How can I withdraw money from my Roth IRA tax-free?

Because regular Roth IRA contributions are never tax-deductible, you can withdraw those amounts at any time and for any reason without any tax or penalty tax consequence. The earnings, however, grow tax-deferred and can only be withdrawn tax-free if you have a “qualified” distribution. To be qualified, you must have owned a Roth IRA for at least five years (beginning with January 1 of the tax year for which you made your first Roth IRA contribution/conversion to any Roth IRA) and  you are

For example, if you first made a Roth IRA contribution on April 1, 2025, for the 2024 tax year, your five-year clock started on January 1, 2024. Let’s say that in 2029, you are age 63. You’ve then met both the five-year requirement and age 59½ requirement, so you can take a qualified distribution.