Catch-Up by Age
Sixty to 63 is a special window in the law: the largest catch-up room of your working life.
For ages 60–63, a 401(k) accepts $35,750 a year in 2026 figures — the SECURE 2.0 super catch-up. At 64 it falls back to the 50+ amount, so these four years are genuinely use-it-or-lose-it.
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 | $2,492 | $2,315 |
| $500,000 | $4,984 | $4,630 |
| $1,000,000 | $9,967 | $9,259 |
Shown for a start at age 60 (84 monthly contributions to 67). 2026 contribution limits checked October 23, 2026.
The same $400/mo invested from age 60 reaches about $43,200 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.
Near Medicare age, a separate puzzle appears: the income-related premium adjustments. Our sister decoder IRMAADecoded covers that one — it is a different door from starting to invest, and it has its own rules.
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.