Skip to main content

The Retirement Numbers: the facts

2026 law · reviewed September 4, 2026

  1. The 2026 401(k), 403(b), and 457 deferral limit is $24,500. The catch-up for people 50 and over is $8,000; for people who are 60 through 63 during the year it is $11,250 instead.
  2. The 2026 IRA limit is $7,500, with a $1,100 catch-up from age 50. A qualified charitable distribution from an IRA is capped at $111,000 for the year.
  3. The 2026 HSA limits are $4,400 for self-only coverage and $8,750 for family coverage, plus $1,000 from age 55.
  4. Social Security benefits rose 2.8% for 2026. Wages are taxed for Social Security up to $184,500. Before full retirement age, $24,480 of earnings is exempt from the earnings test.
  5. The thresholds that make Social Security benefits taxable, $25,000 single and $32,000 joint, have not changed since the 1980s and 1990s and are not indexed.
  6. The standard Medicare Part B premium is $202.90 a month in 2026. Income-related surcharges begin above $109,000 of 2024 income on an individual return and $218,000 on a joint return.
  7. The 2026 standard deduction is $16,100 single and $32,200 joint, with $1,650 more per spouse over 65 ($2,050 if unmarried), and a further $6,000 per person over 65 for 2025 through 2028, phasing out above $75,000 single and $150,000 joint.
  8. The 2026 annual gift exclusion is $19,000 per recipient. The federal estate and gift exclusion is $15,000,000 per person; Illinois taxes estates above $4,000,000.