Skip to main content

RMD Calculator for Age 86

At age 86, the IRS Uniform Lifetime Table divisor is 15.2, so your required minimum distribution is your traditional IRA or 401(k) balance on December 31 of last year divided by 15.2 — 6.58% of the account. On a $500,000 balance, that is $32,895 for the year.

You are 86 in 2026 if you were born in 1940 (and in 2027 if born in 1941). Use the age you reach by December 31 of the distribution year, not your age today.

Calculator

Required minimum distribution at age 86

Balance ÷ 15.2

6.58% of your December 31 balance — $32,895 on $500,000

Divisor
15.2
Withdrawal %
6.58%
Born (age 86 in 2026)
1940
Next year's divisor
14.4

Use your traditional IRA or 401(k) balance as of December 31 last year. RMDs generally begin at age 73 (75 if you were born in 1960 or later).

This year's required distribution

$32,894.74

6.6% of your balance — due by December 31


Uniform Lifetime divisor
15.2
Account balance
$500,000
Withdrawal rate
6.6%

RMD at age 86 by account balance

Prior December 31 balance ÷ 15.2. Monthly is the annual RMD spread over 12 withdrawals.

BalanceAnnual RMDPer month
$100,000$6,578.95$548.25
$250,000$16,447.37$1,370.61
$500,000$32,894.74$2,741.23
$750,000$49,342.11$4,111.84
$1,000,000$65,789.47$5,482.46
$1,500,000$98,684.21$8,223.68
$2,000,000$131,578.95$10,964.91
$3,000,000$197,368.42$16,447.37

Your RMDs over the next 10 years, starting at 86

Example: $500,000 balance, RMD withdrawn each December, remaining balance earning 5% a year. Your returns will differ.

AgeStart balanceDivisorRMD% of balance
86$500,00015.2$32,8956.6%
87$490,46114.4$34,0606.9%
88$479,22113.7$34,9807.3%
89$466,45312.9$36,1597.8%
90$451,80912.2$37,0348.2%
91$435,51411.5$37,8718.7%
92$417,52510.8$38,6609.3%
93$397,80910.1$39,3879.9%
94$376,3439.5$39,61510.5%
95$353,5648.9$39,72611.2%

What’s different about age 86

At 86 you must withdraw 6.58% of your balance, up from 5.15% at 81, and it rises to 8.70% by 91. It first tops 8% at age 90.

At this age the required amount often exceeds spending needs. You don’t have to sell investments to satisfy it: an in-kind distribution moves shares from the IRA to a taxable account and counts toward the RMD at their market value. The tax is the same either way.

RMD rules to know at 86

Which accounts. RMDs apply to traditional IRAs, SEP and SIMPLE IRAs, and 401(k), 403(b), and 457(b) plans. Roth IRAs have no RMDs during the owner’s lifetime, and since 2024 neither do Roth 401(k)s. If you are still working and don’t own 5% or more of the company, your current employer’s plan may let you delay its RMDs until you retire.

How it’s taxed. An RMD is ordinary income in the year you take it, and it can push you into a higher bracket or raise Medicare premiums. Withdrawing more than the minimum is always allowed, but the excess doesn’t count toward future years. From age 70½ you can send IRA money directly to charity as a qualified charitable distribution (QCD), which counts toward your RMD without being taxed.

Timing. The deadline is December 31 (April 1 of the following year for your very first RMD). See every divisor and your starting age by birth year on the Uniform Lifetime Table page, and estimate the tax with the income tax calculator.

RMDs at other ages

See the full Uniform Lifetime Table and RMD age by birth year.

Was this calculator helpful?

Standards & Sources

Last verified: July 2026

  • IRS Publication 590-B

    The Uniform Lifetime Table divisors are from IRS Pub 590-B (Treas. Reg. §1.401(a)(9)-9), effective 2022 and unchanged for 2026.

  • SECURE 2.0 Act

    The RMD starting age (73, rising to 75) and the reduced 25%/10% excise tax for a missed distribution come from the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (§107, §302).

How to Use This Calculator

  1. Find your traditional IRA or 401(k) balance as of December 31 of last year on your year-end statement.
  2. Divide it by 15.2, the Uniform Lifetime divisor for age 86 — or read your amount from the balance table.
  3. Repeat for each traditional IRA and each 401(k); IRA RMDs can be totaled and taken from any IRA, but each 401(k) must pay its own.
  4. Withdraw at least that amount by December 31 to avoid the 25% excise tax.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the RMD divisor at age 86?

The Uniform Lifetime Table divisor for age 86 is 15.2. Divide your prior December 31 balance by 15.2 to get the year's required minimum distribution. Next year, at age 87, the divisor drops to 14.4.

What percentage must I withdraw at age 86?

6.58% of your prior year-end balance (1 ÷ 15.2). The percentage rises every year as the divisor shrinks.

How much is the RMD on $1 million at age 86?

$65,789. A $1,000,000 traditional IRA or 401(k) balance divided by the age-86 divisor of 15.2.

What if my spouse is much younger?

If your spouse is your sole beneficiary for the whole year and is more than 10 years younger than you, use the IRS Joint and Last Survivor Table instead. It has larger divisors, so your required distribution is smaller.

What happens if I miss my RMD?

The IRS charges a 25% excise tax on the amount you should have withdrawn but didn’t, reduced to 10% if you take the missed distribution and file Form 5329 within the correction window (generally two years). The IRS can waive the penalty for reasonable error.

Guides to go with this calculator

Related calculators

All Retirement calculatorsFree retirement calculators: project your 401(k), compare Roth vs. Traditional, size your nest egg, figure RMDs, and estimate Social Security with 2026 numbers.