2023 IRA Contribution Limit
For 2023, the IRA Contribution Limit figures are $6,500 (Annual contribution limit) and +$1,000 (Catch-up contribution limit, age 50 and over).
Effective 2023-01-01Source: IR-2022-188 (IRS)Verified 2026-09-04
Compared with 2022
| Item | 2022 | 2023 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual contribution limit | $6,000 | $6,500 | +$500 (+8.3%) |
| Catch-up contribution limit, age 50 and over | +$1,000 | +$1,000 | +$0 (+0.0%) |
Who it applies to
Taxpayers who contribute to a traditional IRA or Roth IRA
What changed this year, and why
For 2023, the annual contribution limit for an Individual Retirement Arrangement (IRA) is $6,500. Individuals who are age 50 or older may contribute an additional $1,000 as a catch-up contribution. The catch-up amount is not subject to an annual cost-of-living adjustment.
Common questions
- What is the most I can contribute to my IRA in 2023 if I am not yet eligible for the catch-up contribution?
- The annual contribution limit is $6,500.
- What is the most I can contribute to my IRA in 2023 if I am eligible for the catch-up contribution?
- You may contribute the base limit of $6,500 plus an additional catch-up amount of $1,000.
The extra amount once you reach 50
For 2023, the IRS allows individuals who are 50 or older to contribute an extra $1,000 on top of the regular annual IRA contribution limit. This extra amount is called the catch-up contribution. Instead of the standard $6,500 limit that applies to younger savers, someone who is 50 or older can put in up to $7,500 for the year. The catch-up provision is designed to help people who are closer to retirement make up for savings they may have missed earlier in their working lives. The catch-up contribution is available in the tax year you turn 50 - you do not need to wait until the day after your 50th birthday, so long as you are 50 by December 31 of that year.
the IRA contribution limit is increased to $6,500 ($7,500 for individuals age 50 or older)
Publication 590-A (2023), Contributions to Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs) (IRS)
You cannot contribute more than you earned
For 2023, the most you can put into a traditional IRA is $6,500, or $7,500 if you are age 50 or older. However, there is a second limit that can reduce this amount even further: you cannot contribute more than your taxable compensation for the year. This compensation cap applies to the total of all contributions made to your traditional IRAs, whether the contributions are deductible or nondeductible. If you are married and file jointly, only one spouse needs to have compensation, but each spouse still figures their own limit based on their own compensation unless the special spousal IRA rules apply. The compensation limit exists to ensure that IRA contributions are tied to actual earned income, not investment gains, gifts, or other non-work sources of money. If your taxable compensation for the year is less than the annual contribution limit, your maximum contribution is reduced to that lower compensation amount.
Generally, an excess contribution is the amount contrib- uted to your traditional IRAs for the year that is more than the smaller of: • $6,500 ($7,500 if you are age 50 or older), or • Your taxable compensation for the year.
Publication 590-A (2023), Contributions to Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs) (IRS)
Why a workplace plan can take the deduction away
For 2023, if you or your spouse is covered by a retirement plan at work, the amount you can deduct for your traditional IRA contribution may be reduced or eliminated entirely depending on your filing status and modified adjusted gross income. The deduction begins to phase out once your modified AGI rises above a certain threshold and is completely eliminated when it reaches a higher amount. These thresholds vary by filing status. If you are covered by a workplace plan, use Table 1-2 to determine whether your deduction is reduced. If you are not covered but your spouse is, use Table 1-3 instead. The phaseout applies regardless of whether your contributions are deductible or nondeductible, and it affects only the deduction you can claim, not your ability to make the contribution itself. Your modified AGI may include income beyond your compensation, such as interest, dividends, and IRA distributions, so it can be higher than your earned income.
Covered by a retirement plan. If you are covered by an employer retirement plan and you didn’t receive any social security retirement benefits, your IRA deduction may be reduced or eliminated depending on your filing status and modified AGI, as shown in Table 1-2.
Publication 590-A (2023), Contributions to Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs) (IRS)
How late you can still contribute for a year
You can make contributions to your traditional IRA for a given year at any point during that calendar year or by the due date for filing your federal income tax return for that year, not including extensions. For most people filing for 2023, this means contributions must be made by April 15, 2024. The deadline does not include any extension you may receive for filing your return. If you make a contribution between January 1 and April 15, you should tell your IRA sponsor which year the contribution is for - the current year or the previous year. If you do not specify, the sponsor may assume and report to the IRS that the contribution is for the year in which the sponsor received it, which could be the current year. This means that if you want a contribution to count for the prior tax year, you must make it by the return's due date and clearly designate it for that year.
Contributions must be made by due date. Contribu- tions can be made to your traditional IRA for a year at any time during the year or by the due date for filing your return for that year, not including extensions. For most people, this means that contributions for 2023 must be made by April 15, 2024.
Publication 590-A (2023), Contributions to Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs) (IRS)
The 6% tax on contributing too much
An excess contribution is any amount you put into your traditional IRA for the year that exceeds the smaller of the annual contribution limit of $6,500 (plus $1,000 if you are age 50 or older) or your taxable compensation for the year. If you do not withdraw the excess by the due date of your tax return for that year, including extensions, you are subject to a 6% excise tax. You must pay this 6% tax each year the excess amount remains in your IRA at the end of your tax year, meaning the penalty repeats annually until you correct it. You can avoid the tax entirely if you withdraw the excess contribution and any income it earned by the return due date, including extensions. The 6% tax is calculated on Form 5329 and reported on your federal income tax return. An excess contribution could result from your own contribution, your spouse's contribution, an employer contribution, or an improper rollover.
In general, if the excess contributions for a year aren’t withdrawn by the date your return for the year is due (in- cluding extensions), you are subject to a 6% tax.
Publication 590-A (2023), Contributions to Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs) (IRS)
Where the deduction actually gets entered
For federal filers reporting a traditional IRA deduction, the amount goes on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 20. Schedule 1 is the form used to report adjustments to income that do not appear directly on the main Form 1040, and the IRA deduction is one of those adjustments. The deduction is limited to $6,500 for the year, with an additional $1,000 allowed for those age 50 or over. If a taxpayer is also self-employed with a SIMPLE IRA, the deduction for those plan contributions goes on line 16 instead. The deduction may be reduced or eliminated if the filer or their spouse is covered by a retirement plan at work and income exceeds certain thresholds, but the reporting line remains the same regardless.
Reporting Deductible Contributions If you file Schedule 1 (Form 1040), enter your IRA deduc- tion on line 20 of that form. Self-employed. If you are self-employed (a sole proprie- tor or partner) and have a SIMPLE IRA, enter your deduc- tion for allowable plan contributions on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 16.
Publication 590-A (2023), Contributions to Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs) (IRS)
An excess contribution you don't withdraw can count against a later year instead
An excess IRA contribution you do not withdraw does not just sit there: you can deduct it against a later year's contribution room instead of an earlier one. The excess cannot be applied backward to a year before it happened, even if that earlier year's contributions were below the maximum, but it can be carried forward to a later year in which your actual contributions come in under that year's maximum. In the year you use the carryover, the amount you can deduct is the smaller of two amounts: your maximum IRA deduction for that year minus what you actually contributed for it, or the total excess still sitting in your IRA at the start of that year. Using this carryover method lets you avoid withdrawing the excess, but it does not by itself remove the excise tax that keeps applying to any excess still in the account at the end of a tax year; that tax keeps accruing until the excess is either withdrawn or absorbed by unused room in a later year.
You can deduct excess contributions for previous years that are still in your traditional IRA. The amount you can deduct this year is the lesser of the following two amounts. • Your maximum IRA deduction for this year minus any amounts contributed to your traditional IRAs for this year. • The total excess contributions in your IRAs at the be- ginning of this year.
Publication 590-A (2023), Contributions to Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs) (IRS)
How each figure was verified
Each number below was read from a stored copy of the document named beside it, and checked to occur word for word in the quoted sentence. The digest is of that stored text.
IR-2022-188 (IRS)
- Annual contribution limit
The limit on annual contributions to an IRA increased to $6,500
- Catch-up contribution limit, age 50 and over
The IRA catch‑up contribution limit for individuals aged 50 and over is not subject to an annual cost‑of‑living adjustment and remains $1,000.