Your contribution rate
The single biggest lever you control. Moving from 6% to 10% of pay early in your career can matter more than any investment choice you make later.
Retirement planning
401(k) calculator: how much should you contribute?
Your 401(k) is usually the biggest engine in a retirement plan. What it becomes depends on how much you put in, your employer's match, and how long it grows. Here is what moves the number — and how to see your own projection.
In short
Contribute at least enough to capture your full employer match — that is an immediate return you can't get elsewhere. Beyond that, a common target is 10–15% of income across all retirement accounts, and the 2026 IRS limit is $24,500 per year ($8,000 extra if you're 50 or older). The right number for you depends on when you want to retire and what you'll spend — which is exactly what a full projection shows.
What decides what your 401(k) becomes
A 401(k) balance is simple math repeated over decades. These are the inputs that matter most.
Your employer match
Many employers match 3–6% of pay. Not contributing enough to get the full match is turning down part of your compensation.
How long it grows
Compounding rewards time more than timing. Contributions in your 30s typically end up worth several times the same dollars contributed in your 50s.
Catch-up contributions
From age 50 you can contribute an extra $8,000 per year, and ages 60–63 get an even higher $11,250 catch-up limit. Finnlight applies these automatically as you age through the projection.
Growth and fees
Long-run stock-market returns have historically averaged well above inflation, but fund fees quietly reduce them. Finnlight shows your plan in today's dollars at a conservative default growth rate you can adjust.
What you'll spend in retirement
A balance on its own doesn't tell you if you're on track. It matters only against your retirement spending, Social Security, and the years you need it to last.
How Finnlight projects your 401(k)
Finnlight doesn't show your 401(k) as a standalone balance. It grows each account year by year inside your full plan, so you see what your contributions actually mean for your retirement date.
Limits shown are 2026 IRS limits (IRS Notice 2025-67). Finnlight is an educational planning tool and does not provide financial, tax, or legal advice; projections are before income tax.
- Add your 401(k), 403(b), or 457 with its current balance and annual contributions.
- Catch-up contribution limits apply automatically once you turn 50 — and the higher 60–63 limit.
- See how raising your contribution rate changes the age your money lasts to.
- Run 400 simulated market paths to see how your plan holds up in bad markets, not just average ones.
- Ask Finn what-ifs like “What if I max out my 401(k) from age 55?”
- Start free — no account or card needed to try it.
See what your 401(k) means for your retirement date
Start a plan with your real numbers and see how your contributions, match, and Social Security add up — and what changing any of them does to when you can retire.