Introduction
When someone passes away and leaves you an IRA, you may need to take money out of that account each year. These withdrawals are called required minimum distributions (RMDs). The IRS sets strict rules about how much you must take out and when. If you miss a deadline or take too little, you could face a steep tax penalty of up to 25%.
The rules for inherited IRAs changed a lot after the SECURE Act in 2019 and SECURE 2.0 in 2022. How much you owe depends on several things: your relationship to the person who died, when they died, their age, your age, and the type of IRA. A surviving spouse follows different rules than an adult child. A minor child follows different rules than a trust. It can get confusing fast.
This Inherited IRA RMD Calculator does the hard work for you. Enter a few details about the original account owner, the beneficiary, and the account balance. The tool then figures out which IRS rule applies, picks the right life expectancy table, and calculates your required distribution for 2026. You also get a step-by-step breakdown of the math, a multi-year projection of future distributions, and the full IRS life expectancy tables for reference. If you are an original IRA owner looking for your own distribution amount rather than an inherited account, use our RMD Calculator instead.
How to Use Our Inherited IRA RMD Calculator
Enter details about the original IRA owner, the inherited account, and the beneficiary. The calculator will show you the required minimum distribution (RMD) amount, the method used, a step-by-step breakdown, and a multi-year projection of future distributions.
Owner's Date of Birth: Enter the month, day, and year the original IRA owner was born. This is used to find their RMD starting age and required beginning date. If you need help determining the exact span between two dates, our Age Calculator can help.
Owner's Date of Death: Enter the month, day, and year the IRA owner passed away. Whether they died before or after their required beginning date changes how the RMD is calculated.
IRA Type: Pick the type of IRA you inherited. Choose from Traditional IRA, Roth IRA, SEP IRA, or SIMPLE IRA. Roth IRAs follow different rules because the original owner had no lifetime RMDs. If you are evaluating contributions or conversions for your own Roth account, try our Roth IRA Calculator or Roth Conversion Calculator.
Year-End IRA Balance: Enter the account balance as of December 31 of the year before the distribution year. This is the number the calculator divides to find your RMD. Enter a value between $0 and $100,000,000.
Beneficiary Type: Select the option that best describes who inherited the IRA. Eligible designated beneficiaries — such as a spouse, someone close in age to the owner, a disabled or chronically ill person, or a minor child — can often stretch distributions over their lifetime. Other individuals and non-person entities like estates, charities, and trusts follow the 10-year or 5-year rule instead.
Beneficiary's Date of Birth: Enter the month, day, and year the beneficiary was born. This is used to look up the life expectancy factor from the IRS Single Life Table. This field only appears for individual beneficiaries and qualified trusts.
Confirmed as an Eligible Designated Beneficiary (EDB)? If you selected a non-spouse beneficiary who is not more than 10 years younger than the owner, or one who is chronically ill or disabled, confirm whether EDB status applies. If "No," the 10-year rule is used instead of the life expectancy stretch.
Sole Primary Beneficiary: Select "Yes" if this person is the only primary beneficiary on the account. If there are multiple beneficiaries, the calculator may need more details to pick the right life expectancy factor.
Other Beneficiaries All Individuals: If there are multiple beneficiaries, select whether all of them are individuals. This field appears only when the beneficiary is not the sole primary beneficiary.
Separate Accounts Established: If there are multiple individual beneficiaries, select whether separate inherited IRA accounts were set up by December 31 of the year after the owner's death. If not, the oldest beneficiary's life expectancy is used for all.
Oldest Beneficiary's Date of Birth: If separate accounts were not established, enter the birth date of the oldest beneficiary. The calculator uses this person's life expectancy for the RMD.
Assumed Annual Growth Rate: In the multi-year projection section, enter an estimated yearly growth rate for the account. This lets you see how future balances and distributions may change over time. The default is 0%. To understand how growth compounds over longer periods, see our Compound Interest Calculator.
What Is an Inherited IRA RMD?
When someone passes away and leaves their IRA to you, that account becomes an inherited IRA. The IRS usually requires you to take money out of that account each year. These yearly withdrawals are called Required Minimum Distributions, or RMDs. If you skip an RMD or take out too little, the IRS can charge you a penalty tax of up to 25% on the amount you missed.
How Is an Inherited IRA RMD Calculated?
The basic math is simple. You take the account balance on December 31 of the prior year and divide it by a life expectancy factor from an IRS table. The result is the minimum amount you must withdraw that year. The life expectancy factor depends on your age, your relationship to the deceased owner, and which IRS rules apply to your situation.
Who Has to Take Inherited IRA RMDs?
The rules depend on who you are to the original account owner. The IRS splits beneficiaries into three groups:
- Eligible Designated Beneficiaries (EDBs) — This includes a surviving spouse, someone not more than 10 years younger than the owner, a person who is disabled or chronically ill, and a minor child of the owner. EDBs can usually stretch distributions over their own life expectancy.
- Designated Beneficiaries (non-eligible) — This includes most other individual beneficiaries and certain qualifying trusts. Under the SECURE Act, these beneficiaries must empty the entire account within 10 years of the owner's death. If the owner died after their Required Beginning Date, annual RMDs are also required during those 10 years.
- Non-person beneficiaries — Estates, charities, and non-qualifying trusts fall here. They typically follow a 5-Year Rule or the owner's remaining life expectancy, depending on whether the owner died before or after their Required Beginning Date.
What Changed Under the SECURE Act?
Before 2020, most beneficiaries could stretch inherited IRA withdrawals over their own lifetime. The SECURE Act of 2019 changed this for deaths on or after January 1, 2020. Now, most non-spouse beneficiaries must fully drain the inherited IRA within 10 years. The SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 updated the IRS life expectancy tables and adjusted the RMD starting age for account owners to 73 (and 75 starting in 2033). These same rule changes also affect standard RMD calculations for original account owners.
What Is the Required Beginning Date?
The Required Beginning Date (RBD) is the deadline by which the original owner would have had to start taking their own RMDs. It is April 1 of the year after the owner reached their RMD age. Whether the owner died before or after this date changes which rules apply to you as a beneficiary. Roth IRAs have no RBD because owners are never required to take RMDs during their lifetime.
Important Things to Know
- A surviving spouse has the most flexibility. They can treat the inherited IRA as their own, roll it into their own IRA, or remain a beneficiary. If you are a spouse considering rolling the account into your own IRA or 401(k), the RMD rules will change accordingly.
- If the deceased owner still owed an RMD for the year they died, that amount must be taken separately by the beneficiary. It is not included in the inherited IRA RMD calculation.
- You must recalculate your RMD each year using the new December 31 balance from the prior year.
- The IRS waived penalties for missed annual RMDs from 2021 through 2024 for certain beneficiaries subject to both the 10-Year Rule and annual distributions. Those penalties are expected to resume in 2025.
- Inherited IRA distributions are generally taxable income for Traditional, SEP, and SIMPLE IRAs. Use our Tax Bracket Calculator or Income Tax Calculator to estimate the tax impact of your withdrawal.
- If you want to see how long your remaining retirement savings may last after distributions, our How Long Will My Money Last Calculator and Retirement Calculator can help you plan ahead.