Catch-Up by Age
You have the one asset no catch-up rule can sell back: forty-two years of compounding.
At 25 there are no catch-up levers yet — you do not need them. Time does the heavy lifting that extra contribution room does for a 55-year-old.
What a monthly amount must be to reach a goal by age 67, starting now — at two assumed yearly returns. You pick the assumption; markets have landed inside this band and outside it. Projections are arithmetic, not promises.
| Goal by 67 | Monthly at an assumed 5% | Monthly at an assumed 7% |
|---|---|---|
| $250,000 | $146 | $82 |
| $500,000 | $292 | $164 |
| $1,000,000 | $584 | $329 |
Shown for a start at age 25 (504 monthly contributions to 67). 2026 contribution limits checked October 23, 2026.
The same $400/mo invested from age 25 reaches about $1,217,483 by 67 at an assumed 7% return. Started at 25, it reaches about $1,217,483. The gap is real — it is compounding, and no product erases it. What closes it is the only lever you hold: a larger monthly amount, run through the right order, starting this month instead of next year.
The Filled Plan pack, the first-account walkthrough pack, the first-30-days plan, the full catch-up tables, the decoder card deck, and the order workbook — one pack, one-time payment.