Retirement Runway Calculator
How long your savings will last in retirement, year by year: your 401(k), IRA, Roth and taxable accounts, Social Security for you and a spouse, a pension, federal and state income tax and required minimum distributions, tested against 1,000 simulated markets.
All amounts are in today’s dollars. Starts with an example couple; replace the figures with yours.
01Your Plan
More details: saving, pension, work, investments
Enter the pension as the yearly amount in its first year of payments. Without a cost-of-living increase it buys less each year. Planning assumptions, not a forecast: a 7% average yearly return for stocks with 17% volatility, and 4% for bonds with 6% volatility, both before inflation. They are below the long-run historical record for US stocks on purpose. The return is the average of yearly returns; the steady projection uses the lower compound rate that average produces once volatility is counted.
Try an example:
02What Moves Your Runway
Each line changes one thing in your plan and keeps everything else the same.
| Change | Savings fund spending to | Simulated markets that fund your spending to your plan age |
|---|
03Year by Year
The steady projection, every amount in today’s dollars.
| Age | Social Security | Pension and work | From taxable | From 401(k)/IRA | From Roth | Income tax | Savings at year end |
|---|
04When You Start Social Security
Your monthly benefit depends on the age you start, for life. For anyone born in 1960 or later, full retirement age is 67:
| Start at | 62 | 63 | 64 | 65 | 66 | 67 | 68 | 69 | 70 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Your own benefit, % of full | 70% | 75% | 80% | 86.7% | 93.3% | 100% | 108% | 116% | 124% |
| Spousal benefit, % of the worker’s full benefit | 32.5% | 35% | 37.5% | 41.7% | 45.8% | 50% | 50% | 50% | 50% |
Starting early cuts your own benefit by 5/9 of 1% for each month before full retirement age, for up to 36 months, and 5/12 of 1% for each month beyond that. Each year you wait past full retirement age adds 8% up to age 70. A spousal benefit is up to half of the worker’s full benefit, never grows past full retirement age, and starts only once the worker has claimed. Benefits rise each year with the cost-of-living adjustment, so they stay level in this calculator’s today’s dollars.
05Required Minimum Distributions
From age 73, or 75 for anyone born in 1960 or later, you must take a minimum amount out of 401(k)s and traditional IRAs each year: the balance at the end of the previous year divided by the IRS life expectancy factor for your age, 26.5 at 73 and 24.6 at 75. Roth IRAs have no required distributions during the owner’s life. The calculator takes at least the required amount; if it is more than you need, the rest is taxed and added to your taxable savings. See the RMD Calculator for one year in detail.
06How Each State Taxes Retirement Income
9 states have no tax on wages and retirement income at all. Of the rest, only 8 tax Social Security benefits for retirees, and most of those exempt people below an income limit. IRA, 401(k) and pension withdrawals are where states differ most. The table covers private pensions; many states treat government and military pensions more generously. Each state name links to the official source. Dollar limits are for 2026 unless marked otherwise.
| State | Social Security | IRA and 401(k) withdrawals | Private pensions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Not taxed | First $6,000 per person excluded at 65+ | Defined benefit pensions not taxed |
| Alaska | No income tax on any of them | ||
| Arizona | Not taxed | Taxed | Taxed |
| Arkansas | Not taxed | First $6,000 per person excluded at 59½+, shared with pensions | First $6,000 per person excluded, shared with IRAs |
| California | Not taxed | Taxed | Taxed |
| Colorado | Not taxed at 65+; from 55 to 64, part of the $20,000 cap above $75,000 of income ($95,000 joint) | First $20,000 per person excluded at 55+, $24,000 at 65+, reduced by Social Security subtracted | Same exclusion as IRAs, one cap for both |
| Connecticut | Not taxed below $75,000 of income ($100,000 joint); above that, no more than 25% taxed | Not taxed below $75,000 of income ($100,000 joint), phasing out by $100,000 ($150,000 joint) | Same as IRAs |
| Delaware | Not taxed | First $12,500 per person excluded at 60+, shared with pensions, interest, dividends and gains | Same exclusion as IRAs, one cap for all |
| District of Columbia | Not taxed | Taxed | Taxed |
| Florida | No income tax on any of them | ||
| Georgia | Not taxed | First $35,000 per person excluded at 62+, $65,000 at 65+, shared with pensions and investment income | Same exclusion as IRAs, one cap for all |
| Hawaii | Not taxed | Taxed | Employer-funded part not taxed |
| Idaho | Not taxed | Taxed | Taxed |
| Illinois | Not taxed | Not taxed | Not taxed |
| Indiana | Not taxed | Taxed | Taxed |
| Iowa | Not taxed | Not taxed at 55+ | Not taxed at 55+ |
| Kansas | Not taxed | Taxed | Taxed |
| Kentucky | Not taxed | First $31,110 per person excluded, shared with pensions | Same exclusion as IRAs, one cap for both |
| Louisiana | Not taxed | First $12,324 per person excluded at 65+, shared with pensions | Same exclusion as IRAs, one cap for both |
| Maine | Not taxed | Up to $48,216 per person deducted (2025 cap), less Social Security received; phases out above $125,000 of income ($250,000 joint) | Same deduction as IRAs, one cap for both |
| Maryland | Not taxed | Taxed | First $40,600 per person excluded at 65+, less Social Security received |
| Massachusetts | Not taxed | Taxed | Taxed |
| Michigan | Not taxed | Up to $65,897 a return excluded ($131,794 joint) at 59½+, 2025 limits, shared with pensions | Same exclusion as IRAs, one limit for both |
| Minnesota | Not taxed below $84,490 of income ($108,320 joint, 2025 figures), phasing in above | Taxed | Taxed |
| Mississippi | Not taxed | Not taxed at 59½+ | Not taxed |
| Missouri | Not taxed at 62+ | First $6,000 per person excluded, shared with pensions, for incomes below $25,000 ($32,000 joint) | Same exclusion as IRAs, one cap for both |
| Montana | Taxed like federal | First $5,500 per person deducted at 65+, against any income | Same deduction as IRAs, one cap for all |
| Nebraska | Not taxed | Taxed | Taxed |
| Nevada | No income tax on any of them | ||
| New Hampshire | No income tax on any of them | ||
| New Jersey | Not taxed | At 62+, up to $100,000 excluded joint ($75,000 single) with income up to $100,000; part excluded up to $150,000 | Same exclusion as IRAs, one cap for both |
| New Mexico | Not taxed below $100,000 of income ($150,000 joint) | First $8,000 per person exempt at 65+ for low incomes, against any income | Same exemption as IRAs |
| New York | Not taxed | First $20,000 per person excluded at 59½+, shared with pensions | Same exclusion as IRAs, one cap for both |
| North Carolina | Not taxed | Taxed | Taxed |
| North Dakota | Not taxed | Taxed | Taxed |
| Ohio | Not taxed | Credit of up to $200 a return for income under $100,000 | Same credit as IRAs |
| Oklahoma | Not taxed | First $10,000 per person excluded, shared with pensions | Same exclusion as IRAs, one cap for both |
| Oregon | Not taxed | Taxed | Taxed |
| Pennsylvania | Not taxed | Not taxed at 59½+ | Not taxed |
| Rhode Island | Not taxed at full retirement age with income below $107,000 ($133,750 joint, 2025 figures) | Taxed (401(k) and 403(b) money can qualify for the pension exclusion) | First $50,000 per person excluded at full retirement age with income below the same limits |
| South Carolina | Not taxed | First $3,000 per person deducted, $15,000 at 65+, shared with pensions | Same deduction as IRAs, one cap for both |
| South Dakota | No income tax on any of them | ||
| Tennessee | No income tax on any of them | ||
| Texas | No income tax on any of them | ||
| Utah | Taxed, with a credit that removes the tax below $54,000 of income ($90,000 joint) and phases out above | Taxed | Taxed |
| Vermont | Not taxed below $55,000 of income ($70,000 joint), phasing in to $65,000 ($80,000 joint) | Taxed | Taxed |
| Virginia | Not taxed | Age deduction of $12,000 per person at 65+ against any income, phasing out above $50,000 ($75,000 joint) | Same deduction as IRAs |
| Washington | No income tax on any of them | ||
| West Virginia | Not taxed | First $8,000 per person excluded at 65+, less taxable Social Security, so most people with benefits get none | Same exclusion as IRAs, one cap for all |
| Wisconsin | Not taxed | First $24,000 per person excluded at 67+, shared with pensions | Same exclusion as IRAs, one cap for both |
| Wyoming | No income tax on any of them | ||
07How We Calculate
- Year by year, in today’s dollars. Until you retire, savings grow and your yearly additions go in. From the year you retire, the calculator works out the income you have (Social Security, pension, any work), takes any required minimum distribution, and then withdraws what is still needed to cover your spending plus the income tax on the withdrawals: first from taxable savings, then 401(k) and IRA money, then Roth.
- Federal tax uses the 2026 brackets, standard deduction, extra deduction at 65, the senior deduction while it lasts (2025 to 2028), the 0%, 15% and 20% rates on the gain part of taxable-account withdrawals, the rules that make up to 85% of Social Security taxable, the 3.8% net investment income tax and the 10% additional tax on 401(k) and IRA money taken before 59½. Brackets are assumed to keep rising with inflation; the Social Security and investment income tax thresholds are fixed in law and do not, so they bite harder over time.
- State tax applies your state’s rules for Social Security, IRA and 401(k) withdrawals and pensions from the table above, then the state’s 2026 brackets and deductions from the Paycheck Calculator.
- Markets. The steady projection earns the same compound return every year. The 1,000 simulated markets draw a different return for each year with the average and volatility you set, so some start badly and some well. The same inputs always give the same result.
What this estimate leaves out
- A death in a couple: in reality Social Security falls to the larger of the two benefits and the survivor files as single, usually at higher tax rates.
- Inflation that varies from year to year, and market crashes worse than a bell curve suggests.
- Dividends and interest taxed each year in your taxable account (the calculator taxes the gain when you withdraw), state capital gains breaks, city and county income taxes, and the alternative minimum tax.
- Medicare premium surcharges (IRMAA), health costs that rise faster than inflation, and long-term care.
- Roth conversions, exceptions to the 10% early-withdrawal tax (such as the age-55 rule and substantially equal payments), and Social Security’s earnings test if you work before full retirement age.
- Separate RMDs for each spouse: the calculator figures required distributions on all tax-deferred savings using your age.
- State extra deductions and credits for people 65 and older, and the timing rules for a spousal benefit that starts later than the spouse’s own benefit.
- Home equity, annuities you buy, inheritances and other assets.
08Frequently Asked Questions
How long will my retirement savings last?
It depends on four things more than anything else: how much you spend each year beyond what Social Security and any pension cover, what your investments earn, inflation, and how long you live. The calculator projects all of them year by year, including taxes and required minimum distributions, and shows both a steady-return answer and how often the money lasts across 1,000 simulated markets.
What is the 4% rule?
The 4% rule comes from research on historical US market returns: someone who withdrew 4% of their savings in the first year of retirement, then raised the dollar amount with inflation each year, would have had money left after 30 years in almost every starting year studied. It ignores taxes and fees and assumes a 30-year retirement, so it is a starting point, not a plan. The calculator shows your own first-year withdrawal rate.
What is sequence-of-returns risk?
Two retirees with the same average return can end up very differently if one gets the bad years first. Losses early in retirement hit a larger balance while you are also taking money out, and the money withdrawn is not there for the recovery. The table of what moves your runway includes a weak start to show the effect.
When should I start Social Security?
Each year you wait past 62, up to 70, raises your monthly benefit for life: claiming at 62 pays 70% of your full benefit if your full retirement age is 67, and waiting to 70 pays 124%. Waiting usually helps most when you expect to live a long time, when you are the higher earner in a couple (your benefit becomes the survivor benefit) and when you have savings to live on in the meantime. Try different start ages in the calculator to see the effect on your runway.
Which account should I withdraw from first?
The common order, and the one the calculator uses, is taxable accounts first, then tax-deferred 401(k) and IRA money, then Roth, after taking any required minimum distributions. It lets the tax-advantaged accounts grow longest. It is not always best: drawing some IRA money in low-income years, or converting it to a Roth, can lower lifetime taxes. See the Roth Conversion Calculator.
Does the calculator include required minimum distributions?
Yes. From age 73 (75 if you were born in 1960 or later) it takes at least the required minimum distribution from tax-deferred savings each year using the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table, even if you do not need the money. Anything left after tax goes into your taxable savings.
What happens to Social Security if the trust fund runs out?
The 2026 Social Security Trustees Report projects that the retirement trust fund will be depleted in the fourth quarter of 2032, after which incoming taxes would cover about 78% of scheduled benefits unless Congress acts, and the share payable falls a little further in later decades. Tick the option under More details to see your runway with benefits held at 78% from 2033 on.
Are the results in today's dollars?
Yes. Every amount, including balances decades from now, is in today's dollars, so a figure means what it would buy today. Social Security and inflation-adjusted pensions stay level; a pension without a cost-of-living adjustment shrinks each year.
09Sources
- Social Security Administration: benefit reduction for early retirement
- Social Security Administration: delayed retirement credits
- Social Security Administration: spousal benefits
- Social Security Administration: 2026 Trustees Report release
- IRS Publication 915: Social Security and equivalent railroad retirement benefits
- IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32: 2026 tax brackets and standard deduction
- 26 CFR 1.401(a)(9)-9: Uniform Lifetime Table
- IRS: required minimum distribution FAQs (start ages under SECURE 2.0)
- IRS Topic 558: additional tax on early distributions
Federal figures: Rev. Proc. 2025-32 (IRB 2025-45), as amended by Public Law 119-21 (2025). State brackets: the Paycheck Calculator’s October 21, 2026 tables. State retirement income rules last checked November 4, 2026; each state’s source is linked from its name in the state table. Social Security trust fund figure: the 2026 Social Security Trustees Report. Projections for information only; not financial, tax or investment advice. Related: Social Security Calculator · Roth Conversion Calculator · RMD Calculator.
Corrections and Updates
| Date | What changed |
|---|---|
| November 4, 2026 | If a spouse is already receiving Social Security and their full-retirement-age benefit is left blank, the results now warn that the spousal benefit is figured on the current payment. |
| November 4, 2026 | Added the same full-retirement-age field for a spouse who is already receiving, so the spousal benefit is figured correctly in either direction. |
| November 4, 2026 | Required minimum distributions while working are now figured on the balance before that year's contributions. |
| November 4, 2026 | The comparison table note now says every percentage uses the same simulated markets, and that the weak-start line is a separate steady-return test. |
| November 4, 2026 | For anyone already receiving Social Security, the spouse's benefit is now based on the worker's full-retirement-age benefit, entered separately, rather than the current payment. |
| November 4, 2026 | Required minimum distributions are now taken from age 73 or 75 even if you are still working, with a note on the still-working exception for a current employer's plan. |
| November 4, 2026 | Results now describe the 10th percentile as a boundary and the comparison column as simulated markets that fund your spending to your plan age. |
| November 4, 2026 | When savings stop covering spending, the results now show the yearly shortfall, and say when savings are used up but income still covers spending. |
| November 4, 2026 | Every line in What Moves Your Runway now uses the same simulated markets. |
| November 4, 2026 | Added an option to leave dollar amounts off the PNG, fuller assumptions in the exports, and spending estimates rounded to the nearest $100. |
Every correction to a published figure on this site is logged on Sources and Methods.
Cite This Page
This page is free to cite and link. Its figures come from Social Security Administration, IRS (Rev. Proc. 2025-32, Publication 915, Uniform Lifetime Table) and state revenue departments and are kept current, so please include the date you accessed it.
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Source data: Social Security Administration, IRS (Rev. Proc. 2025-32, Publication 915, Uniform Lifetime Table) and state revenue departments. Updates: Yearly. Page last updated November 4, 2026. How we build our data pages.