Which account should you withdraw from first?

Three buckets, three tax treatments

Pre-tax (traditional IRA, 401(k), traditional TSP): withdrawals are taxed as ordinary income.

Roth (Roth IRA, Roth 401(k), Roth TSP): qualified withdrawals are tax-free.

Taxable (bank, brokerage): you pay tax on interest and gains, often at lower capital gains rates.

The conventional order, and why it is only a starting point

A common rule of thumb is to spend taxable money first, then pre-tax, then Roth, letting tax-free money grow the longest. It is simple, but it can backfire by allowing pre-tax balances to grow so large that RMDs push you into a higher bracket later.

Bracket management

A more deliberate approach is to decide how much taxable income you want each year and fill that bracket on purpose. Some years that means drawing more from pre-tax money. Other years it means leaning on Roth or taxable money to stay under a threshold.

The ripple effects

Your withdrawals affect more than your income tax. They can change how much of your Social Security is taxable, the capital gains rate you pay, and your Medicare premiums. A plan that looks at one tax in isolation can miss the others.

Where to start

List every account and label it pre-tax, Roth, or taxable. Add your expected Social Security and pension income. Then ask which years will be lowest in income and which will be highest. That map is the foundation of a withdrawal plan.