---
title: Catch-up contribution — what it means and why it matters | Allocate AI
description: Extra retirement contributions allowed once you turn 50: $8,000 more in a 401(k) ($11,250 at ages 60 to 63) and $1,100 more in an IRA (2026).
canonical: https://allocateai.io/glossary/catch-up-contribution
site: Allocate AI — https://allocateai.io
---

# Catch-up contribution

Extra retirement contributions allowed once you turn 50: $8,000 more in a 401(k) ($11,250 at ages 60 to 63) and $1,100 more in an IRA (2026).

A catch-up contribution is additional retirement savings the law allows once you reach 50, on top of the standard limits. For 2026, a 401(k) allows $8,000 extra, raised to $11,250 for people aged 60 through 63. An IRA allows $1,100 extra. HSAs have their own version: $1,000 extra starting at 55. The name says the purpose: giving people in their fifties and sixties a way to make up for years when they saved less.

Put together, someone aged 60 to 63 in 2026 can contribute $24,500 plus $11,250 to a 401(k), or $35,750, plus $8,600 to an IRA. Over the roughly fifteen years from 50 to 65, catch-up contributions alone can add well over $150,000 of savings, more once invested.

Eligibility is by calendar year: if you turn 50 on December 31, you can make the full catch-up for that year. The 60-to-63 window is also by year, so the higher amount applies in the years you are 60, 61, 62, and 63, and drops back to the standard catch-up at 64.

One rule to know: starting in 2026, people who earned more than a set amount of wages the prior year (around $150,000) must make their 401(k) catch-up contributions as Roth, not pre-tax, if the plan offers Roth. If it does not, no catch-up is allowed at all.

The common mistake is assuming payroll will apply the catch-up automatically. Many plans require you to raise your contribution percentage yourself, and stop at the standard limit otherwise.

## Related terms

- [401(k)](https://allocateai.io/glossary/401k) — An employer-sponsored retirement account you fund from your paycheck, with tax advantages and a yearly contribution limit of $24,500 (2026).
- [IRA (individual retirement account)](https://allocateai.io/glossary/ira) — A retirement account you open yourself at a brokerage, separate from any employer, with a $7,500 yearly limit (2026) and traditional or Roth tax treatment.
- [HSA (health savings account)](https://allocateai.io/glossary/hsa) — A tax-free account for medical costs, available with a high-deductible health plan, with limits of $4,400 for individuals and $8,750 for families (2026).
- [415(c) limit (total 401(k) contribution limit)](https://allocateai.io/glossary/415c-limit) — The cap on everything that can go into your 401(k) in a year from all sources, $72,000 in 2026, including your contributions and your employer's.

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Allocate AI is a budgeting and financial-planning app: link your accounts, say what you want in plain words, and it writes the plan and stages every change for your approval. Read more at https://allocateai.io or see all pages in https://allocateai.io/llms.txt.