401(k) Calculator

A 401(k) is the most common retirement account in the United States, and its defining feature is the employer match: free money added to your account when you contribute. That match is the reason a 401(k) is almost always the first place to save, because no other investment reliably hands you a fifty to a hundred per cent return on the first slice of your contribution. The match is usually expressed as a percentage of your contributions, up to a percentage of your salary. A common formula is fifty per cent of what you put in, on the first six per cent of pay. Translated, if you earn seventy thousand and contribute six per cent, the employer adds three per cent of your salary. Contributing below the cap leaves part of the match on the table; contributing above it earns no extra match, though it still benefits from tax advantages. Time does most of the work. Contributions made early compound for decades, while contributions made close to retirement barely compound at all, which is why starting early matters more than contributing perfectly. A steady eight per cent of salary from your twenties, with a match, can grow into a substantial balance on a modest income; the same contributions started in your forties produce a small fraction of that. The projected return deserves scepticism. A long-run figure of around seven per cent a year is often used for a diversified portfolio, but returns are volatile, fees eat into them, and no one earns the average in any given year. Inflation also matters: a balance decades away buys less than the same figure today. Use the projection as a planning guide, not a promise, and revisit it as your salary and contributions change. This calculator projects the balance from your salary, contribution rate, the employer match, your current balance, the expected return and the years left, and separates your money, the employer's money and investment growth so you can see what each contributes. It assumes a constant salary and return and ignores contribution limits, taxes and fees, so treat the result as a reasonable estimate rather than a forecast.

This calculator returns estimates for general information only. It is not financial, investment, tax or legal advice, and it cannot replace guidance from a qualified professional who knows your circumstances. Figures such as loan payments, investment growth and retirement projections are simplified models based on the inputs and assumptions you provide, not guarantees of future results.