Life Expectancy Divisor
24.6
Required Minimum Distribution (RMD)
Calculate your IRS-required minimum distribution from a retirement account.
Required Minimum Distribution
$20,325.20
Monthly Equivalent
$1,693.77
Based on the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table (ages above 100 use the age-100 divisor here). Use the Joint Life Table instead if your spouse is the sole beneficiary and more than 10 years younger.
How to use the Required Minimum Distribution (RMD)
The Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) is free and runs entirely in your browser — no sign-up, and nothing you enter leaves your device. It opens pre-filled with a realistic example, so you can see how it works before replacing any figure with your own; the results update as you type. Press Calculate to refresh the result panel, or Reset to return to the example.
The inputs it asks for:
- Account Balance (Dec 31 prior year) — a dollar amount.
- Age This Year — a number.
The formula
A required minimum distribution divides your prior year-end balance by a life-expectancy factor from an IRS table:
RMD = Balance (Dec 31 prior year) ÷ Life-expectancy divisor- Balance
- the account value on December 31 of the previous year
- Divisor
- the factor for your age from the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table
The divisor shrinks as you age, so the required percentage rises over time. This uses the Uniform Lifetime Table; a different table applies if your sole beneficiary is a spouse more than 10 years younger.
Worked example
Using the example values — Account Balance (Dec 31 prior year) $500,000.00, Age This Year 75 — the Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) returns a Required Minimum Distribution of $20,325.20. It also reports Life Expectancy Divisor (24.6), Monthly Equivalent ($1,693.77).
Prefer your own numbers? Change any field above and this recomputes instantly.
Key terms
- RMD
- Required minimum distribution — the amount the IRS makes you withdraw each year from certain retirement accounts.
- Uniform Lifetime Table
- The IRS table of life-expectancy divisors used for most account holders.
- SECURE 2.0
- The 2022 law that raised the RMD starting age to 73 (effective 2023).
Frequently asked questions
When do RMDs start?
Under current law (SECURE 2.0) they begin at age 73. Your first RMD can be delayed to April 1 of the following year, but then you take two that year.
Which accounts require RMDs?
Traditional IRAs and most employer plans (401(k), 403(b)). Roth IRAs have no RMDs for the original owner, and Roth 401(k)s no longer require them either under recent rules.
What if I don't take it?
The shortfall is penalized — 25% under SECURE 2.0, reduced to 10% if corrected promptly. Take at least the RMD each year to avoid it.