Catch-Up Contribution
Additional retirement plan contributions allowed for workers age 50 and older — $7,500 extra for 401(k) plans and $1,000 extra for IRAs in 2025.
Catch-up contributions are extra amounts that workers age 50 and older can contribute to retirement accounts beyond the standard annual limits. These provisions help older workers who may need to accelerate their retirement savings.
For 2025, the catch-up limits are: $7,500 for 401(k), 403(b), and 457(b) plans (on top of the regular $23,500 limit, for a total of $31,000); and $1,000 for Traditional and Roth IRAs (on top of the $7,000 limit, for a total of $8,000). SIMPLE IRA catch-up contributions are $3,500.
Since 2025, SECURE 2.0 has offered a "super catch-up" for workers ages 60 through 63, allowing 401(k) catch-up contributions of $11,250 instead of the standard $7,500. Note that for high earners whose prior-year FICA wages exceeded $150,000, catch-up contributions to 401(k) plans must be made on a Roth (after-tax) basis starting with 2026 catch-up contributions under SECURE 2.0 (enforcement was administratively delayed from 2024).
How it works
Catch-up contributions let workers age 50 and older contribute more than the standard annual limit to retirement accounts, on the theory that people closer to retirement may need to accelerate their savings. For 2025, the 401(k) catch-up is $7,500 on top of the $23,500 base limit, and the IRA catch-up is $1,000 on top of the $7,000 base limit — separate provisions for separate account types, both usable in the same year if you have both accounts.
You elect the catch-up amount the same way you elect your regular contribution — through your 401(k) payroll deduction election or directly when funding your IRA — and most plans simply let you keep contributing past the base limit up to the combined ceiling once you turn 50, rather than requiring a separate catch-up election. SIMPLE IRA plans have their own catch-up figure, $3,500, distinct from the 401(k) and Traditional or Roth IRA amounts.
SECURE 2.0 layered in a "super catch-up" for workers ages 60 through 63, letting them contribute $11,250 to a 401(k) instead of the standard $7,500 catch-up — a narrow four-year window that reverts to the regular catch-up amount at 64. It also requires that catch-up contributions be made on a Roth, after-tax, basis rather than pre-tax for anyone whose prior-year FICA wages from that employer exceeded $150,000, a rule that starts applying to 2026 catch-up contributions after an administrative delay.
Example: catch-up contribution at age 55
A 55-year-old worker contributes the maximum $23,500 base 401(k) limit for 2025, then adds the standard $7,500 catch-up available at their age, for a total of $31,000 deferred from their salary.
Had this worker instead been 61 years old, they would qualify for the SECURE 2.0 super catch-up of $11,250 instead of the standard $7,500, bringing their total possible 401(k) deferral to $34,750 for the year, $3,750 more than a worker in their 50s could contribute.
Frequently asked questions
How much extra can I contribute to my 401(k) if I'm over 50?
Do IRA catch-up contributions work the same way as 401(k) catch-ups?
Will my 401(k) catch-up contributions have to be Roth?
Related Terms
401(k)
An employer-sponsored retirement savings plan that lets you contribute pre-tax income (or after-tax with Roth 401(k)). The 2025 employee contribution limit is $23,500.
Traditional IRA
An individual retirement account where contributions may be tax-deductible and investments grow tax-deferred. The 2025 contribution limit is $7,000 ($8,000 if age 50+).
Roth IRA
A retirement account funded with after-tax dollars. Qualified withdrawals in retirement — including all growth — are completely tax-free. The 2025 contribution limit is $7,000 ($8,000 if 50+).
Employer Match
A contribution your employer makes to your 401(k) or similar retirement plan based on how much you contribute, often matching 50% to 100% of the first 3% to 6% of your salary.