Free HSA retirement calculator
An HSA retirement calculator treats the Health Savings Account as what it quietly is: the most tax-advantaged retirement account in the US code. It's the only account that is triple tax-free — deductible going in, tax-free growth, and tax-free coming out for medical costs. Used deliberately (contribute the max, invest it, pay today's medical bills out of pocket), an HSA becomes a stealth IRA — and Coastline models the contributions, growth, and retirement drawdown inside your full plan.
The triple tax advantage, spelled out
| Account | Money in | Growth | Money out |
|---|---|---|---|
| HSA (medical) | Deductible | Tax-free | Tax-free |
| Traditional 401(k)/IRA | Deductible | Deferred | Taxed as income |
| Roth IRA/401(k) | After-tax | Tax-free | Tax-free |
| Taxable brokerage | After-tax | Taxed on gains | Capital gains |
No other account wins all three columns. The 2026 contribution limits: $4,400 self-only coverage, $8,750 family, plus a $1,000 catch-up from age 55.
The strategy: invest it, don't spend it
- Pay current medical costs out of pocket if you can afford to, and let the HSA compound invested. Spending the account each year forfeits decades of tax-free growth on that money.
- Retirement healthcare is the natural target. Health costs late in life are large and nearly certain — Medicare premiums, dental, hearing, long-term-care expenses all qualify for tax-free HSA withdrawals.
- After 65 it degrades gracefully. Non-medical withdrawals after 65 are simply taxed as ordinary income — exactly like a traditional 401(k), with no penalty. Before 65, non-medical withdrawals cost tax plus 20%, so the account is genuinely medical-first.
- No RMDs. Unlike a traditional 401(k)/IRA, the HSA never forces withdrawals — it can compound untouched as long as you like.
How Coastline models it
Enter your balance, annual contribution, and coverage type; choose how much of each year's contribution is spent on current medical costs versus invested; and set the retirement drawdown. The projection applies the IRS cap (indexed, with the 55+ catch-up), deducts contributions from your taxable income, compounds the invested balance, and draws it in retirement — all visible in the year-by-year math and an optional HSA table column.
Why Coastline's version is different
Most free calculators hand you a single headline number with the assumptions hidden. Coastline is built the opposite way:
- Real tax math, not a flat rate. It applies federal and state income tax, long-term capital-gains rules, and account-by-account treatment (taxable, traditional, Roth) — in both your working years and retirement.
- The whole journey. It models accumulation (saving and investing) and drawdown (spending it down), so you see how the plan connects end to end, not just one half.
- The math is shown. Every figure has a click-through breakdown of how it was computed — a level of transparency even paid tools rarely expose.
- US and Canada. It natively handles Canadian plans (RRSP, TFSA, CPP, OAS) alongside US accounts, which most calculators ignore.
- Free, no signup. No account, no email, no account-linking. Your inputs run the projection and are then discarded.
Educational, not tax advice. HSA eligibility requires a qualifying high-deductible health plan (HDHP); contributions stop at Medicare enrollment (65). State treatment varies (a few states tax HSA contributions or earnings). Figures: family coverage maxed from 40, invested at 7% nominal, 3% inflation, shown in today's dollars.
Common questions
Can an HSA really be used as a retirement account?
Yes — deliberately so. Contributions are deductible, growth is tax-free, and withdrawals for medical costs (of which retirement has plenty) are tax-free: the only triple-tax-free account in the code. After 65, non-medical withdrawals are taxed like a traditional 401(k) with no penalty, so the downside case is still a good retirement account.
How much can I contribute to an HSA?
For 2026: $4,400 with self-only HDHP coverage, $8,750 with family coverage, plus a $1,000 catch-up starting the year you turn 55. The limits are inflation-indexed, and you must be on a qualifying high-deductible plan to contribute.
Should I spend my HSA or invest it?
If cash flow allows, pay current medical bills out of pocket and leave the HSA invested — spending it each year forfeits decades of tax-free compounding. In this page’s example, a family maxing and investing from 40 reaches roughly a third of a million in today’s dollars by 65.
What happens to an HSA after 65?
It keeps working: medical withdrawals (including Medicare premiums, dental, hearing, long-term care) stay tax-free, non-medical withdrawals are taxed as ordinary income with no penalty, contributions end at Medicare enrollment, and there are no required minimum distributions.