Retirement Withdrawal Strategy Calculator
Which account should you spend from first in retirement — your 401(k), your Roth, or your brokerage? The order can swing your lifetime tax bill by tens of thousands. This free tool tests several drawdown strategies and hands you the tax-smart order, year by year.
Open the free Withdrawal Optimizer →Free, no account, no email — your numbers stay in your browser.
Why withdrawal order matters so much
Two retirees with identical savings can end up with wildly different after-tax wealth depending only on which account they tap first. The reason is taxes: every dollar from a pretax 401(k) or IRA is taxed as ordinary income, brokerage sales are taxed only on the gain (at lower capital-gains rates), and Roth withdrawals are tax-free. Sequence those wrong and you overpay for decades.
- Conventional order — taxable brokerage first, then pretax, then Roth last. Simple, lets the Roth compound, but lets the pretax balance balloon into large required minimum distributions.
- Bracket-smart — draw pretax each year only up to the top of a target bracket (12% or 22%), then top up spending from brokerage and Roth. Steadily draws down pretax to blunt future RMDs while keeping taxable income low.
- Pretax first — drain the 401(k)/IRA early to shrink RMDs and preserve tax-free Roth growth.
- Roth first — almost always the worst; it wastes tax-free growth and leaves a big taxable RMD.
The RMD torpedo and the Social Security tax trap
Leave a large balance in your pretax accounts and required minimum distributions — starting at age 73 or 75 — can force out more income than you need, spiking your bracket and making up to 85% of your Social Security benefit taxable. Drawing pretax down earlier, at controlled rates, can defuse both. This calculator models RMDs, the taxation of Social Security, and long-term capital gains on brokerage sales together, then ranks each strategy by the after-tax wealth it leaves you.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best order to withdraw from retirement accounts?
A common default is taxable brokerage first, then pretax (401k/IRA), then Roth last — but that often isn't optimal. Drawing pretax down earlier, up to the top of a low tax bracket, can cut lifetime taxes by blunting future required minimum distributions. This calculator tests several orders on your numbers and shows which leaves the most after-tax wealth.
Should I spend my 401(k) or my Roth first?
Usually spend pretax (401k/IRA) money before Roth. Roth grows tax-free and has no required distributions, so it's the most valuable dollar to preserve for last — while drawing pretax earlier reduces the RMDs that could later spike your bracket. Spending Roth first is typically the worst strategy.
What is the RMD tax torpedo?
If a large balance stays in pretax accounts, required minimum distributions starting at 73 or 75 can force out more taxable income than you need, pushing you into a higher bracket and making up to 85% of your Social Security taxable. Drawing pretax down earlier, at controlled rates, can defuse it.
Does this calculator account for Social Security and capital gains taxes?
Yes. It models the taxation of Social Security via the provisional-income formula, long-term capital gains on brokerage sales (taxing only the gain), federal brackets by filing status, an approximate state rate, and RMDs — all together, year by year.
Is this retirement withdrawal calculator free?
Yes — completely free and private, with no account and no email. Your numbers stay in your browser.