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FINANCE · FREE ONLINE CALCULATOR

Retirement Calculator

Project your retirement savings from your current balance, monthly contributions, investment return and years remaining. Compare future value with purchasing power in today’s money.

Detailed optionsStep-by-step guideWorked examples
Make it yours
years

Your age now; retirement age must be later.

years

When contributions stop in this illustration.

USD

The savings available now, before future contributions.

USD

Your first-year monthly deposit. Contributions are made at month-end.

%

A constant hypothetical annual effective investment return, before taxes and fees.

%

Converts retirement-date amounts into today’s purchasing power.

Advanced options4 more ways to explore
%

Raises monthly contributions once per year.

USD

The annual retirement income you want to illustrate, expressed in today’s money.

USD

Illustrative pension or other income, in today’s money. This model assumes it preserves purchasing power.

%

A chosen draw rate used only for a target-pot illustration. It is not a guaranteed safe withdrawal rate.

Private by design. Calculated in your browser.
Projected retirement savingsLIVE RESULT
$1,122,621.35
Total contributions$235,000.00
Interest earned$887,621.35
In today’s money$473,040.16
Illustrative target at retirement$1,779,903.89
Monthly saving to reach target$884.06
Projected annual draw (today’s money)$18,921.61
Projected shortfall to your illustrative target$657,282.54 below the target at retirement. The target depends on your income and withdrawal assumptions.
Your savings over timeHover to explore each year
Start17.5 years35 years
Illustrative model. Check the assumptions below; real outcomes may differ.
YOUR ANIMATED GUIDE

Follow your numbers, step by step.

These steps use your current inputs. Choose a step or play the walkthrough.

STEP 1 / 4
35 years
1234

Work out your saving horizon

Contributions and modeled returns continue until your selected retirement age.

65 − 30 = 35 years
Explore at your own pace
ONE ASSUMPTION, A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE

Compare your options

These rows update with your inputs. Comparisons illustrate assumptions, not forecasts.

Scenario comparison · USD
Monthly contributionRetirement balanceIn today’s money
$375.00$908,694.65$382,897.63
$500.00$1,122,621.35$473,040.16
$625.00$1,336,548.06$563,182.68

Change an input above to explore a different scenario.

How to use this retirement calculator

Explore a retirement savings projection and an optional income-based target in the same place. Start with your savings, contributions, retirement age and hypothetical return. Then add inflation, contribution increases, desired income and other income assumptions. The calculator shows nominal savings, purchasing power, a target-pot illustration and the first-year monthly contribution needed to reach that target under the same constant assumptions.

Accumulation is only one part of retirement planning

This model grows savings until the chosen retirement age. It does not simulate the sequence of returns during retirement or how withdrawals behave over a lifetime. A larger projected pot is useful information, but readiness also depends on spending, taxes, longevity, account rules and the timing of income and expenses.

Keep today’s money and future money separate

Desired annual income and other annual income are entered in today’s money. The calculator first derives a present-purchasing-power target, then inflates it to the retirement date. Savings are shown in both nominal future money and today’s purchasing power. Comparing a future pot directly with a current-price spending amount would mix two different units.

Use the withdrawal assumption as a scenario

The target illustration subtracts other income from desired income and divides the gap by a selected annual withdrawal percentage. This is a simple income-to-capital relationship, not a guarantee that withdrawals will last. A 4% input is merely a user-adjustable scenario. Other income is assumed to maintain purchasing power, and taxes and investment charges are excluded.

Understand the required monthly contribution

The monthly saving-to-target figure solves for the first-year month-end deposit, including the annual contribution increase you selected. It is floored at zero if projected growth of existing savings already exceeds the target. The comparison table varies current monthly deposits by −25%, unchanged and +25%, holding the return, time and inflation assumptions fixed.

Retirement formulas, explained

Time and monthly return

Years = retirement age − current age; i = (1 + annual effective return)^(1/12) − 1

The annual return is effective rather than a nominal rate compounded a selected number of times.

Income-based target

Today’s target = max(desired income − other income, 0) ÷ withdrawal rate

Retirement-date target = today’s target × (1 + inflation)^years.

Savings required to target

First-year monthly deposit = max((target − future value of current savings) ÷ future value of a unit monthly-deposit stream, 0)

The unit deposit stream uses the same annual contribution increase and month-end timing as the main projection.

EVERY OPTION, EXPLAINED

Know what goes into your result.

Use this reference to check units, assumptions and advanced settings.

Retirement calculator input reference
Input or optionWhat it means
Current ageYour age now; retirement age must be later.
Retirement ageWhen contributions stop in this illustration.
Current retirement savingsThe savings available now, before future contributions.
Monthly contributionYour first-year monthly deposit. Contributions are made at month-end.
Expected annual effective returnA constant hypothetical annual effective investment return, before taxes and fees.
Annual inflationConverts retirement-date amounts into today’s purchasing power.
Annual contribution increaseRaises monthly contributions once per year.
Desired annual income · todayThe annual retirement income you want to illustrate, expressed in today’s money.
Other annual income · todayIllustrative pension or other income, in today’s money. This model assumes it preserves purchasing power.
Annual withdrawal assumptionA chosen draw rate used only for a target-pot illustration. It is not a guaranteed safe withdrawal rate.
PUT THE FORMULA TO WORK

Worked examples you can try.

Load an example into the calculator, then change one value to explore.

EXAMPLE 01

Separate deposits from growth

At age 30 with 25,000 saved and 500 added monthly until age 65, a 0% return gives 235,000 in total savings. Inflation affects purchasing power, not this nominal total.

EXAMPLE 02

Illustrate an income gap

Desired income of 30,000 and other income of 10,000 leave a 20,000 annual gap in today’s money. At a chosen 4% draw assumption, the present-value target is 500,000.

MAKE THE NUMBERS MAKE SENSE

Common mistakes to avoid

  • Comparing income in today’s prices with savings in future prices.
  • Treating a chosen withdrawal percentage as a universally safe rate.
  • Forgetting that account taxes, fees and variable returns can change outcomes.
A LITTLE MORE CLARITY

Frequently asked questions

Does this show how much I need to retire?

It projects savings and offers a simplified income-based target using your chosen withdrawal assumption. It does not establish retirement readiness or simulate withdrawals over a lifetime.

Are investment returns guaranteed?

No. The model uses a constant hypothetical return and excludes taxes and investment fees. Actual returns fluctuate and may be negative.

What if other income covers all desired income?

The simplified capital target becomes zero. This does not evaluate emergencies, taxes, income reliability or other retirement needs.

Does the monthly saving requirement include rising contributions?

Yes. It solves for the first-year monthly contribution, then applies your selected annual increase to later years.

Are contributions made after retirement?

No. Contributions stop at the selected retirement age. A retirement withdrawal simulation is outside this accumulation model.

Can this calculator model a bad market sequence?

No. It uses a constant hypothetical return. The order and variability of actual returns are not simulated.

Methodology & assumptions

Calculations run in your browser using the formulas and assumptions explained on this page. Intermediate values retain full floating-point precision; displayed amounts are rounded. Financial results are illustrations with constant assumptions, not quotes or guarantees. Sharing an input link places those inputs in the URL.

KEEP EXPLORING

A little more perspective.

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