Frequently Asked Questions

Yes — every calculator is free forever. The core result (your personalized plan, contribution amounts, and plain-English explanation) will always be free. The only paid feature is the $9 PDF export, which lets you download a branded one-pager to share with your CPA. Everything else is yours at no cost.

We build for communities the US financial system wasn't designed for: freelancers and self-employed workers, military families and veterans, teachers and public-sector employees, travel nurses, immigrants and visa holders, and airline pilots. Each calculator is built around the specific rules, plans, and quirks of that community — not a generic one-size-fits-all tool.

No account is needed to use any calculator. You can get your full result without signing up. Creating a free account lets you save results across sessions, re-run with next year's limits in one click, and track how your savings grow year over year.

No. StackedTools is an independent private company. We cite IRS publications for every limit we use, but we have no affiliation with the IRS, SSA, or any government agency. Our calculators are informational tools, not official government services.

We update within 24 hours of any IRS announcement. All calculators currently use 2026 IRS limits from Notice 2025-67 (retirement accounts), Rev. Proc. 2025-19 (HSA/HDHP), and Rev. Proc. 2025-32 (tax brackets). You can see every source on our IRS Sources page.

Our calculators apply the exact IRS formulas for contribution limits, phase-outs, and self-employment tax deductions. The results are as accurate as a CPA spreadsheet for the inputs you provide. However, we can't account for every edge case — state tax rules, partnership income, S-Corp elections, or complex situations with multiple income streams may require a licensed tax professional.

SECURE 2.0 (effective 2025) created a higher catch-up contribution limit for people aged 60–63. In 2026, if you're between 60 and 63, you can contribute an additional $11,250 instead of the standard $8,000 catch-up. Our calculators automatically apply the correct catch-up based on your age.

Certain situations have too many variables for a calculator to handle confidently — S-Corp vs. sole proprietor elections, backdoor Roth conversions, non-deductible IRA basis, pension offsets that interact with Social Security WEP rules, and others. We flag these specifically so you know exactly what to ask a professional about, rather than giving you a false sense of certainty.

No. Calculator inputs (income, age, filing status, account balances) are never stored on our servers. All calculation logic runs in your browser. The only data we retain is your saved results if you create a free account — and only you can access those.

Never. We don't sell, rent, or share your personal data with third parties for marketing purposes. We use a minimal analytics tool (Plausible) to understand page traffic — it collects no personally identifiable information and sets no cookies.

We use only essential cookies for authentication when you're logged into a saved account. We do not use advertising cookies, tracking pixels, or third-party analytics cookies.

Yes. We use Supabase for authentication and data storage, which provides end-to-end encryption, Row Level Security (meaning only you can access your data), and SOC 2 Type 2 compliance. We never store payment card data — Stripe handles all payments.

After you get your calculator result, Claude (Anthropic's AI) writes a short explanation — typically under 60 words — of why your plan looks the way it does. It explains the logic in plain language specific to your inputs, not a generic disclaimer. Think of it as a knowledgeable friend explaining the result rather than a textbook definition.

No. The AI explanation is for informational purposes only. It explains the mathematical result of your inputs based on current IRS rules. It is not personalized financial advice, tax advice, or a recommendation to take any specific action. For advice tailored to your complete financial situation, consult a CPA or Certified Financial Planner.

Yes. There's a chat drawer built into every tool page where you can ask follow-up questions about your result. Claude will answer in the context of your current inputs. The same caveat applies — these are educational responses, not licensed financial advice.

Both are retirement accounts for self-employed people, but they differ in two key ways. (1) Employee deferral: A Solo 401(k) lets you contribute up to $24,500 as an employee before adding profit-sharing contributions. A SEP-IRA has no employee deferral — only employer (profit-sharing) contributions. (2) Roth option: Solo 401(k)s can have a Roth option; SEP-IRAs cannot. For most self-employed people with income above ~$50K, the Solo 401(k) allows higher total contributions. Our optimizer runs both scenarios for your specific income.

Many teachers in states like California, Texas, and Illinois don't pay into Social Security — and if they worked other Social Security-covered jobs, they're subject to the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP), which can reduce their SS benefit by up to $587/month in 2026. Our calculator accounts for both scenarios: teachers with full Social Security exclusion and teachers subject to WEP reduction.

Yes. The Military Pension calculator models both the Legacy (Final Pay / High-3) and Blended Retirement System (BRS) pension values, plus your TSP account projected to retirement. For BRS members, it includes the automatic 1% DoD contribution and the matching contributions (up to 5% of base pay) that begin after 2 years of service.

Travel nurse contracts often include a taxable hourly rate plus tax-free housing and meal stipends that significantly increase take-home pay. Our calculator shows your true net weekly income (wages after tax + stipends) and checks whether your stipend amounts comply with GSA per diem rates. Stipends above GSA rates are taxable, and our calculator flags that risk.