Two accounts come up the moment anyone starts saving for retirement in the US: the 401(k) and the Roth IRA. The funding order is fairly settled. The numbers change every year, though, which is why so many articles still quote limits that are two years stale.
So we opened five IRS pages and checked the 2026 figures directly. ⭐⭐ In the process we found one place where two IRS pages contradict each other — it is set out below, exactly as written.
As of July 2026 — the 401(k) elective deferral limit is $24,500 ($8,000 more at 50+), the IRA limit is $7,500 ($1,100 more at 50+). Roth IRA phase-out runs $153,000–$168,000 single and $242,000–$252,000 married filing jointly.
Start with the 2026 limits — the two accounts are not the same size
| Item | 401(k) | IRA (traditional + Roth combined) |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 base limit | $24,500 | $7,500 |
| 2025 | $23,500 | $7,000 |
| Catch-up at 50+ | $8,000 | $1,100 |
| Total at 50+ | $32,500 | $8,600 |
| ⭐ Catch-up at 60–63 | $11,250 | not applicable |
⭐⭐ Ages 60 to 63 get their own, larger catch-up. The IRS wording is "this higher catch-up contribution limit is $11,250." At 50–59 and again from 64 it is $8,000 — only that four-year window gets $11,250, which totals $35,750 (our arithmetic).
⚠️ The IRA limit is $7,500 across traditional and Roth combined. The source is explicit: "The total contributions you make each year to all of your traditional IRAs and Roth IRAs can't be more than" the limit. Opening two accounts does not double it.
⭐ The ceiling few people quote — $72,000 in total
Above your own deferral limit sits a second ceiling: the annual total of everything that lands in the account, employer match and profit sharing included.
| Item | 2026 | IRS wording |
|---|---|---|
| Overall limit, section 415(c) | $72,000 | "the lesser of 100% of compensation, or $72,000" |
| Including catch-up (50+) | $80,000 | stated on the page |
| Including catch-up (60–63) | $83,250 | stated on the page |
| Compensation limit | $360,000 | pay above this is cut off for plan purposes |
⭐ The figures reconcile. $72,000 + $8,000 = $80,000 and $72,000 + $11,250 = $83,250 — exactly the numbers the IRS prints (we checked). So catch-up sits on top of the overall limit rather than inside it.
⚠️ The $360,000 compensation limit is where a match formula stops counting. Earn $500,000 and a "6% of pay" match is computed on $360,000, not on the full salary.
⭐⭐⭐ The Roth IRA income band gets narrower when you marry
| Filing status | 2026 modified AGI | Band width | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single / head of household | $153,000 – $168,000 | ⭐ $15,000 | $150,000 – $165,000 |
| Married filing jointly | $242,000 – $252,000 | $10,000 | $236,000 – $246,000 |
| Married filing separately | $0 – $10,000 | $10,000 | unchanged |
⭐⭐⭐ The single band is wider than the joint one. A single filer's allowance tapers across $15,000; a married couple's goes from full to zero in $10,000. The same dollar of extra income cuts a couple's allowance 1.5 times faster (our arithmetic).
⭐⭐ And the threshold is not double either. $242,000 ÷ $153,000 = 1.58 (our arithmetic). Two single people earning $150,000 each can both contribute in full; married, on the same combined $300,000, neither can.
⭐ The year-on-year increases differ too — single rose $150,000 → $153,000, a $3,000 move; joint rose $236,000 → $242,000, $6,000 (our arithmetic).
⭐ A coincidence hiding in the same release — the traditional IRA deduction phase-out for someone not covered by a workplace plan whose spouse is also runs $242,000–$252,000, identical to the Roth joint band. Cross that line and the Roth contribution and the traditional deduction disappear together.
The order — why the match comes first
- 401(k) up to the full employer match. The match is money the employer adds to yours. ⚠️ The rate and the conditions live in your plan document, not in IRS rules.
- Fill the Roth IRA ($7,500). It is your own account, so the investment menu is open, and the withdrawal rules below favour it.
- Anything left, back to the 401(k) up to $24,500.
⚠️ This ordering is conventional financial advice, not an IRS recommendation. No IRS document says what to fund first. What we verified against the source is only the limits, income tests and tax treatment.
The difference is when the tax lands
| Account | Going in | Coming out | Income limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-tax 401(k) | reduces taxable income | federal and state income tax | none |
| Roth 401(k) | after-tax dollars | ⭐ untaxed if qualified | none |
| Roth IRA | after-tax dollars | ⭐ untaxed if qualified | ⚠️ yes (table above) |
⭐ Everything turns on a "qualified distribution." The IRS comparison chart sets it as a five-year holding period plus one of age 59½, disability or death. Five years alone is not enough; nor is age alone.
⚠️⚠️ If your income closes the Roth IRA, look at the Roth 401(k). The comparison chart records its income limit as "No limits." Whether your plan offers a Roth option is the only question.
⚠️⚠️⚠️ Two IRS pages disagree
While checking the figures we found two pages on the same IRS site saying different things.
| Point | Roth comparison chart | RMD FAQs |
|---|---|---|
| Page last updated | 3 September 2025 | 29 January 2026 |
| Age required distributions begin | "begin by age 72" | "when you reach age 73" |
| RMDs on a Roth 401(k) | shown as required | ⭐ "not required until after the death of the account owner" |
| Contribution limits shown | ⚠️ 2024 figures ($23,000 / $7,000) | not applicable |
⚠️⚠️ The comparison chart is the older page — four months behind, and still carrying 2024 dollar limits. Take the structure from it (pre-tax vs after-tax, the qualified-distribution test, whether an income limit exists) and take the numbers and the distribution age from the newer pages.
⭐ The two do agree that a Roth IRA has no required distributions during the owner's lifetime. The RMD page's wording: "Withdrawals from Roth IRAs and Designated Roth accounts (401(k) or 403(b)) are not required until after the death of the account owner."
⭐ The Saver's Credit thresholds land exactly on the ratios
This credit goes to lower-income savers. Line the 2026 ceilings up and the design shows.
| Filing status | 2026 ceiling | Share of joint |
|---|---|---|
| Married filing jointly | $80,500 | 100% |
| Head of household | $60,375 | ⭐ exactly 75% |
| Single / married separate | $40,250 | ⭐ exactly 50% |
⭐⭐⭐ 80,500 × 0.75 = 60,375 and 80,500 ÷ 2 = 40,250 — no rounding (our arithmetic). Which makes the Roth IRA threshold, sitting at 1.58 rather than 2, look deliberate rather than accidental. Different items in the same release are built to different rules.
Questions that remain
Can I fund a 401(k) and an IRA in the same year?
The limits are separate. ⚠️ But if you are covered by a workplace plan, the traditional IRA deduction phases out — $81,000–$91,000 single, $129,000–$149,000 joint where the contributor is covered. The contribution is not blocked; the deduction shrinks.
What is the deadline for an IRA contribution?
⚠️ We could not confirm it here. The IRA limits page gives a deadline only for withdrawing an excess contribution ("by the due date of your individual income tax return (including extensions)"). It does not state the deadline for a regular contribution, so we have not asserted one.
What if my spouse has no earnings?
The source answers directly: "Each spouse can make a contribution up to the current limit; however, the total of your combined contributions can't be more than the taxable compensation reported on your joint return."
What if the limit is higher than what I earned?
Then earnings are the ceiling. The wording is "or If less, your taxable compensation for the year."
Where do I start with US tax basics?
Bracket structure is in the federal income tax brackets, take-home pay in the paycheck calculator, investment gains in US capital gains tax, and medical accounts in HSA vs FSA.
Sources
- ⭐⭐⭐ IRS — primary source — "401(k) limit increases to $24,500 for 2026, IRA limit increases to $7,500" (IR-2025-111, 13 November 2025, citing Notice 2025-67). Source for the $24,500 deferral limit, $8,000 and $11,250 catch-ups, the $7,500 IRA limit and $1,100 catch-up, all three Roth IRA phase-out ranges, all four traditional IRA deduction ranges, the three Saver's Credit ceilings, and the 2025 comparatives.
- ⭐⭐⭐ IRS — primary source — "Retirement topics — 401(k) and profit-sharing plan contribution limits" (updated 8 April 2026). Source for the $72,000 / $80,000 / $83,250 overall limits, the $360,000 compensation limit, and the 60–63 catch-up.
- ⭐⭐ IRS — primary source — "Retirement topics — IRA contribution limits" (updated 3 March 2026). Source for the combined traditional-and-Roth limit, the spousal rule, and the "if less, your taxable compensation" wording.
- ⭐⭐ IRS — primary source — "Retirement plan and IRA required minimum distributions FAQs" (updated 29 January 2026). Source for age 73 and for Roth accounts being exempt during the owner's lifetime.
- ⭐ IRS — primary source — "Roth comparison chart" (updated 3 September 2025). Source for the after-tax structure, the five-year-plus-59½ qualified distribution test, and "No limits" on the Roth 401(k) — and one side of the contradiction above.
- Our own arithmetic — the 3.27 ratio, $32,500 / $35,750 / $8,600, the $80,000 and $83,250 reconciliation, the $15,000 and $10,000 band widths, the 1.58 threshold ratio, the $3,000 and $6,000 increases, and the 75% / 50% Saver's Credit ratios.
What we could not confirm
- ⚠️⚠️ The deadline for a regular IRA contribution, as noted above. We have not guessed at it.
- ⚠️⚠️ The "backdoor Roth." An earlier version of this article mentioned it; the term appears on none of the five pages we opened, so it is gone.
- ⚠️ Employer match rates and vesting. These are not set by the IRS — they vary by plan. The earlier version's "for example, 6% of pay" had no source and has been removed.
- ⚠️ State income tax. "Federal and state income taxes" above is the comparison chart's own phrasing; state-by-state differences are out of scope here.
- ⚠️ When the comparison chart's 2024 figures will be refreshed. The page gives no indication, so it may already read differently by the time you open it.
- SIMPLE 401(k) ($17,000, +$4,000 at 50+, $5,250 at 60–63) applies to a narrow group and is not covered in the body.
Match, then Roth IRA, then max the 401(k) is the conventional answer. Start instead by working out which income band you are in — the Roth IRA can go from full to zero across $10,000.
As of July 2026 (IRS pages updated between 3 Sep 2025 and 8 Apr 2026). Limits, income tests and tax treatment are the IRS pages verbatim; ratios, band widths and the reconciliations are ours. ⚠️ This is not investment or tax advice — check your own position against your plan document and a tax professional. Broader retirement planning is in preparing for retirement by decade.
