Planning for the future is daunting, especially when the end goal feels out of sight.
While retirement may seem like a distant fantasy, you need to start preparing for it ahead of time or else risk working well past your golden years. With this easy-to-use calculator, determine how much you need to contribute to your 401(k) to meet your retirement savings goals.
To calculate your 401(k) retirement savings, simply fill in all of the required fields. The calculator will auto-populate as you complete the required inputs.
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Calculating your 401(k) can be confusing when factors like inflation and employer matching play into the balance. Here's a breakdown of the terms you'll need to know in order to use our 401(k) calculator.
| Current age | Your age right now. |
| Current annual salary | Your pre-tax salary (how much money you make in a year before taxes). |
| Current 401(k) balance |
What is the current value of your 401(k)? You may need to consult with your 401(k) provider or HR administrator to find this. |
| Your contribution | What percentage of your salary are you putting into your 401(k)? |
| Employer match | Some employers match up to a certain percentage of your 401(k) contributions. What percentage of your monthly contribution is your employer matching? |
| Employer match limit |
The maximum percentage of your contribution that your employer agrees to match. |
| Expected retirement age |
At what age do you expect to retire? The median age for retirement in the U.S. right now is 62, but that could change in the future. |
| Expected salary increase (annual) | Hopefully, your salary will increase each year. At what rate do you expect it to increase? It depends on your field, but on average, salaries increase about 3% annually. |
| Expected annual return | How much will your 401(k) grow in a year? On average, 401(k)s grow 5-8% annually. |
| Expected inflation rate (annual) | How much will the U.S. dollar inflate in a year? For the past several years, the inflation rate of the U.S. dollar has hovered around 2%. |
| Tip: Use the average 401k values listed above for retirement age, salary increase, annual return, and inflation to first calculate your 401(k) retirement savings. Then, adjust these details to explore other hypothetical scenarios. |
Your 401(k) is essentially an investment portfolio you contribute to throughout your career, then cash in on when you retire. The more you can put into it now, the more that money will grow in the years to come.
Don't trust the market? Estimate how much your money can grow in a savings account instead with our savings calculator.
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