Can you contribute to a Roth IRA?
Income limits phase out direct Roth contributions for many professionals. See exactly where you land, and whether the backdoor is clean or costly.
- Your 2026 IRA limit$0
- Roth IRA, contributed directly$0
- Traditional IRA, deductible portion$0
The backdoor in one sentence. Anyone with earned income can make a nondeductible traditional IRA contribution and convert it to Roth; there is no income limit on conversions. The catch is the pro-rata rule, which taxes the conversion in proportion to all your pre-tax IRA money, not just the new contribution.
Earning too much for a Roth is a solvable problem.
A backdoor Roth, a Roth 401(k), and moving old IRA money into an employer or Solo 401(k) to clear the pro-rata problem all work, but the order and the paperwork matter. Done wrong, the conversion is taxed and the reporting is a mess.
Assumptions and limits. 2026 figures per IRS: IRA contribution limit $7,500, plus $1,100 at age 50 and over. Roth IRA phase-out: $153,000 to $168,000 single and head of household, $242,000 to $252,000 married filing jointly, $0 to $10,000 married filing separately. Traditional IRA deduction phase-out when covered by a workplace plan: $81,000 to $91,000 single and head of household, $129,000 to $149,000 married filing jointly; when only your spouse is covered, $242,000 to $252,000. Partial amounts follow the IRS worksheet: rounded up to the next $10, with a $200 minimum. Married filing separately assumes you lived with your spouse. The pro-rata estimate uses the balance you enter as a stand-in for the December 31 balance of all your traditional, SEP, and SIMPLE IRAs, which is what actually applies. Spousal IRA contributions and Roth 401(k) options are not modeled. This tool is general education, not tax advice. Confirm with your tax professional before contributing or converting.