Retirement Tax Calculator

It depends on the source. Withdrawals from a traditional 401(k) or IRA, pension payments, part-time wages, and most rental and annuity income are taxed as ordinary income at your regular bracket. Roth IRA and Roth 401(k) withdrawals are tax-free. Social Security is taxed on a sliding scale of 0%, up to 50%, or up to 85% depending on your total income. Qualified dividends and long-term capital gains get their own lower rates. This calculator estimates the combined federal and state bill across those sources.

Between 0% and 85%, never more. The IRS uses "provisional income," which is your other income plus tax-exempt interest plus half of your Social Security. If that figure is below $25,000 (single) or $32,000 (married filing jointly), none of your benefit is taxed. Above those thresholds, up to 50% becomes taxable, and above $34,000 (single) or $44,000 (joint), up to 85% does. Note that even at the top, 15% of your benefit is always tax-free (SSA: income taxes on benefits).

It is shorthand for the three tiers of Social Security taxation. Below the first provisional-income threshold, 0% of your benefit is taxable. Between the first and second thresholds, up to 50% is taxable. Above the second threshold, up to 85% is taxable. The thresholds ($25,000/$34,000 single, $32,000/$44,000 joint) are fixed in law and not adjusted for inflation, so over time more retirees cross them. The calculator runs the full IRS worksheet for you (IRS Publication 915).

It varies widely. Nine states have no income tax at all (including Florida, Texas, Tennessee, and Nevada), so they tax no retirement income. Most states that do have an income tax still exempt Social Security, and many give partial exemptions for pension or IRA income. A handful tax retirement income much like wages. Enter your state's effective rate in the calculator, and treat the result as an estimate, since state rules on pensions and retirement accounts differ from federal.

Taxpayers who are 65 or older get an additional standard deduction on top of the regular amount. For 2026 that extra amount is $2,050 for single or head-of-household filers and $1,650 per qualifying spouse for those married filing jointly. On top of that, a temporary senior bonus deduction from the 2025 tax law adds up to $6,000 per qualifying filer age 65 or older for tax years 2025 through 2028. It phases out above $75,000 of income for single filers and $150,000 for joint filers. Both deductions directly lower your taxable income, which is one reason many retirees owe less than they expect. The calculator applies them automatically when your age is 65 or older (IRS Topic 551 and the IRS senior deduction guidance).

The biggest levers are timing and account mix. Roth conversions in lower-income years (often the gap between retiring and starting Social Security or RMDs) move money out of accounts that will be taxed later. Drawing partly from Roth accounts keeps your provisional income down, which can reduce how much Social Security is taxed. Qualified charitable distributions satisfy RMDs without adding to taxable income. And keeping an eye on bracket thresholds lets you fill up a lower bracket without spilling into the next.