The division the publication shows
Publication 590-B tells an owner whose spouse is not more than 10 years younger to use Table III, the Uniform Lifetime table. In the example, the IRA balance is $100,000, the owner turns 75 in 2026, the denominator is 24.6, and the required minimum distribution is $4,065, written as $100,000 divided by 24.6. This page returns $4,065.00 and a denominator of 24.6 for those inputs. The raw quotient is $4,065.04. Rounding half-up to the nearest dollar is $4,065, which is the figure the publication states. Rounding to the cent instead would leave a four-cent remainder the example does not print. This page rounds to the dollar on purpose.
A second example in the same publication uses age 73 and the denominator 26.5. The reduced balance of $34,800 divided by 26.5 is stated as $1,313. This page returns $1,313.00 for that pair. The quotient is about $1,313.21, and the nearest dollar is $1,313. The same story first divides $38,400 by 26.5 and prints $1,450. That quotient is $1,449.06. The nearest dollar is $1,449, not $1,450. This page would report $1,449 for $38,400 at age 73. The $1,313 line matches the division, so the page follows the division on both rows and does not copy the printed $1,450.
Which age goes in the box
The table is keyed to the age the publication uses for that distribution year. Type the age that Table III expects, which in the $100,000 example is the age the owner turns during the year. The denominator falls as the age rises: 27.4 at 72, 26.5 at 73, 25.5 at 74, 24.6 at 75, and so on down to 2.0 at 120 and older. This page stores those denominators. It does not estimate life expectancy from a health question, and it does not switch tables because of a spouse's age.
Table II is the table for a spouse who is the sole beneficiary and is more than 10 years younger. The publication says to use that table in that case, and the denominator then depends on both ages. This page does not include Table II. If that description fits the account, the Uniform Lifetime result is the wrong minimum. Do not use the number above as a substitute.
When the withdrawals have to start
The publication separates the amount from the deadline. It says that if you reach age 72 after December 31, 2022, you must begin receiving required minimum distributions by April 1 of the year following the year you reach age 73. Someone who reached age 72 in an earlier window can have an earlier required beginning date, and the publication states those windows separately. The first distribution year can be satisfied by April 1 of the following year, and a second distribution can still be due by December 31 of that following year. This calculator does not count those two years. It divides one balance by one denominator. Missing a required distribution can mean an excise tax. The amount of that tax is not computed here.
The balance is the account balance at the end of the prior year, the figure the examples use, not today's quote and not a balance you wish you had after a withdrawal you have not taken. Money already withdrawn this year counts toward the minimum. It does not change the denominator. An amount above the minimum cannot be carried forward to cover next year. The publication's Justin example makes that point: extra money taken in the first year does not reduce the next year's required amount. This page will not subtract withdrawals you already took unless you reduce the balance yourself, and reducing the prior year-end balance by a later withdrawal is the wrong input.
Accounts this table does not cover
Publication 590-B's comparison chart says a traditional IRA must begin distributions by that April 1 date, and that the original owner of a Roth IRA does not have to take distributions regardless of age. Do not run a Roth IRA you still own through this box. Inherited accounts use other rules and, often, another table. A workplace plan can allow a later start if you are still working, under conditions this page does not ask about. The IRS required-minimum topic page is the overview that points at those differences. None of them is a reason to type a Roth balance in as if it were a traditional IRA.
The withdrawal can be taxable. This page does not apply a rate. The tax-bracket page is ordinary taxable income you type, and a distribution may or may not be the whole of that income. The Roth contribution page is about putting money in, under the 2026 limit and phase-out. The retirement projection grows a balance at a rate you assume. It does not force a distribution out at 73. Those are different questions. Taking only the minimum, taking more, or converting to a Roth IRA is not a result this division can choose.
Giuseppe Ilarda, the site owner, writes and checks the table and the two divisions that match the publication, and records the $1,450 line that does not match its own arithmetic. The disclaimer applies. If your custodian's calculation and this page disagree, compare the December 31 balance, the age used for the year, and whether the custodian used Table II. The custodian's figure is the one attached to the account.