Serving the Piedmont Triad and nearby communities · free, nothing is sent anywhere
What does the timing of a Roth conversion cost you in Medicare?
A Roth conversion can affect both taxes and Medicare premiums. This tool compares two timing examples using 2026 Medicare rates. It can help you prepare questions for your tax professional or financial advisor.
- Licensed in North Carolina
- Personal help in Greensboro and nearby communities
- Official 2026 CMS IRMAA schedule
- No-cost consultation with a local licensed agent
Your situation
Nothing is sent anywhere. Move the sliders and the numbers on the right follow.
Leave this at zero if you are not thinking about a conversion. The rest still works.
Where you stand today
Medicare tier
Standard (No Surcharge)
$202.90/mo Part B
Room before the next tier
$38,000
Next tier starts at $218,000
Years before Medicare looks
3
Income after that sets your first premium
What the timing is worth
Converting $300,000 — the same money either way, and the same income tax on it. The only thing that changes is what Medicare charges you.
All in one year
$10,711
extra Medicare cost, for the year that income lands on, across both of you.
Income of $480,000 puts you in Tier 4 IRMAA, 4 tiers above where you are now.
Spread under your ceiling
$0
extra Medicare cost, because you never cross a tier.
About $38,000 a year for 8 years — more years than you have before the lookback starts, which is worth talking about.
Difference: $10,711, decided entirely by which years you convert in.
The 2026 tiers, and where the sliders put you
- Up to $218,000YOU ARE HERE$202.90/mo
- $218,001 – $274,000$284.10/mo
- $274,001 – $342,000$405.80/mo
- $342,001 – $410,000$527.50/mo
- $410,001 – $750,000AFTER A LUMP CONVERSION$649.20/mo
- $750,000 and above$689.90/mo
What this leaves out, and why it matters
- Income tax. A conversion is taxable, and spreading it over years changes which tax brackets it falls in. That can outweigh everything above, and it is a question for a CPA.
- Growth and inflation. Every figure is in today’s dollars against the published 2026 schedule. The brackets move most years.
- Your actual plans. Which doctors you keep, what your prescriptions cost, whether a Medigap policy would be issued to you at all. None of that is arithmetic.
Would you like help understanding your estimate?
We can discuss how retirement income may affect Medicare and identify questions to take to your CPA or financial advisor.
Free consultation in person or by phone. Appointments daily at 9am, 11am, 1pm, 3pm, and 5pm, Eastern time.