RMD Calculator

Under the SECURE 2.0 Act signed in December 2022, RMDs from Traditional IRAs, SEP-IRAs, SIMPLE IRAs, and employer plans now begin at age 73 — up from 72 under the original SECURE Act. A further increase to age 75 is scheduled for 2033. Your first RMD can technically be deferred until April 1 of the year after you turn 73, which is known as the Required Beginning Date.

In almost all cases, deferring the first RMD is a mistake. Delaying forces you to take two RMDs in the same calendar year — one by April 1 and another by December 31. The combined income from those two distributions often pushes you into a higher federal tax bracket, increases the taxable portion of Social Security benefits, and can trigger IRMAA Medicare surcharges for the following year. Taking the first RMD by December 31 of the year you turn 73 distributes the income evenly across two separate tax years and avoids that double-hit problem entirely.

The IRS updated its life expectancy tables effective January 1, 2022, increasing the distribution period factors for every age to reflect longer lifespans across the U.S. population. A higher factor means a smaller required withdrawal as a percentage of your balance. At age 73, the factor under the updated table is 26.5, compared to 24.7 under the old table — a reduction of roughly 7% in the required annual withdrawal. At age 80, the factor is 20.2 versus 18.7 previously.

The practical effect is that millions of retirees are now required to take smaller RMDs than they were under the prior rules, leaving more money in tax-deferred accounts to continue growing. However, many online RMD calculators still use the pre-2022 table and overstate your required withdrawal. This calculator uses the correct 2022 Uniform Lifetime Table values, so your calculated RMD is accurate. Verify any third-party calculation tool is using the updated table before relying on it for tax planning.

The most powerful strategy for reducing future RMDs is performing Roth conversions during the years between retirement and age 73. After you stop working but before RMDs begin, your taxable income is often at its lowest point in decades — making those years ideal for converting Traditional IRA balances to Roth at a favorable tax rate. Every dollar converted reduces the balance subject to future RMDs, lowering mandatory withdrawals and the income taxes they generate for the rest of your retirement.

For retirees who are already charitably inclined, Qualified Charitable Distributions are the most tax-efficient tool available. A QCD sends money directly from your IRA to a qualifying charity and satisfies your RMD requirement without the distribution ever appearing in your Adjusted Gross Income. Unlike a standard strategy of taking the RMD as cash and then donating it — which still shows as income even with a charitable deduction — the QCD never affects your income at all. This distinction matters especially for taxpayers who take the standard deduction and would get no deduction benefit from a cash donation.

Many retirees are surprised to discover that large RMDs affect not just their income taxes, but also their Medicare premiums. The Medicare IRMAA surcharge adds supplemental premiums to Part B and Part D coverage when your Modified Adjusted Gross Income exceeds specific thresholds. In 2025, the first IRMAA tier begins at $103,000 MAGI for single filers and $206,000 for married filing jointly — with additional tiers adding progressively more up to $444 per month per person at the highest income brackets.

The dangerous aspect of IRMAA is that it operates as a cliff: crossing the threshold by even one dollar triggers the full surcharge for the entire year. A $1,000 unplanned extra withdrawal that bumps your MAGI just above the first threshold could cost $888 or more in additional Medicare premiums over the year. Careful RMD timing, strategic Roth conversions to keep income below thresholds, and the use of QCDs are the primary tools for managing IRMAA exposure. Note also that IRMAA is calculated from income reported two years prior, so 2025 premiums are based on 2023 income.

If you own multiple Traditional IRAs, you must calculate the RMD for each account separately using each account's December 31 balance and your age. However, you are permitted to aggregate the total required distribution and take it from any one or any combination of your IRAs — you are not required to take a proportional distribution from each account. This flexibility lets you manage which accounts you draw down based on investment performance or rebalancing needs.

The aggregation rules do not extend across account types. RMDs from 401(k), 403(b), and 457(b) plans must each be satisfied separately from their respective plan accounts — you cannot use an IRA distribution to satisfy a 401(k) RMD. Traditional Roth IRAs have no RMDs during the owner's lifetime, and starting in 2024 under SECURE 2.0, Roth 401(k) and Roth 403(b) accounts are also exempt from RMDs. If you inherited an IRA, different rules apply — non-spouse beneficiaries who inherited after December 31, 2019 are generally subject to the 10-year total distribution rule.