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Inherited IRA RMD calculator: the 10-year rule and yearly RMDs

Inherited a traditional IRA from someone who died in 2020 or later? See which rule applies, this year's required minimum distribution from the IRS life expectancy table, the deadline to empty the account, and what spreading the withdrawals evenly would look like.

✓ TestedSame calculation as the tested spreadsheet; matches the IRS examples
Required minimum distribution–
YearDivisorMinimum onlySpread evenly

Rules from IRS Publication 590-B. Eligible beneficiaries here: disabled or chronically ill, or not more than 10 years younger than the owner (surviving spouses and minor children have other options). Not eligible: empty the account by December 31 of the 10th year after the death, with yearly RMDs in between if the owner had reached their required beginning date (not enforced for 2021–2024). Divisor: your Table I life expectancy in the year after the death, minus 1 a year, or the owner's remaining life expectancy if longer. RMD = last December 31 balance ÷ divisor. Withdrawals at the end of each year at the growth rate you enter. Taxes aren't calculated.

How it works

Most people who inherit an IRA from someone who died in 2020 or later must empty it by December 31 of the 10th year after the death. If the owner had already reached their required beginning date, a minimum must also come out every year in between: last December 31's balance divided by your life expectancy from IRS Table I at your age in the year after the death, reduced by 1 each year, or the owner's remaining life expectancy if that is longer. The calculator matches the examples in IRS Publication 590-B: a beneficiary who is 57 in the first year uses 29.8, and one who was 55 in 2022 uses 31.6 − 4 = 27.6 in 2026. More in the inherited IRA guide.

Worked examples