This is a comparison between 401(k), Roth 401(k), and Traditional Individual Retirement Account and Roth Individual Retirement Account accounts, four different types of retirement savings vehicles that are common in the United States.
Contents |
| Tax Year 2011 | 401(k)[1][2][3] | Roth 401(k)[1][2][3] | Traditional IRA[1][2][3] | Roth IRA[1][2][3] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tax Implications | Contributions are pre-tax. Distributions are taxed as ordinary income. | Contributions are post-tax. Qualified distributions are not taxable. | Contributions are pre-tax, but deductible. Distributions are taxed as ordinary income (except any non-deducted principal). | Contributions are post-tax. Qualified distributions are not taxable. |
| Events that normally result in tax (e.g., gain or loss on sale of an asset) are not realized while the proceeds remain in a plan. | ||||
| Income Limits | Generally none, but somewhat complicated due to HCE (highly compensated employees) rules | If owner is covered by employer-sponsored retirement plan, deductibility is based on MAGI; Single, HoH, MFS: full deduct to $56k, partial to $66k; MFJ, QW: full deduct to $89k, partial to $109k. Can't contrib > annual taxable compensation | Based on MAGI; Single: full contrib up to $105k, partial contrib to $120k; Married: full contrib up to $167k, partial contrib to $177k; Can't contrib > annual taxable compensation | |
| Contribution Limits | $16.5k/yr for under 50, $22k/yr for 50 and over in 2011; $17k/yr for under 50 in 2012; limits are a total of traditional 401(k) and Roth 401(k) contributions. Employee and employer combined contributions must be lesser of 100% of employee's salary or $49k. | $5k/yr for age 49 or below; $6k/yr for age 50 or above in 2011, 2012; limits are total for traditional IRA and Roth IRA contributions combined | ||
| Employer or Individual | Employer or Sole Proprietor sets up this plan | Individual sets up this plan | ||
| Matching Contributions | Matching contributions available from employers. | Matching contributions available through employers, but they must sit in a pretax account | No matching contributions available | |
| Distributions | Distributions can begin at age 59½ or if owner becomes disabled | Distributions can begin at age 59½ and the account has been open for at least 5 years; there are exceptions though; or if owner becomes disabled | Distributions can begin at age 59½ or if owner becomes disabled | Distributions can begin at age 59½ as long as contributions are "seasoned" (5 years from January 1 of the year the first contribution was made) or owner becomes disabled |
| 401(k) | Roth 401(k) | Traditional IRA | Roth IRA | |
| Forced Distributions | Must start withdrawing funds at age 70½ unless employee is still employed. Penalty is 50% of minimum distribution. | Must start withdrawing funds at age 70½ unless employee is still employed unless still working and not a 5% owner. Penalty is 50% of minimum distribution. | Must start withdrawing funds at age 70½. Penalty is 50% of minimum distribution. | None. This is a huge advantage for Roth IRAs within estate planning. |
| Withdrawal of Contributions (Principal) | No, but loans from this plan are available depending upon employer's plan | Yes, as long as the account has been open for more than 5 years, however the proportion of withdrawal equal to the proportion of profits to contributions in the account is subject to 10% penalty plus taxes | No | At any point, the owner may withdraw the total contributed into the IRA |
| Early Withdrawal | 10% penalty plus taxes. There are some exceptions to this penalty.[4] | Proportion of withdrawal equal to the proportion of profits to contributions in the account is subject to 10% penalty plus taxes including withdrawal for hardships | 10% penalty plus taxes for distributions before age 59½ with exceptions | Early withdrawal that is more than contributions plus seasoned conversions are subject to normal income taxes and 10% penalty if not qualified distributions |
| Home Down Payment | Purchase of primary residence and avoidance of foreclosure or eviction of primary residence, subject to 10% penalty, if hardship withdrawals are available in the plan.[5] | none | Can withdraw up to $10k for a first time home purchase down payment with stipulations | Up to $10k can be used for primary home down payment. Must not have owned a home in previous 24 months. House must be owned by IRA owner or direct linear ancestors or descendants. |
| Education Expenses | Payment of secondary educational expenses in last 12 months for employee, spouse, or dependents, subject to 10% penalty, if hardship withdrawals are available in the plan.[6] | Can withdraw for qualified higher education expenses of owner, children, and grandchildren | ||
| Medical Expenses | Medical expenses not covered by insurance for employee, spouse, or dependents, subject to 10% penalty, if hardship withdrawals are available in the plan. Medical expenses in excess of 7.5% of your adjusted gross income may be exempt to the 10% penalty.[7] | Can withdraw for qualified unreimbursed medical expenses that are more than 7.5% of AGI; medical insurance during period of unemployment; during disability | ||
| 401(k) | Roth 401(k) | Traditional IRA | Roth IRA | |
| Conversions | Upon termination of employment, can be rolled to IRA or Roth IRA. When rolled to a Roth IRA taxes need to be paid during the year of the conversion. For any conversions or rollovers in 2010, any amounts that are required to be included in income are included in income in equal amounts in 2011 and 2012. If you elect otherwise, you can choose to include the entire amount in income in 2010. per IRS Pub. 590, Pg. 63. | Cannot be converted to a traditional 401(k), but upon termination of employment, can be rolled into Roth IRA | Can be converted to a Roth IRA. For 2010, the income limits for conversion have been lifted. In addition to that, the tax liability for a traditional to Roth conversion may either be paid fully in 2010 or spread equally across 2011 and 2012. | |
| Changing Institutions | Can roll over to another employer's 401(k) plan or to a traditional IRA at an independent institution. | Can roll over to another employer's Roth 401(k) plan or to a Roth IRA at an independent institution. | Funds can be either transferred to another institution or they can be sent to the owner of the traditional IRA who has 60 days to put the money in another institution in a rollover contribution to another traditional IRA[8] | Funds can be either transferred to another institution or they can be sent to the owner of the Roth IRA who has 60 days to put the money in another institution in a rollover contribution to another Roth IRA[8] |
| Inside The Account | Capital gains, dividends, and interest within account incur no tax liability | |||
| Beneficiaries | When owner dies, spouse as beneficiary can roll both accounts into one IRA account. Other beneficiaries will be subject to forced distributions (taxable) based on life expectancy. Beneficiaries will not pay estate tax if the inheritance is under the exemption amount. | When owner dies, spouse as beneficiary can roll both accounts into one Roth IRA account. Other beneficiaries will be subject to forced distributions (tax free) based on life expectancy. Beneficiaries will not pay estate tax if the inheritance is under the exemption amount. | ||
| Other | Slowly growing in popularity after its recent creation[9] | |||
| 401(k) | Roth 401(k) | Traditional IRA | Roth IRA | |
The decision between choosing a Roth IRA vs. a Traditional IRA depends mostly on whether you are likely to be in a higher tax bracket in the future (in which case a Roth IRA is better) or a lower tax bracket in the future (in which case a conventional IRA is better). Roth IRAs also have a bit more flexibility in terms of early withdrawal. If your tax bracket does not change while you are working vs. when you retire, you will end up with the same amount of money in a Roth IRA as a conventional IRA for a donation less than the maximum allowable. If you save the maximum allowable amount in an IRA, and you stay in the same tax bracket, there is a tax advantage to the Roth-IRA. For instance, in 2007 the maximum traditional IRA for a 40 year old was $4000. Any additional investment above that would have to go into a different account. The following example illustrates the tax consequences:
Note that this comparison applies when choosing whether to contribute the same amount to a regular or Roth 401(k) - either because you only want to contribute up to the employer match, or because you want to contribute up to the maximum amount. If, on the other hand, you are able and willing to contribute extra tax savings to a Traditional IRA / 401(k), as in the following example, the tax advantages of a Roth IRA / 401(k) over a Traditional IRA / 401(k) highlighted above will no longer apply.