When a Roth conversion makes sense

A Roth conversion moves money from a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA. You pay income tax on the amount converted now, and qualified withdrawals later are tax-free.

It usually makes sense in a year when your income is unusually low, such as the years between retiring and claiming Social Security.

It rarely makes sense if you would need to pay the tax from the IRA itself, since that shrinks what you convert.

Conversions can also be spread across several years, converting just enough each year to stay inside a lower tax bracket. That approach takes planning, because a large conversion can raise Medicare premiums two years later and can change how much of your Social Security is taxed.

Before converting, it helps to project your income for the next several years, including required minimum distributions, and to compare the tax you would pay now with the tax you expect to pay later.