of first 3%, 50% of next 2% (safe harbor basic) | 5% | 4.0% | 80% | 5% |
| 100% of the first 3% | 3% | 3.0% | 100% | 3% |
| 50% of the first 8% | 8% | 4.0% | 50% | 8% |
| 100% of first 1%, 50% of next 5% | 6% | 3.5% | 58.3% | 6% |
| 25% of the first 12% | 12% | 3.0% | 25% | 12% |
Worth noticing in that table: the "generous-sounding" 100% of the first 4% pays the same 4% of salary as the tiered safe harbor formula, while 25% of the first 12% pays only 3% and asks you to contribute four times as much to get it. Compare plans on employer dollars as a percent of salary, never on the headline match rate.
Contribution rate ladder
Same $70,000 salary, same 50% match up to 6%, same 35 years at 7%. Only the contribution rate changes.
| You contribute | Your $/year | Match $/year | Balance at 65 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3% | $2,100 | $1,050 | $760,431 |
| 4% | $2,800 | $1,400 | $918,023 |
| 5% | $3,500 | $1,750 | $1,075,615 |
| 6% (full match) | $4,200 | $2,100 | $1,233,207 |
| 8% | $5,600 | $2,100 | $1,443,330 |
| 10% | $7,000 | $2,100 | $1,653,454 |
| 12% | $8,400 | $2,100 | $1,863,577 |
| 15% | $10,500 | $2,100 | $2,178,761 |
The match column stops climbing at 6% while the balance keeps going, which is the whole story in one table. Going from 3% to 6% adds $473,000 and doubles your employer's contribution; going from 12% to 15% adds $315,000 and doubles nothing. Both are worth doing, but the first three percent are worth roughly twice as much per dollar as the last three.
2026 401(k) contribution limits
The IRS caps what you can defer from your own pay each year. Employer match sits outside this limit, under a separate and higher combined cap.
| Limit | 2026 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Employee elective deferral | $24,500 | $23,500 |
| Catch-up, age 50 and over | $8,000 | $7,500 |
| Catch-up, ages 60 to 63 | $11,250 | $11,250 |
| Deferral + catch-up at 50+ | $32,500 | $31,000 |
| Deferral + catch-up at 60 to 63 | $35,750 | $34,750 |
Two practical notes. If you max out early in the year, some plans stop matching for the remaining pay periods, so front-loading can quietly cost you match dollars unless your plan has a "true-up" provision. And the enhanced catch-up for ages 60 to 63 drops back to the standard figure at 64, which is easy to miss.
Starting age beats everything else
Contributing 6% of $70,000 with the same match, from zero, to age 65 at 7%:
| Start at | You contribute | Employer adds | Balance at 65 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25 | $168,000 | $84,000 | $1,378,027 |
| 30 | $147,000 | $73,500 | $945,554 |
| 35 | $126,000 | $63,000 | $640,485 |
| 40 | $105,000 | $52,500 | $425,288 |
| 45 | $84,000 | $42,000 | $273,486 |
Starting at 25 rather than 35 contributes 33% more money and finishes with 115% more. Five years of delay in your twenties costs more than a decade of extra saving in your fifties can repair, because the earliest dollars are the only ones that get the full run of compounding. If you are reading this in your forties, the same table says something more useful: the answer is a higher rate, not a better return.
Which return assumption to use
Everything above uses 7%, a common planning figure for a stock-heavy portfolio after inflation but before fees. Here is how sensitive the default scenario is to that one input:
| Annual return | Balance at 65 |
|---|---|
| 5% | $739,791 |
| 6% | $951,062 |
| 7% | $1,233,207 |
| 8% | $1,611,602 |
One percentage point is worth $280,000 to $380,000 here depending on where you sit on the scale, which is why fund fees matter: a 1% expense ratio is a 1% return cut, permanently. It also means the projection is a range, not a number. Real markets do not deliver 7% every year, and the sequence of returns near retirement matters as much as the average. Treat any 401k growth calculator output, including this one, as a planning figure rather than a forecast.
401(k) mistakes that cost the most
- Contributing below the match limit. The only guaranteed loss on this list.
- Not raising the rate with pay rises. A raise absorbed into spending is a permanent change; a 1% bump alongside it is barely felt.
- Cashing out when changing jobs. Income tax plus a 10% penalty before 59½, and the compounding never comes back. Roll it over instead.
- Ignoring the vesting schedule. Employer money often vests over 3 to 6 years. Leaving two months early can forfeit a tranche.
- Leaving it in the default cash or stable-value fund. Auto-enrolment sometimes parks money where it will not grow.
- Paying 1% in fund fees without checking. Worth more than most people's entire raise, compounded over 35 years.
- Front-loading without a true-up. Hitting the annual cap in August can end the match in September.
Estimate only — returns vary and aren't guaranteed. This is general information, not financial advice.
What the 401(k) projection assumes
The projection compounds monthly at your annual return divided by 12, over the months between your current and retirement ages. Your contribution and the employer match are converted to a combined monthly amount and added at the end of each month, on top of the future value of your current balance.
- Employer match is min(your rate, match limit) × salary × match rate, so the match stops increasing once you pass the limit.
- Salary is held flat and so is your contribution rate. Real pay rises would raise both, so the figures are conservative for anyone whose salary grows.
- The IRS deferral limit is not enforced. The tool projects the rate you enter. Check it against the 2026 cap of $24,500 (plus catch-up) yourself.
- No taxes, fees or inflation adjustment are applied. Balances are nominal pre-tax dollars; a traditional 401(k) is taxed on withdrawal. Subtract fund fees from the return you enter.
- 7% default return is a common planning assumption, not a prediction. The sensitivity table shows the range.
- Contribution limits are the IRS figures for 2026 (Notice 2025-67, announced November 2025).
Reviewed September 2026.
Sources, checked
- 401(k) limit increases to $24,500 for 2026, Internal Revenue Service. The 2026 deferral limit and the $8,000 catch-up.
Figures reviewed . Every worked example on this page is checked against the calculator above.
401(k) Calculator: frequently asked questions
How much should I contribute to my 401(k)?
At minimum, enough to capture the full employer match, since that is a guaranteed return. Many planners then suggest working up to 10 to 15% of salary including the match. On a $70,000 salary with a 50% match up to 6%, going from 3% to 6% adds about $473,000 by age 65 in this projection.
How does employer matching work?
Your employer adds money based on what you contribute, for example 50% of your contributions up to 6% of salary, which is 3% of salary in employer money. Enter the match rate and the limit separately above. Match dollars do not count against your own annual IRS deferral limit.
How do I calculate a tiered 401(k) match?
Work out what the employer puts in as a percent of salary, then divide by your contribution rate. For '100% of the first 3%, 50% of the next 2%', contributing 5% gets you 4% of salary, so enter a match rate of 80% with a match limit of 5%.
What is a safe harbor match?
A match formula that automatically satisfies IRS non-discrimination testing. The basic version is 100% of the first 3% plus 50% of the next 2%; the enhanced version is typically 100% of the first 4%. Both pay 4% of salary and are immediately vested.
What is the 401(k) contribution limit for 2026?
$24,500 in employee deferrals, up from $23,500 in 2025. Add an $8,000 catch-up from age 50, or $11,250 for ages 60 to 63, giving totals of $32,500 and $35,750. Employer match sits outside this limit.
Is a 401(k) match free money?
Effectively yes, though it is compensation you only receive if you contribute. It is also subject to vesting: employer money often takes 3 to 6 years to become fully yours, and unvested amounts are forfeited if you leave early.
What return should I use for a 401(k) projection?
7% is a common planning assumption for a stock-heavy portfolio. Be aware how much rides on it: in the default scenario here, 6% gives $951,062 and 8% gives $1,611,602. Subtract your fund fees from whatever figure you choose.
Does this retirement contribution calculator include the IRS annual limit?
No. It projects whatever contribution rate you enter with your salary held flat, so a high rate on a high salary can exceed the annual deferral cap. Check your figure against the 2026 limits table above.