Roth Conversion Calculator: How Much Tax Will You Owe?
A Roth conversion is taxed as ordinary income in the year you convert, so the tax is the extra federal income tax that the converted amount adds on top of your other income. Each dollar is taxed at the bracket it lands in, which is why a large conversion can reach a higher marginal rate, and the 10% additional tax on early distributions does not apply to the conversion itself. This page estimates federal tax for 2026 or 2027, and state income tax is not estimated.
Maintained by Archie Chang · Rules and brackets checked against IRS publications November 7, 2026 · Methodology & sources
Federal income tax only. This page does not give tax, investment or financial advice and makes no prediction about future tax rates or returns. FedRateCalc is an independent site and is not affiliated with the Internal Revenue Service.
Roth conversion tax estimate
Wages, pension, interest and the like, before the standard deduction.
Federal income tax added by the conversion
$10,350
Tax with the conversion $15,370 minus tax without it $5,020, 2026 brackets and standard deduction of $16,100. Federal only.
- Marginal rate after the conversion
- 22%
- Marginal rate before the conversion
- 12%
- Effective rate on the conversion
- 20.70%
- Taxable income before / after
- $43,900 / $93,900
Brackets crossed
| Rate | Conversion taxed here | Tax |
|---|---|---|
| 12% | $6,500 | $780 |
| 22% | $43,500 | $9,570 |
The conversion moves you from the 12% bracket to the 22% bracket.
What the calculator assumes
- Amount to convert is the taxable part of the conversion. If your traditional IRA includes after-tax (nondeductible) money, only the taxable share counts here.
- Other taxable income is ordinary income before the standard deduction. The standard deduction for your filing status and year comes from the official tables: Rev. Proc. 2025-32 for 2026 and Rev. Proc. 2026-35 for 2027.
- Not modeled: itemized deductions, the extra standard deduction at 65, credits, capital gains and qualified dividend rates, the net investment income tax, IRMAA, the taxable share of Social Security and state income tax.
- Also not modeled: the senior deduction for people age 65 and older (One Big Beautiful Bill Act). A conversion raises your modified adjusted gross income, which can phase that deduction out. Use the senior deduction calculator to check it.
- Under $100,000 of taxable income, the IRS Tax Table figures tax in $50 steps, so the amount on your return can differ by a few dollars from the bracket-by-bracket result shown here.
- The marginal rate is the rate on your last taxable dollar. The effective rate here is the added tax divided by the amount converted.
Brackets for every filing status are on the 2027 tax brackets page.
Worked example: converting $50,000 on top of $60,000 of income
A single filer has $60,000 of other income in 2026. The standard deduction is $16,100, so taxable income is $43,900 before the conversion and $93,900 after converting $50,000.
| Bracket rate | Taxable income range | Conversion taxed here | Tax |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12% | $12,400 to $50,400 | $6,500 | $780 |
| 22% | $50,400 to $105,700 | $43,500 | $9,570 |
Tax without the conversion is $5,020 and tax with it is $15,370, so the conversion adds $10,350. The marginal rate moves from 12% to 22%, and the effective rate on the conversion is 20.70%.
The converted amount counts as income
You must include in your gross income distributions from a traditional IRA that you would have had to include in income if you hadn’t converted them into a Roth IRA. These amounts are normally included in income on your return for the year that you converted them from a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA.
That is why the calculator adds the conversion to your other income and compares the tax with and without it. If you must include an amount in gross income, Publication 590-A notes that you may have to increase your withholding or make estimated tax payments.
No 10% additional tax on the conversion itself
If properly (and timely) rolled over, the 10% additional tax on early distributions won’t apply.
The conversion is taxed as income, but it does not carry the 10% additional tax on early distributions. The calculator therefore adds no such tax. The 10% additional tax is a separate question that comes up only when money later comes out of the Roth IRA.
The 5-year rules start with each conversion
A separate 5-year period applies to each conversion and rollover.
Unless one of the exceptions listed later applies, you must pay the 10% additional tax on the portion of the distribution attributable to the part of the conversion or rollover contribution that you had to include in income because of the conversion or rollover.
This matters when you take converted money out, not when you convert. For the full set of withdrawal rules, ordering and exceptions, see the Roth IRA withdrawal rules.
Why people convert in pieces: the bracket arithmetic
Because the converted amount stacks on top of your other income, a large conversion fills each bracket and spills into the next one. Take the same single filer. Converting $50,000 in one year adds $10,350 of federal tax. Converting $25,000 in each of two years adds $4,850 a year, $9,700 in total, if income and the 2026 tables stayed the same both years. The smaller piece puts less of the amount in the 22% bracket.
This is arithmetic on today’s tables, not a forecast: later years use their own brackets, and your income, deductions and the law can change. This page does not give advice on whether or when to convert. To see how a different amount moves your marginal rate, change the amount in the calculator above.
IRMAA and Social Security can be affected
A conversion raises your income for the year, and both Medicare IRMAA surcharges and the taxable share of Social Security benefits depend on income. This calculator does not model either. See the IRMAA brackets 2027 and the taxable Social Security benefits calculator.
Roth conversion questions
How much tax do I pay on a Roth conversion?
The taxable amount you convert is added to your other income for that year and taxed at ordinary federal rates, so the tax is the difference between your tax with and without the conversion. Publication 590-A says the amount is normally included in income on your return for the year you convert it. The calculator above works out that difference for 2026 or 2027; your state may tax it too, and this page does not estimate that.
Is there a 10% penalty on a Roth conversion?
Publication 590-A says that if the conversion is properly and timely rolled over, the 10% additional tax on early distributions will not apply to it. The 10% additional tax can come back later: if you take converted money out of the Roth IRA within 5 years of that conversion, Publication 590-B says you must generally pay it on the part that was included in income, unless an exception applies.
Will a Roth conversion push me into a higher tax bracket?
It can. Federal brackets are marginal, so only the dollars above the top of a bracket are taxed at the next rate, not all of your income. The calculator lists each bracket the conversion lands in and how much of it is taxed there, which is why the average rate on the conversion is usually lower than the top rate it reaches.
What is the 5-year rule for Roth conversions?
Publication 590-B says a separate 5-year period applies to each conversion. It matters when you take converted money out of the Roth IRA: within the period, the 10% additional tax can apply to the part of the conversion that was included in income. It does not change the tax on the conversion itself, and it is separate from the 5-year period that decides whether a distribution is qualified.
Can a Roth conversion raise my Medicare premiums or the tax on my Social Security?
It can, because the converted amount raises your income for the year, and IRMAA surcharges and the taxable share of Social Security benefits both depend on income. This page does not calculate either one. See the IRMAA brackets 2027 page for the income thresholds and the taxable Social Security benefits calculator for the benefits side.
Does this calculator include state income tax?
No. It estimates federal income tax only, using the standard deduction and the official 2026 (Rev. Proc. 2025-32) or 2027 (Rev. Proc. 2026-35) brackets. Credits, itemized deductions, capital gains rates, the net investment income tax, a non-taxable basis in your IRA and state income tax are not modeled. Use it to compare conversion sizes, and check the result with a tax professional or your tax software before you convert.
Cite this page
Page title: Roth Conversion Calculator: Tax on a Roth Conversion. Updated November 7, 2026. Canonical URL: https://fedratecalc.com/roth-conversion-calculator/
Data source: IRS Publication 590-A (2025); IRS Publication 590-B (2025); IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32 (2026 brackets); IRS Rev. Proc. 2026-35 (2027 brackets), compiled by FedRateCalc.
Plain-text citation
FedRateCalc. Roth Conversion Calculator: Tax on a Roth Conversion. Updated November 7, 2026. https://fedratecalc.com/roth-conversion-calculator/HTML link
<a href='https://fedratecalc.com/roth-conversion-calculator/'>FedRateCalc</a>Sources (checked November 7, 2026): IRS Publication 590-A (2025) · IRS Publication 590-B (2025) · IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32 (2026 brackets) · IRS Rev. Proc. 2026-35 (2027 brackets)