Roth IRA Income Limits 2026: How Much You Can Contribute

A Roth IRA is one of the best ways to save for retirement: you pay tax now, and the money (including all its growth) comes out tax-free in retirement. But there's an income limit, and above it the amount you can put in shrinks to zero. Here are the 2026 numbers.

2026 contribution limit

• $7,500 a year across all your IRAs (traditional and Roth together), or $8,600 if you're 50 or older.
• You can't put in more than you earned from work that year.
• You have until the tax-filing deadline in April 2027 to make 2026 contributions.

Roth IRA income limits

Inside the phase-out range the limit falls in a straight line, rounded up to the next $10 (and at least $200 if anything is left):

Traditional IRA deduction limits

Anyone with earned income can put money in a traditional IRA. Whether you can deduct it depends on income if you (or your spouse) have a retirement plan at work. Single and covered at work, the deduction phases out between $81,000 and $91,000 of MAGI. With no workplace plan, it's fully deductible at any income.

If your income is too high: the "backdoor" Roth

• Contribute to a traditional IRA without deducting it, then convert it to a Roth IRA. This is allowed by the tax rules.
• Watch the pro-rata rule: if you already have pre-tax money in any traditional, SEP or SIMPLE IRA, part of the conversion is taxable.
• Report it on Form 8606. Many people ask a tax professional the first time.

What it can grow to

Putting $7,500 a year into a Roth IRA from age 30 to 65 at 7% could grow to about $1,109,351, all of it tax-free in retirement if you follow the rules (age 59½ and the account open at least five years).