For 2026, you can put up to $7,500 into IRAs, or $8,600 if you’re 50 or older, per IR-2025-111. A Roth IRA gives you no deduction now, but qualified withdrawals later are tax-free. As a freelancer, your business profit counts as the compensation that lets you contribute. You can have a Roth IRA alongside a SEP IRA or Solo 401(k). Whether Roth or traditional is the better choice comes down to one comparison: your tax rate now versus your tax rate when you withdraw.
2026 limits and income ranges
| Item | 2026 |
|---|---|
| Contribution limit (all IRAs combined) | $7,500 |
| Additional catch-up, age 50+ | $1,100 |
| Roth phase-out: single, head of household | $153,000 – $168,000 MAGI |
| Roth phase-out: married filing jointly | $242,000 – $252,000 MAGI |
| Roth phase-out: married filing separately | $0 – $10,000 MAGI |
| Traditional deduction phase-out, single, covered by a plan | $81,000 – $91,000 MAGI |
| Traditional deduction phase-out, joint, contributor covered | $129,000 – $149,000 MAGI |
| Traditional deduction phase-out, joint, only spouse covered | $242,000 – $252,000 MAGI |
Contribution limit (all IRAs combined)
- 2026
- $7,500
Additional catch-up, age 50+
- 2026
- $1,100
Roth phase-out: single, head of household
- 2026
- $153,000 – $168,000 MAGI
Roth phase-out: married filing jointly
- 2026
- $242,000 – $252,000 MAGI
Roth phase-out: married filing separately
- 2026
- $0 – $10,000 MAGI
Traditional deduction phase-out, single, covered by a plan
- 2026
- $81,000 – $91,000 MAGI
Traditional deduction phase-out, joint, contributor covered
- 2026
- $129,000 – $149,000 MAGI
Traditional deduction phase-out, joint, only spouse covered
- 2026
- $242,000 – $252,000 MAGI
Source: IR-2025-111 and Notice 2025-67. Contribution limits also can't exceed your taxable compensation. Traditional IRA deduction phase-outs apply only if you (or your spouse) are covered by a retirement plan.
How your self-employment income counts
You can only contribute up to your taxable compensation for the year. Publication 590-A says that for a self-employed person, compensation is the net earnings from the business, reduced by your deduction for contributions to retirement plans on your behalf and by the deductible part of your self-employment tax. A loss year means no compensation from the business. Freelancers with a small profit can also bump into this cap before the $7,500 limit.
The Roth income limit
Above the phase-out range, you can’t contribute to a Roth IRA directly. Within it, your limit shrinks proportionally, following Worksheet 2-2 in Publication 590-A. For example, a single freelancer under 50 with $160,500 of 2026 modified AGI is halfway through the $15,000 range ($153,000–$168,000). Their Roth limit is $7,500 × 50% = $3,750. Publication 590-A rounds the reduced limit up to the nearest $10 and never below $200 while you’re still in the range.
Roth vs. traditional: what you’re really choosing
- Traditional IRA: deductible now (subject to the phase-outs above), and withdrawals are taxed as income later.
- Roth IRA: no deduction now, and qualified withdrawals are tax-free. According to Publication 590-B, a qualified distribution is one made after the 5-year period and at 59½ or later, on disability, to a beneficiary, or for a first home (up to $10,000). Its ordering rules treat withdrawals as coming from your regular contributions first.
If you have a SEP or Solo 401(k): the IRS counts you as covered by a retirement plan when contributions go to your 401(k) or SEP IRA for the year. The IRS SEP FAQ notes that SEP participation can reduce or eliminate your traditional IRA deduction. So a single freelancer who funds a SEP and has MAGI over $81,000 starts to lose the traditional deduction. That often makes the Roth the natural IRA to pair with a self-employed plan. The Roth has its own income limits, but coverage by another plan doesn’t affect it.
Worked example: what the traditional deduction is actually worth
A single freelancer has $80,000 of net profit, no retirement plan, and takes the standard deduction. They’re choosing between a $7,500 traditional IRA contribution and a $7,500 Roth.
- 1$74,348
AGI before any IRA
$80,000 − $5,652 half of SE tax
- 2$5,344
Federal income tax, no deduction (Roth)
Taxable income $46,598
- 3$66,848
AGI with a traditional IRA deduction
$74,348 − $7,500
- 4$40,598
Taxable income after standard and QBI deductions
$66,848 − $16,100 − $10,150 QBI
- 5$4,624
Federal income tax with the deduction
$1,240 + 12% × ($40,598 − $12,400)
- 6$720
Tax saved now by going traditional
- 79.6%
Effective tax rate of the deduction
$720 ÷ $7,500
Illustrative. Single filer, 2026 standard deduction and tax rate schedule. The deduction also lowers taxable income before the QBI deduction, which is why it saves 12% × 80% = 9.6% rather than 12%. Rounded to the dollar.
In this example, the traditional IRA saves 9.6% today. The rest is arithmetic, not IRS rules. With the same investment growth, a traditional and a Roth account end up equal after tax if the withdrawal is taxed at the same rate as today’s saving. So:
- If you expect your tax rate on withdrawals to be higher than 9.6%, the Roth comes out ahead. Retirement withdrawals don’t come with a QBI deduction, so even the 10% or 12% bracket would do it.
- If you expect it to be lower, the traditional IRA wins.
For a freelancer whose income is modest this year, possibly higher later, and unpredictable in between, low-income years are often good Roth years. In a high-profit year sitting in the 22% or 24% bracket, the traditional deduction (or a bigger SEP or Solo 401(k) contribution) is usually worth more.
Deadline
You can contribute for 2026 any time during 2026 or up to the due date of your 2026 return, not including extensions, per Publication 590-A. For 2025 contributions, that was April 15, 2026. Unlike a SEP, an extension doesn’t buy extra time. If your income is uneven, that window after year-end is useful: you can see what the year actually looked like before choosing Roth or traditional, and how much. See How to Save for Retirement With Irregular Income.
Bottom line
A Roth IRA is open to most freelancers in 2026: $7,500 ($8,600 at 50+), full contributions below $153,000 of MAGI for single filers ($242,000 joint), and it sits comfortably next to a SEP or Solo 401(k). Choose Roth when today’s tax saving is small, as in a low-profit year or the 12% bracket. Choose traditional, or a bigger self-employed plan contribution, when today’s rate is high. And you can decide after the year ends, up to your filing deadline.