How Much Can I Put in My 401k in 2024
Straight answer. $23,000. If you’ll have your 50th birthday by the end of the year then you can put an additional $7,500 into your 401k.
Other common questions would be, how much should I actually put away each month, or why should I put in the max, but a question I do not hear a lot is “If I can afford to, should I max out my 401k as quickly as possible in the year?” This question is not asked, but do not be too shocked that some people will actually do this. I have seen this with high earners as well as individuals who can afford to because their partner or spouse is significantly contributing to the household income and expenses. Should this be everyone’s financial goal to be financially well enough to max the 401k out quickly? Absolutely, no. Here’s why in two bullets:
Dollar-cost averaging (Assuming you automatically invest each deferral versus a self-directed account where you are manually purchasing stocks, mutual funds etc. If you manually purchase your investments then you can control dollar cost averaging by not purchasing a particular investment all at once)
The company match. If your company does a company match, they are matching ALONG THE WAY, which means, that if you max out in 4 paychecks, they only match 4 paychecks.
Stay clever. One insight at a time. Cheers to building the life you want.
