RMD Calculator
United States Uses U.S. IRS retirement-account and federal deposit rules. Figures are in U.S. dollars.
RMD calculator: this year’s required minimum distribution from the IRS table, when you must start (73 or 75), the tax, and the April 1 first-year choice.
Educational estimate only. Not a lending decision. Your numbers stay in this browser.
Results
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Assumptions and formula
Your RMD for a year is the account balance on 31 December of the year before, divided by the IRS factor for the age you reach in the year, from the Uniform Lifetime Table in Publication 590-B. RMDs start in the year you reach the applicable age: 73 if you were born from 1951 to 1959, 75 if you were born in 1960 or later.
The law gives people born in 1959 both 73 and 75; the IRS’s proposed rule (REG-103529-23) sets 73. The first RMD may wait until 1 April of the next year, but the second is still due by 31 December of that year and is figured on a balance that includes the delayed first one. The projection grows the balance at your return and takes each RMD at the end of the year. Missing an RMD costs a 25% excise tax on the shortfall, 10% if corrected in time.
Worked example
Born in 1953 with $500,000 on 31 December 2025: the 2026 RMD at age 73 is $500,000 ÷ 26.5 = $18,868, about $4,151 of tax at 22%. Taking it on time and growing at 5%, the 2027 RMD is $19,848; delaying the first to April 2027 makes 2027’s total $39,456.
Frequently asked questions
What is the RMD on $500,000 at 73?
$500,000 divided by 26.5, the IRS factor at 73: $18,868. At a 22% tax rate that is about $4,151 of tax. The factor falls each year, so the share you must take grows.
At what age do I have to take RMDs?
It depends on your year of birth: 73 if you were born from 1951 to 1959, and 75 if you were born in 1960 or later. The law as written gives people born in 1959 both 73 and 75; the IRS’s proposed rule settles it at 73. Your first RMD can wait until 1 April of the following year; after that, each one is due by 31 December.
How is my RMD calculated?
Divide the account balance on 31 December of last year by the IRS factor for the age you reach this year, from the Uniform Lifetime Table. At 73 the factor is 26.5, so a $500,000 balance means an RMD of $18,868. The factor shrinks every year, so the share you must take grows.
Should I delay my first RMD to April 1?
Usually not. Delaying puts two RMDs in the next year, and the second is figured on a balance that still includes the first. For someone born in 1953 with $500,000 at 5%, taking the first RMD on time means $18,868 in 2026 and $19,848 in 2027; delaying means nothing in 2026 and $39,456 in 2027, which can push that year’s income into a higher bracket.
What happens if I miss an RMD?
The IRS charges an excise tax of 25% of the amount you should have withdrawn and did not, reduced to 10% if you take the missed amount and file the correction in time. Take the shortfall as soon as you notice and report it on Form 5329.
Do Roth IRAs have RMDs?
Not for the owner. Roth IRAs have no required minimum distributions while you are alive, and since 2024 neither do Roth 401(k) accounts. Beneficiaries who inherit a Roth do have to withdraw it under the inherited-account rules.
Does this work as an IRA required minimum distribution calculator?
Yes. It is an IRA minimum distribution calculator and RMD distribution calculator for traditional, SEP and SIMPLE IRAs and for 401(k), 403(b) and 457(b) plans, using the IRS table for owners. It is not an inherited IRA RMD calculator; beneficiaries follow different rules, including the 10-year rule. It works as an IRA distribution calculator for traditional IRAs and 401(k)s.
Is there an RMD chart by age?
The IRS Uniform Lifetime Table is the RMD chart: the life expectancy table for RMDs. Its divisor is 26.5 at 73, 24.6 at 75 and 20.2 at 80, so the RMD percentages by age are about 3.8%, 4.1% and 5.0% of the prior year-end balance.
Is there an RMD schedule for future years?
Yes. The year-by-year table is your RMD schedule: the distribution required each year as your balance and the life expectancy divisor change.
Sources
Sources reviewed 3 October 2026: checked against their current editions on that date.
- IRS Publication 590-B (2025), Distributions from Individual Retirement Arrangements: Appendix B, Table III (Uniform Lifetime); the 25% excise tax on an RMD shortfall, 10% if corrected.
- Treasury Regulation §1.401(a)(9)-2(b)(2), 2024 final regulations (Internal Revenue Bulletin 2024-33): applicable age 73 for those born 1951–1958, 75 from 1960.
- Proposed regulation REG-103529-23 (Internal Revenue Bulletin 2024-33): applicable age 73 for those born in 1959.
This page is an educational estimate, not personal financial or tax advice. Eligibility and individual circumstances can change the result.