Introduction
Your Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) is one of the most important numbers on your tax return. The IRS uses it to decide if you qualify for tax breaks like Roth IRA contributions, traditional IRA deductions, and education credits. MAGI starts with your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) and adds back certain deductions and exclusions, such as foreign earned income, student loan interest, and IRA contributions. Many people assume their AGI and MAGI are the same, but even one add-back can change your number and affect your eligibility.
This free MAGI calculator helps you find your Modified Adjusted Gross Income. Just enter your AGI and any add-back items, choose your filing status, and the tool calculates your MAGI. It also shows a clear breakdown of each item, a visual chart, and checks your MAGI against the Roth IRA, traditional IRA and Medicare income thresholds so you can see where you stand.
How to Use Our MAGI Calculator
Enter your income details and adjustments below. The calculator will add them to your AGI to estimate your Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI). It also shows if you qualify for Roth IRA contributions, traditional IRA deductions, and standard Medicare premiums.
Filing Status: Pick the status that matches your tax return: Single / Head of Household, Married Filing Jointly, Married Filing Separately, or Qualifying Surviving Spouse. This sets the income thresholds used to check your eligibility. A qualifying surviving spouse uses the joint ranges for the Roth IRA and traditional IRA checks.10 For Medicare, this status uses the same threshold as single filers.13 If you file separately and did not live with your spouse at any time during the year, tick Lived apart from my spouse all year: the Roth IRA and traditional IRA checks then use the single ranges.10
Adjusted Gross Income (AGI): Enter your AGI. You can find this number on line 11 of your Form 1040.1 On a 2025 return it is line 11a.10 This is the starting point for your MAGI calculation.
Tax Year: Pick 2024, 2025 or 2026. The year sets the Roth IRA and traditional IRA ranges the calculator compares your MAGI against. The Medicare check uses the surcharge threshold for 2026 premiums whichever year you pick.
Foreign Earned Income Exclusion: Enter any income you earned in another country that was excluded from your tax return.
Foreign Housing Cost Exclusion/Deduction: Enter any foreign housing costs you excluded or deducted on your return.
Student Loan Interest Deduction: Enter the amount you deducted for interest paid on student loans.
Tuition and Fees Deduction: This deduction was repealed for tax years after 2020, so the calculator no longer includes it.8
IRA Contributions Deduction: Enter the amount you deducted for contributions to a traditional IRA.
Excluded Savings Bond Interest: Enter any savings bond interest you excluded on Form 8815 because you used it for higher education. It is added back for the IRA limits.10 Medicare counts it too.11
Tax-Exempt Interest: Enter the tax-exempt interest from line 2a of your Form 1040. Medicare adds it to your AGI, along with excluded foreign earned income and a few other kinds of tax-exempt income, when it decides whether you pay extra for Part B and Part D.11 It does not change the MAGI used for the IRA limits.10
Other Adjustments: Enter any other amounts that must be added back to your AGI for the IRA limits, such as excluded employer-provided adoption benefits from Form 8839.10 Medicare's MAGI does not include them.11
Roth Conversion Income: Enter any income from converting a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA, or from rolling a workplace plan into a Roth IRA. This income is already in your AGI. The calculator subtracts it only for the Roth IRA check, not for the traditional IRA or Medicare checks.10
Click Calculate to see your results. Click Reset to go back to the starting values.
What Is Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI)?
Modified Adjusted Gross Income, or MAGI, is a number the IRS uses to decide if you qualify for certain tax benefits. It starts with your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI), which is your total income minus specific deductions like student loan interest or IRA contributions. Then, some of those deductions get added back in. The result is your MAGI.
Your AGI is found on line 11 of your federal tax return (Form 1040).1 On a 2025 return it is line 11a.10 For the IRA limits, MAGI takes that number and adds back items such as foreign earned income exclusions, student loan interest deductions, and IRA contribution deductions.10 Medicare's MAGI instead adds tax-exempt interest, excluded foreign earned income and a few other kinds of tax-exempt income.11 Not every person has these add-backs. If you don't, your MAGI and AGI will be the same number.
Why Does MAGI Matter?
The IRS uses your MAGI to determine if you can contribute to a Roth IRA, deduct traditional IRA contributions, or qualify for premium tax credits on health insurance. Medicare also uses MAGI to decide if you pay extra for Part B and Part D coverage.3 It uses the MAGI from your tax return two years earlier.12 So your 2026 MAGI sets your 2028 premiums. If your income has gone down because of a life-changing event, such as you or your spouse stopping work, you can ask Social Security to make a new decision.3 If your MAGI is too high, you may lose access to these benefits or pay higher costs. Understanding where your income falls relative to tax brackets is also essential for overall tax planning.
MAGI Thresholds by Year
Each tax benefit has its own income limits, and these limits change based on your filing status. For example, in 2024, single filers start to lose Roth IRA eligibility at $146,000 and are fully phased out at $161,000.2 Married couples filing jointly phase out between $230,000 and $240,000.2 For 2025 the Roth IRA range is $150,000 to $165,000 for single filers and $236,000 to $246,000 for joint filers.5 For 2026 it is $153,000 to $168,000 and $242,000 to $252,000.6 The traditional IRA deduction phases out for a worker covered by a workplace plan between $79,000 and $89,000 (single) or $126,000 and $146,000 (joint) in 20255 and between $81,000 and $91,000 or $129,000 and $149,000 in 2026.6 Medicare's income-related surcharge starts above $106,000 for individual filers and $212,000 for joint filers in 20257 and above $109,000 and $218,000 in 2026.3 Traditional IRA deduction limits and Medicare surcharge thresholds also depend on your MAGI and filing status. If you earn investment income, be aware that capital gains taxes can also be affected by your overall income level.
How to Lower Your MAGI
You can reduce your MAGI by making pre-tax contributions to a workplace retirement plan like a 401(k), putting money into a Health Savings Account (HSA), or increasing deductions that are not added back into the MAGI calculation. Lowering your MAGI can help you stay within the income limits for tax benefits you want to keep.