401(k) limits by year: 2023 to 2026
The IRS resets the retirement plan limits every November for the next year. This table keeps four years side by side, read from the IRS cost of living page, so you can check any figure you see quoted.
Your 2023 401(k) limit
$30,000
Against $32,500 for 2026.
| Base deferral | $22,500 |
| Catch-up at your age then | $7,500 |
| IRA limit at your age then | $7,500 |
| Annual additions (415(c)) | $66,000 |
| Year | 401(k) | Catch-up | IRA | 415(c) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $24,500 | $8,000 | $7,500 | $72,000 |
| 2025 | $23,500 | $7,500 | $7,000 | $70,000 |
| 2024 | $23,000 | $7,500 | $7,000 | $69,000 |
| 2023 | $22,500 | $7,500 | $6,500 | $66,000 |
Worked out by Radif Partners · How we calculate · limits read on irs.gov · not personal financial advice
The 401(k) employee deferral limit was $22,500 in 2023, $23,000 in 2024, $23,500 in 2025 and $24,500 in 2026: up $2,000, or 8.9 %, over the period. The age 50 catch-up stayed at $7,500 for three years before moving to $8,000 in 2026, and the total additions limit of section 415(c) went from $66,000 to $72,000. A saver aged 55 could therefore defer $30,000 in 2023 and $32,500 in 2026. The amounts move in fixed steps, $500 for deferrals and catch-ups, which is why some years show no change at all. The IRA limit went from $6,500 to $7,500 and its catch-up moved for the first time, to $1,100, while the compensation cap climbed from $330,000 to $360,000. The 2027 figures are not announced yet; the IRS publishes them mid-November 2026.
The table, 2023 to 2026
| Limit | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 401(k), 403(b), 457(b) deferral | $22,500 | $23,000 | $23,500 | $24,500 |
| Catch-up at 50 | $7,500 | $7,500 | $7,500 | $8,000 |
| Catch-up at 60 to 63 | did not exist | did not exist | $11,250 | $11,250 |
| Total additions, 415(c) | $66,000 | $69,000 | $70,000 | $72,000 |
| Compensation cap, 401(a)(17) | $330,000 | $345,000 | $350,000 | $360,000 |
| IRA | $6,500 | $7,000 | $7,000 | $7,500 |
| IRA catch-up at 50 | $1,000 | $1,000 | $1,000 | $1,100 |
| SIMPLE deferral | $15,500 | $16,000 | $16,500 | $17,000 |
| Highly compensated employee | $150,000 | $155,000 | $160,000 | $160,000 |
| Social Security wage base | $160,200 | $168,600 | $176,100 | $184,500 |
How much each limit moved, year by year
| Limit | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deferral | +$500 | +$500 | +$1,000 |
| Catch-up at 50 | no change | no change | +$500 |
| 415(c) total | +$3,000 | +$1,000 | +$2,000 |
| IRA | +$500 | no change | +$500 |
| HCE threshold | +$5,000 | +$5,000 | no change |
| Wage base | +$8,400 | +$7,500 | +$8,400 |
The pattern is uneven. The deferral limit rose by $500 in 2024, only $500 in 2025, then $1,000 in 2026. The IRA limit jumped in 2024, stood still in 2025 and rose again in 2026. These are not policy decisions taken each year: the code fixes a formula, and the IRS applies it to the inflation measured up to the third quarter.
Your 401(k) limit in a past year
Your 2023 401(k) limit
$30,000
| Base deferral | $22,500 |
| Catch-up at your age then | $7,500 |
| IRA limit at your age then | $7,500 |
| Annual additions (415(c)) | $66,000 |
Why the limits move in $500 steps
Each limit has a rounding rule written into the code, and the rule is always to round down. The elective deferral limit of section 402(g) and the catch-up of section 414(v) are adjusted in multiples of $500; the 415(c) total in multiples of $1,000; the compensation cap and the highly compensated threshold in multiples of $5,000. The IRA limit moves in $500 steps as well. The IRA catch-up, indexed since SECURE 2.0, moves in $100 steps, which is how it went from $1,000 to $1,100 in 2026 after years at the same figure.
Rounding down explains the flat years. The indexed catch-up for 2024 and 2025 came out above $7,500 but short of the next $500 step, so it printed as $7,500 three years running. The highly compensated threshold shows the same thing in 2026: $160,000, as in 2025. When a figure stays flat for a year, the unrounded value usually crosses the next step the following year. The Social Security wage base is different again: the Social Security Administration sets it from the national average wage index, not from consumer prices, so it moves by amounts such as $8,400 that fit no $500 grid.
Limits that did not exist before
The age 60 to 63 catch-up was created by SECURE 2.0 and first applied in 2025, at $11,250; it is the same in 2026, as the table shows (age 60 to 63 catch-up). The Roth catch-up requirement for higher paid workers is also new: its wage threshold is $150,000 of 2025 wages for 2026, and 2026 is the first year it is enforced (Roth catch-up rule). A history table that lists these columns for 2023 or 2024 is wrong for those years.
The same year for another birth year
Your 2024 401(k) limit
$30,500
| Base deferral | $23,000 |
| Catch-up at your age then | $7,500 |
| IRA limit at your age then | $8,000 |
| Annual additions (415(c)) | $69,000 |
Pages that still show an older year
Limits pages are often written once and updated late. It is common to find a "2026 limits" headline above a table that still shows $23,000 or $23,500 for the deferral, or a catch-up of $7,500. Using those figures in a payroll election leaves room unused: $1,000 on the deferral alone against 2025, $1,500 for someone over 50. A quick check is the catch-up line: if a page claims to be current and shows $7,500, it predates the 2026 notice. The official source is the IRS COLA increases page, which lists each year in a column, and the notice for each year (Notice 2025-67 for 2026).
Reading the trend without guessing next year
Over these four years the deferral limit gained 8.9 %, the 415(c) total 9.1 % and the IRA limit 15.4 %. The total grew faster than the employee limit because it rounds in larger steps and started from a larger base, so a single year of high inflation, as in the adjustment for 2023, moved it by several thousand dollars at once. It is tempting to extend these lines to the next year, and many sites print a forecast with the same typography as an official figure. This site does not: the next figures depend on the third quarter price index, and on the rounding thresholds, which can turn a small difference in inflation into a full $500 step or none. The real amounts are added the day the IRS notice comes out.
Can you make up a past year?
A 401(k) limit is a calendar year limit tied to paychecks, so unused room does not carry forward. Someone who deferred $15,000 in 2025 cannot add the missing $8,500 in 2026. The only look back is for IRAs, where contributions for a year can be made until the filing deadline in April of the next year. For 2026, your own figures by age and pay are on the 2026 limits page, and the outlook for the next year is on the 2027 page.