Best Roth IRA for Travel Nurses in 2025

One of the most overlooked financial advantages of travel nursing is the ability to build serious retirement wealth — if you use the right accounts. Most travel nurses don’t have access to an employer 401(k) match, which feels like a disadvantage. But with a Roth IRA and the right strategy, you can end up significantly better positioned than nurses in traditional hospital jobs.

Here’s why the Roth IRA is the cornerstone of travel nurse retirement planning, and where to open one.

Why the Roth IRA Is Perfect for Travel Nurses

The Roth IRA is funded with after-tax money. You pay tax on contributions now, and all future growth and withdrawals in retirement are completely tax-free.

For travel nurses, this matters for two specific reasons:

Your tax-free stipends lower your taxable income. Many travel nurses find themselves in a surprisingly low tax bracket because a large portion of their compensation comes from non-taxable stipends. Paying tax on Roth contributions now — at a 12% or 22% rate — means you’ll never pay tax on that money or its growth again, no matter how high tax rates rise in the future.

No employer plan means you rely entirely on your own accounts. Without a 401(k) match, you don’t have an employer subsidy boosting your retirement savings. But the trade-off is flexibility — you’re not locked into one fund lineup, and your money moves with you regardless of which agency you work for.

2025 Roth IRA Contribution Limits

You can contribute up to $7,000 per year ($8,000 if you’re 50 or older) to a Roth IRA in 2025.

The catch: You need earned income to contribute, and your income must be below certain limits.

“Earned income” means wages and self-employment income — it includes your taxable wages from your agency, but not your non-taxable stipends. A travel nurse earning $100,000 total with $60,000 in stipends has $40,000 in earned income — still enough to max a Roth IRA.

If your modified adjusted gross income exceeds the phase-out range, look into the backdoor Roth IRA strategy (contributing to a traditional IRA then converting to Roth).

The Best Roth IRA Options for Travel Nurses

Fidelity — Best Overall

Fidelity is the most straightforward option for most travel nurses. No account minimums, no annual fees, no fees to open. You can start with $1 and add money whenever you have it — which matters when income fluctuates between assignments.

Why travel nurses love it: The app is clean, transfers from your bank are fast, and customer service is genuinely good. The index fund selection is excellent — Fidelity’s own zero-fee index funds (FZROX, FZILX) have no expense ratio at all.

Best for: Travel nurses opening their first retirement account or wanting the simplest setup.

Vanguard — Best for Long-Term Index Investors

Vanguard invented the index fund and has the lowest-cost funds in the industry. The Total Stock Market Index Fund (VTSAX) and its ETF equivalent (VTI) are benchmarks against which everything else is measured.

The trade-off: The website and app are clunky compared to Fidelity or Schwab. Customer service can be slow. And while there’s no account minimum for their ETFs, the Admiral Share mutual funds require $3,000+.

Best for: Nurses who are set-it-and-forget-it investors and plan to hold low-cost index funds for decades.

Schwab — Best for Active Traders or Balanced Investors

Charles Schwab offers a strong combination of no fees, good index fund options, and a better trading platform than Fidelity or Vanguard for nurses who want to invest in individual stocks alongside index funds.

Best for: Travel nurses who want flexibility to do more than just index investing.

M1 Finance — Best for Automation

M1 Finance uses a “pie” investing model — you set your target allocations once and contributions are automatically invested proportionally. For travel nurses who want automated retirement investing without thinking about it, M1 is compelling.

The trade-off: Less flexibility for active trading, and the platform is less established than Fidelity, Vanguard, or Schwab.

Best for: Nurses who want their contributions auto-invested and don’t want to think about asset allocation on an ongoing basis.

What to Invest In Once You Open the Account

Opening the account isn’t the same as investing. Your contributions sit as cash until you invest them — a mistake many new investors make (they open the account and think they’re done).

For most travel nurses who don’t want to manage investments actively, a simple approach works best:

Option 1: Target Date Fund Pick a target date fund matching your approximate retirement year (e.g., Vanguard Target Retirement 2055 if you plan to retire around 2055). It automatically holds a mix of stocks and bonds and adjusts more conservative as you approach retirement. One fund, zero maintenance.

Option 2: Two-Fund Portfolio

• Total U.S. Stock Market index fund (~80–90% of portfolio)
• Total International Stock Market index fund (~10–20%)

This gives you broad diversification across thousands of companies worldwide with minimal expense ratios.

Option 3: Three-Fund Portfolio Same as two-fund but add a bond index fund (5–20% depending on age and risk tolerance) for a bit more stability.

Avoid: individual stocks (too risky for retirement savings), actively managed funds (high fees eat returns), and cryptocurrency in a Roth IRA (too volatile for a retirement base).

How Much to Contribute Each Year

The math is simple: maxing out a Roth IRA ($7,000/year) over a career is wealth-building in slow motion. Let compound growth do the work.

Example: A travel nurse who contributes $7,000/year starting at age 28, earns a 7% average annual return, and never touches it will have approximately:

• At age 40: ~$130,000
• At age 50: ~$305,000
• At age 65: ~$750,000 — all tax-free

This is without any increase in contributions over time. If you contribute more in high-earning years, the numbers are significantly better.

If you can’t max it: Contribute something. Even $100/month is $1,200/year working for you. The habit matters more than the amount when you’re starting out.

Beyond the Roth IRA: What Else Travel Nurses Can Use

The Roth IRA has a $7,000 annual limit — which is modest for a high-earning travel nurse who wants to save aggressively. Additional options:

Solo 401(k) / Individual 401(k): If you have 1099 income from any source (per diem shifts, independent contracts), you can open a Solo 401(k) and contribute up to $69,000 per year (2024). This is the most powerful tax-advantaged account available to anyone with self-employment income.

HSA (Health Savings Account): If you have a high-deductible health plan, an HSA lets you contribute pre-tax dollars for medical expenses — and any unused balance rolls over forever. Invested long-term, an HSA functions as a second retirement account.

Taxable brokerage account: Once tax-advantaged accounts are maxed, a regular brokerage account is the next step. No contribution limits, full flexibility — but you’ll pay capital gains taxes on growth.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I contribute to a Roth IRA between contracts when I have no income? You can only contribute up to your earned income for the year. If you work six months and earn $40,000, you can contribute up to $7,000. If you earn $5,000, you can contribute up to $5,000. No earned income = no contribution.

My stipends are high but my taxable wages are low. Does that count? Only earned income (taxable wages, self-employment income) counts for IRA contribution purposes. Non-taxable stipends don’t qualify. That said, even $7,000 of taxable wages makes you eligible to max the Roth IRA.

Should I do traditional IRA or Roth IRA? For most travel nurses in their 20s and 30s, Roth wins. Your current tax rate on that income is likely lower than what you’ll pay in retirement. Pay tax now, enjoy tax-free growth forever.

What if I change my mind about the funds I picked? You can change your investments anytime inside the Roth IRA with no tax consequences. The tax-free shelter stays intact regardless of how many times you rebalance.

Can I withdraw from my Roth IRA early if I need to? Roth IRA contributions (not earnings) can be withdrawn any time, tax-free and penalty-free. You contributed $15,000 over three years? You can pull up to $15,000 out without penalty. The earnings need to stay in until age 59½ to be penalty-free.

What’s the deadline to contribute for the current tax year? Tax Day — typically April 15. You can contribute to your 2025 Roth IRA anytime between January 1, 2025 and April 15, 2026.