PFCGuide · PFC
How to Use Our 401(k) Calculator to Plan Your Retirement
Build a 2026 contribution plan with PFC’s free 401(k) calculator. Compare employee savings, employer matching, paycheck amounts, and contribution limits.
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A retirement plan needs an annual savings amount as well as assumptions about future growth and spending. Our free 401(k) calculator helps with that first input: your full-year employee contribution, employer match, and average contribution per paycheck for 2026.
It does not project your retirement balance, retirement age, investment returns, or sustainable withdrawals. Use its contribution estimate as one part of a wider retirement plan.
Step 1: gather the inputs from your plan
- Annual eligible salary: use the compensation your plan treats as eligible. Check how bonuses and other pay are handled.
- Age at the end of 2026: this selects the modeled employee limit and catch-up category.
- Your contribution percentage: choose the portion of eligible pay you want to contribute.
- Employer match percentage: a 50% match means 50 cents from the employer for each eligible dollar you contribute.
- Match applies to salary up to: a 6% cap means matching stops on contributions above that portion of salary in this model.
- Paychecks per year: choose the frequency that matches your payroll to view an annual average per paycheck.
Step 2: separate your savings from the employer match
Consider an employee age 35 earning $100,000, paid 26 times each year. The employer matches 50% of contributions up to 6% of salary. Compare a 6% employee contribution with a 10% contribution:
| Result | Contribute 6% | Contribute 10% |
|---|---|---|
| Employee contribution | $6,000.00 | $10,000.00 |
| Employer match | $3,000.00 | $3,000.00 |
| Total annual contribution | $9,000.00 | $13,000.00 |
| Employee average per paycheck | $230.77 | $384.62 |
The higher contribution adds $4,000 of employee savings, while the modeled match stays the same because the matching threshold was already reached. The paycheck amount is your contribution, not an estimate of the reduction in take-home pay after taxes.
Step 3: check the 2026 contribution limits
| Age at year end | Base employee limit | Catch-up if eligible | Employee total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 50 | $24,500 | $0 | $24,500 |
| 50–59 or 64 and older | $24,500 | $8,000 | $32,500 |
| 60–63 | $24,500 | $11,250 | $35,750 |
The model also applies a $72,000 regular combined-contribution limit, subject to compensation, plus actual eligible catch-up contributions. Contribution and match percentages use compensation capped at $360,000. Plan eligibility and limits still matter; traditional and Roth employee deferrals share the employee limit.
Source: IRS: 2026 retirement plan limits.
Step 4: turn the result into a contribution plan
Run the calculator with your current contribution rate, then with another rate you want to evaluate. Record the annual total and the employee paycheck average. Compare that cash commitment with your budget before changing a payroll election. The calculator does not submit elections or move money.
If your requested contribution exceeds the modeled limit, the result is capped and a notice explains the adjustment. Treat that as a prompt to check payroll settings. This is a full-year illustration: it does not subtract year-to-date contributions or calculate a remaining-paycheck catch-up schedule.
Step 5: connect annual savings to your broader retirement picture
Use the estimated annual contribution alongside your existing retirement balance, time horizon, expected expenses, investment choices, fees, and other expected income. This calculator cannot decide whether that amount will fund your retirement. A long-term projection also needs return, inflation, and withdrawal assumptions that this tool deliberately does not provide.
Before relying on the match, check vesting, payroll-by-payroll matching, and whether your employer offers a year-end true-up. The model assumes full vesting and annual matching. It also assumes no deferrals to another plan. Roth catch-up requirements and plan-specific rules may affect how contributions must be made; confirm those details with your plan administrator.
Return to the 401(k) contribution calculator to compare your own inputs. It is free to use, requires no account, and includes a downloadable contribution breakdown.