02 / TAX YEAR 2026

Contribution limits,
at a glance.

For a standard 401(k), the 2026 employee elective-deferral limit is $24,500. Catch-up contributions have separate age and plan conditions. Employer contributions count under a different annual-additions limit.

Which contributions count toward $24,500?

This is the limit on your employee elective deferrals to applicable plans, including traditional and designated Roth 401(k) salary deferrals. Those two tax treatments do not give you two separate $24,500 limits. If you defer pay into more than one 401(k) plan during 2026, the limit generally applies to the total of your deferrals across those plans. You may need to track the combined amount yourself when employers are unrelated. Other arrangements have their own coordination rules; consult the IRS participant guidance.

Catch-up amounts are on top, subject to conditions

If you are age 50 or older by the end of 2026, the 401(k) catch-up ceiling is $8,000, provided your plan allows catch-up contributions and you otherwise qualify. For a participant who turns 60, 61, 62, or 63 in 2026, the higher catch-up ceiling is $11,250 instead of $8,000. A participant outside that age band uses the ordinary age-50 catch-up ceiling.

For 2026, a participant whose wages from the employer sponsoring the plan exceeded $150,000 in 2025 generally must make 2026 catch-up contributions as designated Roth contributions under the IRS rule. This is a prior-year wage test—not a general income phase-out for the basic $24,500 deferral limit. Confirm how the plan applies the rule to your employment and pay history.

Employer contributions use another ceiling

The overall defined-contribution annual-additions ceiling for 2026 is generally the lesser of 100% of compensation or $72,000, excluding catch-up deferrals. Employee deferrals, employer match, employer nonelective amounts, and certain other allocations can be included in this total. The IRS describes the total as up to $80,000 when the ordinary $8,000 catch-up is included, or up to $83,250 for someone in the special age-60-to-63 catch-up band. This is a plan-level limit and should not be confused with the $24,500 employee-deferral limit.

A SIMPLE 401(k) has separate figures

Do not use the standard-plan amounts above for a SIMPLE 401(k). In 2026, its basic elective-deferral limit is $17,000. The catch-up limit is $4,000 for an eligible participant age 50 or older, or $5,250 for someone who attains age 60 through 63 during 2026. SIMPLE-plan terms and eligibility still apply. The IRS lists these figures separately in its guidance.

Plan terms can be more restrictive

A plan may set a lower elective-deferral limit or restrict contributions for plan administration or nondiscrimination testing. The $24,500 limit is not a recommended savings target, and reaching the limit does not guarantee a particular account result. Check the current plan rules before adjusting payroll elections.

Primary sources: IRS: 401(k) and profit-sharing plan limits and IRS Notice 2025-67 in Internal Revenue Bulletin 2025-49 (2026 indexed amounts).