A Couple Who Retires at 60 With $560,000 Between a 401(k) and an IRA Can Convert $35,000 a Year for 13 Years at 12%. The Average Couple With the Same Balance Converts $0 and Meets About $40,000 of RMDs at 73

A married couple stops working at 60 with $560,000 split between a 401(k) and a traditional IRA. At this point in their life, they have two choices: move money into a Roth IRA piece by piece while their taxable income is low, or leave the pretax balance alone and let required minimum distributions (RMDs) decide later how much they withdraw and when. For many couples, the years between retirement and RMDs carry the lowest tax rates of their adult lives, but if they do nothing, that window closes unused.

Where a $560,000 Balance Sits Against Typical Savers

By national standards, this couple is ahead. Transamerica’s latest survey puts median household retirement savings for baby boomers at $270,000, so a $560,000 balance sits well above what the typical boomer household reports.

Vanguard’s average and median figures also place this couple ahead. Vanguard’s data shows an average 401(k) balance of $167,970 but a median of just $44,115. A few very large accounts pull the average up. The median is the household in the exact middle. A couple above both figures has the most to lose from a large forced withdrawal later, so the conversion decision matters more for them than for the typical saver.

A 12% Tax Window Many Retired Couples Can Use

For married couples filing jointly in 2025, the IRS applies the 12% rate to taxable income from $23,851 to $96,950. The standard deduction was $31,500 for 2025 and rose to $32,200 for 2026.

Because the deduction comes off the top, a couple using 2025 figures could have about $93,450 of other income, add a conversion, and still keep every converted dollar at 12% or lower. At that rate, each $35,000 conversion triggers a federal tax bill of $4,200.

Over 13 years, the couple moves $455,000 into a Roth and pays $54,600 in total. The IRS explains that a higher rate applies only to the income that falls in the higher bracket. A converting couple uses that rule to fill the cheap layer on purpose every year. With little other income, a household would pay even less, because part of each conversion would fall in the 10% bracket or under the deduction.

The quiet years between the last paycheck and the first RMD are often the lowest-tax window a couple will ever see again, and we sized up how to use it in a free Roth conversion guide.

How the Couple That Waits Ends Up With a $40,000 Withdrawal

Assuming 5% annual growth, an untouched $560,000 grows to about $1.1 million by age 73. The IRS Uniform Lifetime Table divisor at 73 is 26.5, so the first RMD comes to roughly $39,850. That withdrawal is mandatory and taxed as ordinary income, whether or not the couple needs the money.

The RMD comes on top of Social Security. The Social Security Administration estimates that the average aged couple where both spouses collect benefits will receive $3,355 per month in 2027, after a 3.6% cost-of-living adjustment. That works out to about $40,260 a year. The RMD adds to that income, which can make more of the benefits taxable and push more dollars into higher brackets.

The tax code sets the RMD age at 73 for people who reach 73 before 2033, and at 75 for people who reach age 74 after December 31, 2032. A couple turning 60 in 2026 falls in the age-75 group, so the age-73 figures above are illustrative: two more years of growth mean a larger first RMD, but also more time to convert.

What the Converting Couple Holds at 73

With the same 5% rate, the converting couple reaches 73 with about $620,000 in a Roth IRA and roughly $436,000 still in pretax accounts.

Using the age-73 divisor purely for illustration, those pretax balances imply withdrawals of about $16,450 and $39,850. This couple’s actual first RMD would begin at 75 and use the preceding December 31 balance and the age-75 divisor of 24.6. IRS Publication 17 says Roth IRA owners aren’t required to take distributions at any age while they are alive, so the Roth portion can stay invested and grow tax-free for as long as the couple chooses.

Steps to Take Before the Window Closes

1. Map taxable income year by year. Project income from retirement until Social Security begins. The room left below the top of the 12% bracket ($96,950 in 2025 taxable income, adjusted each year) is that year’s conversion amount.
2. Paying the tax from outside cash. Covering the $4,200 annual bill from savings or a taxable account means the full conversion stays in the Roth. Paying it from the IRA leaves fewer dollars compounding untaxed.
3. Coordinate with the Social Security claim. Each year, delaying benefits keeps reported income low and leaves more room to convert at 12%.

The projection rests on rate. A 5% return is an estimate, and tax brackets can change. Lower returns shrink the RMD difference for the two couples, and higher returns widen it. Either way, the pretax balance will eventually be taxed. The couple that converts pays at the rate it chooses, while the couple that holds off pays whatever its RMDs and income add up to.

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