Retirement Calculator

Plan retirement four ways: how much you need saved, the monthly savings to reach it, the sustainable withdrawal your savings support, and how long a pot of money will last.

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Plan your retirement from four angles: how large a nest egg you'll need, the monthly savings to reach a target, the sustainable withdrawal your savings can support, and how long a fixed pot of money will last. Switch tabs to ask each question with its own inputs.

The three rules of thumb

Rule	What it says
10% Rule	Save 10–15% of income every year
80% Rule	Plan to need ~70–80% of pre-retirement income
4% Rule	Nest egg ≈ annual retirement spending ÷ 4%

Examples

How much do I need? (age 35, retire at 67)

A 35-year-old earning $70,000 (rising 3%/yr), needing 75% of their final salary, with $30,000 saved and contributing 10% of income at a 6% return and 3% inflation, needs roughly $1.9 million at retirement — and is projected to have about $1.1 million, a shortfall to close by saving more or retiring later.

How long will it last? ($500,000 at $3,000/mo)

A $500,000 balance earning 6% while withdrawing $3,000 a month lasts about 30 years. Drop the withdrawal to $2,000 a month and the 6% return more than covers it, so the balance lasts indefinitely.

Formula

Retirement planning combines growth before retirement with spending after it.

Savings grow to:   FV = balance × (1 + r)^years
Contributions:     FV of a (growing) annuity of your yearly deposits
Nest egg needed:   present value of a withdrawal that starts at your
                   first retirement year and grows with inflation, while
                   the balance keeps earning the return r
How long it lasts: months = −ln(1 − balance × rₘ / withdrawal) / ln(1 + rₘ)

Where r is the annual return and rₘ = r / 12 is the monthly return.

The biggest levers are starting early, your savings rate, and keeping fees low — small differences compound into large ones over decades.

Assumptions and limits

This is a deterministic projection, not a retirement recommendation. It applies one annual return and one inflation rate, so it does not model market sequence risk, investment fees, changing taxes, contribution timing within each year, or unexpected spending. Compare several conservative scenarios and use current Social Security and pension estimates rather than treating the default result as a promise.

A detailed withdrawal schedule

The Lasts mode provides a quick fixed-monthly-payment estimate. For a schedule, different payment frequencies, beginning/end timing, or annual withdrawal increases, use the Savings Withdrawal Calculator. It also solves an initial withdrawal for a chosen duration. Both are assumption-based projections, not guarantees of retirement income.

Frequently asked questions

How much do I need to retire?

The 4% rule is a rough starting point rather than a guaranteed withdrawal rate. Dividing annual spending by 4% gives a simple target. This calculator instead it projects your final salary, applies the share of income you'll need, grows that need with inflation through retirement, and sizes the savings required to fund it while the balance keeps earning a return.

How much of my income will I need after I retire?

The calculator defaults to 75% as an editable planning assumption. A personal spending estimate is stronger because housing, health care, taxes, travel, and support for family can change after retirement.

Why does inflation matter so much over a long retirement?

Because it compounds. At 3% inflation, prices roughly double every 24 years, so the income you need in your 80s is far larger in dollar terms than at age 65. The calculator grows your retirement spending by the inflation rate each year so the target reflects real purchasing power.

How long will my savings last?

It depends on the balance, your withdrawal amount, and the return it earns. If the return on the remaining balance covers your withdrawals, the money can last indefinitely; otherwise the balance is drawn down until it runs out. The "How long will it last?" tab solves for that time.

Does this include Social Security or a pension?

Partly. In the "How much do I need?" tab you can enter other monthly income (Social Security, a pension, an annuity), which reduces the savings you need to fund yourself. The other tabs focus on your own savings and contributions.

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