FIRE Retirement Calculator
Estimate when you could reach financial independence based on your savings, spending, and investment returns.
Your age today. This is the starting point for the projection.
The age at which you want to reach financial independence. FIRE means having enough assets to support your lifestyle without relying on employment income.
Your gross income (pre-tax salary) before taxes.
Your take-home pay after taxes and deductions. Used to estimate how much you can realistically save each year.
How much you spend per year today.
How much you expect to spend each year in retirement. Often lower or different than current spending.
Total value of your assets minus liabilities.
The percentage of your portfolio you plan to withdraw each year in retirement. Commonly 4%, based on historical market data (not guaranteed).
Expected long-term annual inflation rate.
Percentage of your salary your employer contributes to your retirement account.
Expected annual growth in your income.
Asset Allocation
How your investments are divided across asset classes. Allocation affects expected return and long-term growth.
Key Metrics
The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.
About this calculator
This FIRE Retirement Calculator estimates when you could reach financial independence based on your income, spending, savings rate, and investment returns. It projects your net worth over time and compares it to the amount needed to support your retirement lifestyle.
Use this calculator to explore how changes in spending, savings, or investment strategy affect your timeline to financial freedom.
What each input means
- Current age is your age today. This is the starting point for the projection.
- Target retirement age is the age at which you want to reach financial independence.
- Post-tax annual salary is your take-home pay after taxes and deductions. Used to estimate how much you can realistically save each year.
- Pre-tax annual salary is your gross yearly income before taxes.
- Current annual spending is how much you spend per year today.
- Retirement annual spending is how much you expect to spend each year in retirement. Often lower or different than current spending.
- Current net worth is the total value of your assets minus liabilities.
- Safe withdrawal rate is the percentage of your portfolio you plan to withdraw each year in retirement. Commonly 4%, based on historical market data (not guaranteed).
- Inflation rate is the expected long-term annual inflation rate.
- Company 401(k) match is the percentage of your salary your employer contributes to your retirement account.
- Income growth rate is the expected annual growth in your income.
How does FIRE work?
FIRE, short for Financial Independence, Retire Early, is a strategy focused on saving and investing enough money so that your investments can cover your living expenses indefinitely.
The core idea is simple: save a high percentage of your income, invest consistently over time, and build a portfolio large enough to support your spending without needing a paycheck.
A common guideline in FIRE planning is the 4% rule, which suggests that you can withdraw about 4% of your portfolio per year, adjusted for inflation, with a high probability of not running out of money over a long retirement. Under this rule, reaching FIRE typically means accumulating 25 times your annual retirement spending.
This calculator projects how your net worth grows over time and estimates when your portfolio reaches your FIRE number. It assumes steady contributions and simplified, constant return assumptions to keep the results easy to understand.
Key levers that drive FIRE outcomes
- Savings rate – Higher savings rates dramatically reduce the time needed to reach financial independence.
- Spending level – Lower spending reduces the size of the portfolio required to retire.
- Investment returns – Better long-term returns compound wealth faster, shortening the FIRE timeline.
- Time horizon – Starting earlier gives compounding more time to work, even with smaller contributions.
- Asset allocation – More aggressive allocations may increase expected returns but also increase volatility.
Key assumptions & limitations
- Constant returns – Investment returns are assumed to be constant over time.
- No market volatility modeled – Market swings and sequence-of-returns risk are not modeled.
- Simplified taxes – Taxes are simplified and not dynamically recalculated over time.
- Estimates only – Results are estimates for education and comparison, not financial advice.
This calculator is designed for high-level planning and comparison, not precise retirement forecasting.