403(b) Calculator
403(b) Calculator
Contribution growth plus the 403(b)-specific 15-years-of-service catch-up for school, hospital, and nonprofit employees.
Contribution growth plus the 403(b)-specific 15-years-of-service catch-up for school, hospital, and nonprofit employees.
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Professional Financial Tools
8/24/2026
e.g. 50 means the employer matches 50 cents per dollar.
Drives the age-based catch-up (50+, and the higher SECURE 2.0 band at 60–63).
Only available at qualified organizations — schools, hospitals, home health agencies, health/welfare agencies, and churches — and only if the plan document allows it. Check with your plan administrator.
20 years of $7,875/year (employee + employer) growing at 7.0%, starting from $40,000.
8% of your $75,000 salary.
$24,500 base.
50% match on contributions up to 5% of salary.
Your contribution plus the employer match.
Free financial calculators, verified against primary sources like the IRS, CFPB and Federal Reserve. No sign-up, and every calculation runs entirely in your browser — nothing you type is ever sent to us.
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Open calculatorThe 403(b) Calculator projects how your money grows over time when combined with regular contributions and compound returns. It provides instant, accurate results and helps you model scenarios so you can make better decisions with your money.
Compound interest is what Einstein allegedly called "the eighth wonder of the world." Whether you're saving for a home, retirement, or financial independence, the math is the same: time in the market beats timing the market. Small, consistent contributions over decades produce wealth that seems impossible with mental arithmetic.
Future value of a series of regular contributions (annuity due) plus an initial lump sum:
We assume contributions happen at the start of each period. Historical US stock market returns from 1957–2023 average about 10% nominal and 7% real (inflation-adjusted), per NYU Stern historical data. Your calculator lets you adjust this assumption.
For a diversified US stock portfolio, 7% real (inflation-adjusted) or 10% nominal over 20+ year horizons is defensible based on historical data. Shorter horizons are much less predictable. Don't use 12% — that's a sales pitch, not a math-based assumption.
A "nominal" return of 7% over 30 years with 3% inflation leaves you with only ~4% real purchasing power growth. Always think in real returns when planning for goals decades away. This calculator lets you model inflation separately.
Academic research (Vanguard, 2012) shows lump-sum investing beats dollar-cost averaging about 2/3 of the time because markets tend to go up. DCA is a behavioral tool for people who can't emotionally handle putting a large sum in all at once.
In a taxable brokerage account, you'll owe capital gains tax on growth (15%–20% long-term federal for most people). In a Roth IRA/401(k), growth is tax-free. In a traditional IRA/401(k), you defer taxes and pay at withdrawal. Use our Roth vs Traditional IRA calculator to compare.