How is my RMD calculated?

Divide your account balance on December 31 of last year by the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table divisor for the age you reach this year. At 75 the divisor is 24.6, so a $500,000 balance gives a 2026 RMD of $20,325, about 4.07% of the balance.

By December 31 of the year it is for. The one exception is your first RMD, for the year you reach your start age, which may wait until April 1 of the following year. Waiting puts two RMDs in that following year, because the second one is still due by December 31 and is figured on a balance the delayed withdrawal did not reduce.

Do I have to take an RMD this year?

Only once you reach your start age: 73 if you were born 1951 to 1959 and 75 if you were born 1960 or later, under SECURE 2.0. Anyone born in 1950 or earlier is already taking RMDs. The calculator answers this from your age or date of birth.

Is the RMD divisor different for 2027?

No. The Uniform Lifetime Table is set by regulation and has applied unchanged to every distribution year since 2022, so the 2027 divisors are the same as the 2026 ones. Your RMD changes because your age and your balance change.

What if my spouse is more than 10 years younger?

If your spouse is your sole beneficiary and more than 10 years younger, the Uniform Lifetime Table does not apply. Your divisor comes from Table II, the Joint and Last Survivor table in IRS Publication 590-B, where your age and your spouse's age intersect. Enter that divisor in the calculator to get the amount.

RMD Calculator 2026

Your required minimum distribution is your account balance on December 31 of last year divided by the IRS divisor for the age you reach this year. At 75 with $500,000, the 2026 RMD is $20,325 (divisor 24.6, 4.07% of the balance), from the Uniform Lifetime Table in IRS Publication 590-B.

Enter your age or date of birth and your balance: you get the amount, the deadline, whether you owe one yet, and the next ten years at a growth rate you choose.

Calculate your required minimum distribution

I’ll enter my age I’ll enter my date of birth

Distribution year The year the RMD is for Your age on Dec 31, 2026 The age you reach this year Balance on Dec 31, 2025 ($) Traditional IRA or 401(k), pre-tax Assumed growth for the projection (%) An assumption, not a forecast Years to project

My spouse is my sole beneficiary and is more than 10 years younger than me

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How the RMD is calculated

RMD = balance on December 31 of last year ÷ divisor for the age you reach this year. The divisor comes from the Uniform Lifetime Table, which most account owners use (IRS Publication 590-B, Appendix B, Table III; the same table is 26 CFR §1.401(a)(9)-9(c)). It shrinks every year, so the share of the balance you must withdraw rises with age. The calculator reads the divisors from the same table the QuantCalc retirement engine runs on; to look one up by hand, use the 2026 RMD table.

The amount shown is rounded up to the cent, because withdrawing even a few cents less than the exact quotient leaves part of the minimum undistributed. If you own several traditional IRAs, figure an RMD for each and take the total from any one or more of them; employer plans such as a 401(k) each need their own (Publication 590-B, “More than one IRA”).

Deadlines: December 31, and April 1 in the first year

Each RMD is due by December 31 of the year it is for. The exception is the first one, for the year you reach your start age: you may take it as late as April 1 of the next year, your required beginning date (IRS Publication 590-B). If you wait, the next year carries two RMDs — the delayed first by April 1 and the second by December 31 — and the second is still figured on the full December 31 balance, because a withdrawal made after December 31 does not reduce it. The calculator shows that two-RMD total whenever you are in your first RMD year.

A missed or short RMD can cost an excise tax of 25% of the shortfall, reduced to 10% if you correct it in time, per Publication 590-B (“Excess Accumulations”).

When RMDs start

Under SECURE 2.0 your start age is 73 if you were born from 1951 to 1959 and 75 if you were born in 1960 or later (26 CFR §1.401(a)(9)-2(b)(2)); anyone born in 1950 or earlier is already taking them. The final regulation leaves birth year 1959 marked “reserved”, so 73 for 1959 is the proposed rule’s answer rather than settled law. For the year-by-birth-year detail, use the RMD age calculator; for the April 1 decision on its own, see your first RMD deadline.

Spouse more than 10 years younger

If your spouse is the sole beneficiary of the account for the whole year and is more than 10 years younger than you, the Uniform Lifetime Table does not apply. Your divisor comes from Table II (Joint and Last Survivor Life Expectancy) of IRS Publication 590-B, where your age and your spouse’s age in the distribution year meet. This page does not carry Table II; tick the box above, enter the divisor you find there, and the calculator does the rest.

Common questions

How is my RMD calculated?: Divide your account balance on December 31 of last year by the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table divisor for the age you reach this year. At 75 the divisor is 24.6, so a $500,000 balance gives a 2026 RMD of $20,325, about 4.07% of the balance (IRS Publication 590-B).
When is my RMD due?: By December 31 of the year it is for. The one exception is your first RMD, for the year you reach your start age, which may wait until April 1 of the following year. Waiting puts two RMDs in that following year, because the second one is still due by December 31 and is figured on a balance the delayed withdrawal did not reduce.
Do I have to take an RMD this year?: Only once you reach your start age: 73 if you were born 1951 to 1959 and 75 if you were born 1960 or later, under SECURE 2.0. Anyone born in 1950 or earlier is already taking RMDs. The calculator answers this from your age or date of birth.
Is the RMD divisor different for 2027?: No. The Uniform Lifetime Table is set by regulation and has applied unchanged to every distribution year since 2022, so the 2027 divisors are the same as the 2026 ones. Your RMD changes because your age and your balance change. The 2027 RMD table lists them.
What if my spouse is more than 10 years younger?: If your spouse is your sole beneficiary and more than 10 years younger, the Uniform Lifetime Table does not apply. Your divisor comes from Table II, the Joint and Last Survivor table in IRS Publication 590-B, where your age and your spouse’s age intersect. Enter that divisor in the calculator to get the amount.

Sources: IRS Publication 590-B, 26 CFR §1.401(a)(9)-9 and §1.401(a)(9)-2, checked 2026-09-23. QuantCalc is calculation software for education and planning, not tax or financial advice. Confirm your figure with your account custodian.