IRA vs 401(k) limits in 2026: two caps, one household
A 401(k) and an IRA have separate contribution limits, so saving in one never uses up the other. Where they touch is the tax side: the workplace plan can limit the IRA deduction, and pre-tax deferrals change the income the Roth IRA test looks at.
401(k) and IRA in the same year
$41,100
Separate limits: a 401(k) deferral does not reduce the IRA limit, only the pay it is tested against.
| 401(k) deferral | $32,500 |
| IRA, traditional or Roth | $8,600 |
| Share of pay | 48 % |
Worked out by Radif Partners · How we calculate · limits read on irs.gov · not personal financial advice
In 2026 the employee limit for a 401(k), 403(b) or governmental 457(b) is $24,500, plus $8,000 from age 50 or $11,250 in the years you turn 60 to 63. The IRA limit is $7,500, plus $1,100 from 50, shared by traditional and Roth IRAs. The two are independent: a person aged 50 earning $85,000 can defer $32,500 and still put $8,600 in an IRA, $41,100 in all. Employer money goes only into the 401(k), within a $72,000 cap on total additions. What links the accounts is tax: being covered by the workplace plan phases out the traditional IRA deduction from $81,000 of MAGI for a single filer, and the Roth IRA has an income test ($153,000 to $168,000 single) that a 401(k), Roth or not, does not have.
The limits side by side
| Rule in 2026 | 401(k), 403(b), 457(b) | IRA (traditional and Roth) |
|---|---|---|
| Base limit | $24,500 | $7,500 |
| Catch-up from age 50 | $8,000 | $1,100 |
| Catch-up at 60 to 63 | $11,250 | no extra amount |
| Employer money | on top, up to $72,000 in total | none |
| Income limit to contribute | none | Roth only: $153,000 to $168,000 single, $242,000 to $252,000 joint |
| Who sets it up | your employer | you, at any custodian |
| Last day for 2026 | last 2026 paycheck | April 15, 2027 |
The 401(k) figure is per person across all the plans of that type you join in the year: two jobs with two 401(k)s still share one $24,500 limit. A governmental 457(b) has a separate limit of its own (457(b) limits). The IRA figure is also per person, across every IRA you hold.
What the two add up to, by age
With enough pay, the maximum you can put in from your own salary is the sum of both limits. The age tests are applied on December 31, 2026.
| Age at the end of 2026 | 401(k) deferral | IRA | Both together |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 50 (born 1977 or later) | $24,500 | $7,500 | $32,000 |
| 50 to 59, or 64 and over | $32,500 | $8,600 | $41,100 |
| 60 to 63 (born 1963 to 1966) | $35,750 | $8,600 | $44,350 |
The line for 60 to 63 is the largest because of the catch-up created by SECURE 2.0, which applies only to workplace plans; from 64 the 401(k) catch-up drops back to $8,000. For a high earner there is one more wrinkle: if your 2025 FICA wages from the employer exceeded $150,000, the 401(k) catch-up must be Roth (Roth catch-up rule). Nothing similar exists in an IRA.
Your two limits at your age
401(k) and IRA in the same year
$44,350
| 401(k) deferral | $35,750 |
| IRA, traditional or Roth | $8,600 |
| Share of pay | 30 % |
Where the limits interact: the IRA deduction
The contribution limits never touch each other, but the 401(k) has one effect on the IRA. If you are covered by a workplace plan for the year, which a match alone is enough to trigger, a traditional IRA contribution is deductible only if your modified AGI is below $81,000 as a single filer or $129,000 on a joint return, with nothing deductible from $91,000 and $149,000. Without a workplace plan, the traditional IRA deduction has no income limit.
The link runs in both directions. Pre-tax 401(k) deferrals lower your AGI, so they also lower the MAGI tested for the IRA deduction. A covered single filer at $95,000 of MAGI can deduct $0 of a traditional IRA contribution; deferring $12,000 more into the 401(k) brings MAGI to $83,000 and the deductible part to $6,000. Roth 401(k) deferrals do not have that effect. The full ranges are on traditional IRA deduction limits.
Covered by your 401(k): what stays deductible?
Deductible part of a 2026 IRA contribution
$0
| IRA limit | $8,600 |
| Deductible | $0 |
| Nondeductible (Form 8606) | $8,600 |
| Phase-out range | $81,000 to $91,000 |
Where the limits interact: the Roth IRA test
The Roth IRA reduces your contribution once MAGI reaches $153,000 (single) or $242,000 (joint). Having a 401(k) does not change that range, but pre-tax deferrals can move you below it. A Roth 401(k) has no income test at all, so a high earner who is above the Roth IRA range can still put Roth money in the workplace plan up to the full deferral limit (Roth 401(k) limits).
An order of saving often described
Many explanations of these accounts describe a common sequence. It is general information, not a recommendation for your situation:
- Contribute enough to the 401(k) to receive the full employer match, since the match is money the IRA cannot offer.
- Fund an IRA, which often gives a wider choice of investments and, for a Roth IRA, withdrawals of contributions at any time.
- Return to the 401(k) and raise the deferral toward the $24,500 limit.
- For someone with a high-deductible health plan, an HSA is a third limit, separate from both (HSA limits).
Fees, the quality of the plan's funds, your tax bracket now and later, and access to the money all change the picture. The calculators show what is allowed; they do not say what is best.
Changing jobs, and couples with four limits
Someone who changes employers in the middle of 2026 has to watch the 401(k) side closely. Each payroll system only sees its own deferrals, so a person who deferred $15,000 at the first job and joins a plan at the second can defer only $9,500 more before turning 50. A deferral above the yearly limit must be returned by April 15, 2027, or it is taxed twice. The IRA side is unaffected by the move: the same $7,500 stays available whatever happens at work, and an old 401(k) can be rolled into an IRA without using any of it.
A married couple where both spouses work has four separate limits: two deferral limits and two IRA limits, each tested on the owner's own age. A spouse who has no plan at work keeps a fully deductible IRA up to a much higher joint income, $242,000, than the spouse who has one. When only one spouse earns, the other can still fund an IRA on that pay through the spousal IRA rule, but cannot defer into the employer's 401(k).
Other differences that are not about the amount
A 401(k) deferral comes out of payroll and stops on December 31; an IRA can be funded in a lump sum until the April deadline. A 401(k) may allow loans; an IRA does not. Required distributions apply to traditional accounts of both types, while Roth IRAs and, since 2024, Roth 401(k)s have none during the owner's lifetime. Self-employed people without employees can open a solo 401(k) and still use an IRA on top.