What is the 401(k) limit for 2026?

$24,500 of employee contributions, plus $8,000 at 50 or older, or $11,250 if you turn 60 to 63 in 2026.

Does the employer match count toward the limit?

Not toward the $24,500 employee limit. It counts toward the overall $72,000 limit for all contributions to the account.

Have the 2027 401(k) limits been announced?

Not as of 9 October 2026. The IRS publishes them in a notice in the autumn; the 2026 limits came in Notice 2025-67.

Tax numbersTax years 2026 and 2025IRS Notice 2025-67

401(k) contribution limits 2026 and 2025

You can put $24,500 into a 401(k), 403(b), 457(b) or the TSP in 2026 ($23,500 in 2025). Add $8,000 if you are 50 or older, or $11,250 if you turn 60, 61, 62 or 63 in 2026.

2025FinalFor returns filed in 2026. Notice 2024-80.

2026Current yearFor returns filed in 2027. Notice 2025-67.

2027Not yet publishedNot published as of 9 October 2026. The 2027 limits will be in the IRS notice that follows Notice 2025-67. Until then, plan with the 2026 figures on this page.

401(k), 403(b), 457 and TSP limits, 2026 vs 2025Dollar limits per person per calendar year.

	2026	2025	Change
Employee contribution: 401(k), 403(b), most 457(b), Thrift Savings Plan	$24,500	$23,500	+$1,000 (+4.3%)
Catch-up, age 50 and over	$8,000	$7,500	+$500 (+6.7%)
Catch-up, age 60 to 63	$11,250	$11,250	No change
Total into the account, employee + employer (§ 415(c))	$72,000	$70,000	+$2,000 (+2.9%)
SIMPLE IRA / SIMPLE 401(k)	$17,000	$16,500	+$500 (+3.0%)
SIMPLE catch-up, age 50+	$4,000	$3,500	+$500 (+14.3%)
SIMPLE catch-up, age 60 to 63	$5,250	$5,250	No change
Pay that counts for contributions (§ 401(a)(17))	$360,000	$350,000	+$10,000 (+2.9%)
Highly compensated employee threshold	$160,000	$160,000	No change

Source: IRS, Notice 2025-67: 2026 retirement plan and IRA limits (with the 2025 amounts they replace)

How much can I put in my 401(k)?

Your age at the end of the year

Tax year

How often you are paid

Your maximum employee contribution

$24,500. To reach it, set aside $942.31 a paycheck. With employer money the account can take up to $72,000 (catch-ups on top). In a SIMPLE plan your limit is $17,000.

The employee limit is shared by all your 401(k), 403(b) and SIMPLE plans for the year (457(b) plans have their own separate limit).

Catch-up rules worth knowing

Age 60 to 63. Since 2025, people who turn 60, 61, 62 or 63 during the year get a larger catch-up ($11,250 in 2026) instead of the usual $8,000. At 64 it goes back to the age-50 amount.

Roth catch-ups for higher earners. If your Social Security wages from this employer in 2025 were more than $150,000, your 2026 catch-up contributions to a 401(k), 403(b) or governmental 457(b) must go in as Roth (after-tax) contributions (Notice 2025-67; a year earlier the threshold applied to 2024 wages was $145,000).

Limits over the two years

The employee limit rose $1,000 to $24,500

Maximum employee contribution, dollars.