What the calculator compares
- Path one, write a check: the money leaves the IRA as a withdrawal, lands in your income, and you deduct the gift later only if you itemize and only above the new half-percent floor.
- Path two, give from the IRA: your custodian sends the money directly to the charity and it never counts as income at all. No itemizing, no floor, no cap.
- The tool computes your actual federal tax under each path and shows the difference, plus your income under each path, which drives things like Medicare premiums that sit outside the tax math.
An example with the calculator's own numbers: a married couple filing jointly with $120,000 of income giving $10,000 saves about $960 in federal tax by giving from the IRA instead of writing a check. Your numbers will differ. That is the point of running them.
The 2026 numbers it uses
- $111,000 per person, per year, per IRS Notice 2025-67. Spouses each have their own limit from their own IRAs.
- Age 70½ exactly. Eligibility starts at 70 and a half, not at 70. The tool tells you if you are not eligible yet and shows what the move would be worth once you are.
- IRA only. Workplace plans do not qualify: no 401(k), no 457, and no SEP or SIMPLE IRA either.
- Public charities only. Donor advised funds and 509(a)(3) supporting organizations are excluded. NYC Honor Foundation qualifies: it is a 501(c)(3) public charity, EIN 42-1836369, and its IRS classification, 509(a)(2), is not an excluded category.
One question the calculator deliberately routes to a professional: how a QCD interacts with a required minimum distribution you are already obligated to take. That depends on timing and on your own accounts.
How to actually send a QCD to NYC Honor
A QCD is paid by your IRA custodian directly to the charity, almost always by check. Your custodian will ask for three things:
- Payee: NYC Honor Foundation Inc.
- EIN: 42-1836369, an IRS-recognized 501(c)(3) public charity
- The mailing address: email eslyn@nychonor.org and we reply within one business day with the address and anything else your custodian asks for.
The same details work for a grant from a donor advised fund. We confirm receipt and send a written acknowledgment for your records.
This is education, not advice
NYC Honor Foundation is a charity, not a tax or investment advisory firm. The calculator produces an estimate to help you ask better questions. Tax outcomes depend on facts it never sees. Talk to your own tax professional before moving money.
For the rules behind the tool, read the 2026 QCD limit and rules. If you take the standard deduction and give smaller amounts, the new $1,000 and $2,000 rule is the page to read instead. The full three-tool calculator, including bunching and appreciated stock, is at the charitable deduction calculator.