How it works
Enter who inherited the account, the owner’s dates, your year of birth, and the balance. The calculator decides which rule applies, divides each prior year-end balance by the IRS life expectancy factor to get your minimum withdrawal, and shows the year the account must be fully withdrawn. For the full rules behind it, see our inherited IRA rules guide.
Calculate your inherited IRA RMDs
Example values are filled in. Replace them with yours; results update as you type. Nothing you enter leaves your browser.
Which rule applies to you
| Beneficiary | Owner died before starting RMDs | Owner had started RMDs |
|---|---|---|
| Adult child, other relative, friend | Empty by end of year 10; no yearly minimum | Yearly minimum in years 1–9; empty by end of year 10 |
| Surviving spouse | Treat as your own IRA, or stay a beneficiary and stretch | |
| Owner’s minor child | Stretch until 21, then empty within 10 years | |
| Disabled, chronically ill, or within 10 years of the owner’s age | Stretch over your life expectancy | Stretch over yours or the owner’s, whichever is longer |
| Estate, charity, non-qualifying trust | Empty by end of year 5 | Yearly minimum over the owner’s remaining life expectancy |
“Started RMDs” means the owner died on or after their required beginning date. Trusts follow special rules; see a trust or estate attorney.
A worked example: minimums vs. spreading it out
A 53-year-old inherits a $800,000 traditional IRA from her father, who died in March 2025 at 78, after his required beginning date. She falls under the 10-year rule with annual minimums and must empty the account by December 31, 2035. Assuming a hypothetical 5% annual return:
| Year | Minimums only | Even withdrawals |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (factor 33.4) | $23,952 | $103,604 |
| 2027 | $25,187 | $103,604 |
| 2030 | $29,294 | $103,604 |
| 2034 | $35,860 | $103,604 |
| 2035 (deadline) | $966,561 | $103,604 |
Hypothetical illustration only; not a projection of any investment. Minimums rise each year as the factor drops by one.
Taking only the minimums leaves almost $1 million to withdraw in a single year, most of it taxed at the top federal rate. Spreading it evenly keeps each year’s income lower, but even withdrawals aren’t automatically the best answer either.
Why neither the minimum nor an even split is usually best
The calculator shows what you must withdraw. What you should withdraw depends on the next 10 years of your own income, and those years are rarely alike. A plan built around them often beats both the minimum and an even split:
- Lower-income years come first. A gap between retiring and starting Social Security or your own RMDs, a sabbatical, or a year with a business loss can be the cheapest time to withdraw a lot, filling up a lower bracket.
- High-income years now. If you are at your peak earnings, taking only the minimum for a few years and withdrawing more after you retire can save a full bracket or more, as long as you don’t leave too much for the final year.
- Medicare premiums. Withdrawals count toward the income that sets Medicare Part B and D surcharges two years later, so timing matters once you are within about two years of 65.
- College aid and health insurance credits. Financial aid formulas and marketplace health insurance subsidies are based on income, so a big withdrawal in the wrong year can cost more than the tax itself.
- Use the cash to save more yourself. Raising your own 401(k) contributions and living partly on inherited IRA withdrawals moves money back into a tax-deferred account you control.
- Inherited Roth IRAs. With no yearly minimum, it often makes sense to leave a Roth alone until the final year so it grows tax-free as long as possible.
- A planned move. If you expect to move to a state with lower income tax, deferring withdrawals until after the move can cut the state tax.
Getting this right means looking at your tax return, your other accounts, and your plans for the next decade together. That is the kind of planning we do every day.
Find your best withdrawal pattern
Bring your inherited IRA statement and last year’s tax return. We’ll map withdrawals across the 10 years around your income, brackets, and Medicare timing, and show how much tax a plan can save compared with the minimum.
Plan my withdrawals →Before you take your first withdrawal
- Deadline: each year’s minimum must come out by December 31.
- The year of death: if the owner hadn’t taken their own RMD for the year they died, the beneficiary must take the rest by December 31 of that year.
- Missed withdrawals: the penalty is 25% of the shortfall, cut to 10% if corrected promptly. Annual 10-year-rule minimums missed for 2021–2024 were waived by the IRS; from 2025 they are required.
- Withholding: inherited IRA withdrawals are taxed as ordinary income. Ask the custodian to withhold, or make estimated payments, to avoid an underpayment penalty.
- Title the account correctly: keep it as an inherited IRA in the deceased owner’s name for your benefit. Rolling it into your own IRA is allowed only for spouses.
Frequently asked questions
How do you calculate an RMD on an inherited IRA?
Divide the account balance on December 31 of the prior year by a life expectancy factor from the IRS Single Life Expectancy Table. The factor is based on your age in the year after the owner’s death (or the owner’s age, if that gives a longer period and the owner had started RMDs) and goes down by one each year after that.
Do I have to take annual RMDs under the 10-year rule?
Only if the owner died on or after their required beginning date. In that case, starting in 2025, you must take a minimum each year in years one through nine and empty the account by December 31 of the tenth year after the death. If the owner died before their required beginning date, no withdrawal is required until the tenth year, but the account must still be empty by then.
What is the required beginning date?
It is April 1 of the year after the owner reaches RMD age: 73 for owners born 1951 through 1959, 75 for those born in 1960 or later, 72 for those born between July 1, 1949 and 1950, and 70 and a half for those born earlier. Roth IRA owners have no required beginning date, so inherited Roth IRAs are treated as if the owner died before it.
Who can still stretch an inherited IRA over their life expectancy?
Eligible designated beneficiaries: a surviving spouse, the owner’s minor child until age 21, a disabled or chronically ill beneficiary, and a beneficiary not more than 10 years younger than the owner. A minor child switches to the 10-year rule at 21. Everyone else who is named as a beneficiary generally falls under the 10-year rule.
Should I take only the minimum from an inherited IRA?
Not necessarily. Taking only the minimum can leave a large balance that must all come out, and be taxed, in the final year. Spreading withdrawals evenly helps, but the lowest-tax plan usually withdraws more in lower-income years and less in high-income years, and accounts for Medicare premiums, financial aid, and any planned move.
What happens if I miss an inherited IRA RMD?
The shortfall is subject to a 25% excise tax, which drops to 10% if the missed amount is withdrawn and corrected promptly. The IRS waived the penalty for missed annual 10-year-rule distributions for 2021 through 2024, but annual RMDs are required from 2025 on.
Do inherited Roth IRAs have required distributions?
Yes. Non-spouse beneficiaries must still empty an inherited Roth IRA within 10 years, or stretch it if they are eligible designated beneficiaries. Because Roth owners never have RMDs, there is no annual minimum under the 10-year rule. Withdrawals are generally tax-free once the Roth has been open five years.