Retirement Calculator

Project your retirement savings, see the power of compound interest, and find out if you're on track to hit your goals.

Current Age

Retirement Age

Current Savings ($)

Monthly Contribution ($)

Annual Return (%)

Tip: Use 6-7% for inflation-adjusted growth.

Your Goal

Desired Annual Income in Retirement ($)

Projected Retirement Balance at Age 65

$2,376,362

Growth Breakdown

Starting Savings$50,000

Total Contributions$420,000

Compound Growth+$1,906,362

Goal Analysis

Target Portfolio (4% Rule)$2,000,000

Status+$376,362 Surplus

Safe Annual Withdrawal (4% Rule)

$95,054 /yr

Portfolio Growth Over Time

The green area represents your total portfolio balance, showing the exponential growth of compound interest over time compared to your actual contributions (blue line).

Year-by-Year Projection

Age	Contributions	Balance
Age 30	$50,000	$50,000
Age 31	$62,000	$66,007
Age 32	$74,000	$83,171
Age 33	$86,000	$101,576
Age 34	$98,000	$121,312
Age 35	$110,000	$142,474
Age 36	$122,000	$165,166
Age 37	$134,000	$189,499
Age 38	$146,000	$215,590
Age 39	$158,000	$243,568
Age 40	$170,000	$273,568
Age 41	$182,000	$305,737
Age 42	$194,000	$340,231
Age 43	$206,000	$377,219
Age 44	$218,000	$416,881
Age 45	$230,000	$459,410
Age 46	$242,000	$505,013
Age 47	$254,000	$553,913
Age 48	$266,000	$606,348
Age 49	$278,000	$662,574
Age 50	$290,000	$722,864
Age 51	$302,000	$787,512
Age 52	$314,000	$856,834
Age 53	$326,000	$931,167
Age 54	$338,000	$1,010,874
Age 55	$350,000	$1,096,343
Age 56	$362,000	$1,187,990
Age 57	$374,000	$1,286,262
Age 58	$386,000	$1,391,639
Age 59	$398,000	$1,504,633
Age 60	$410,000	$1,625,796
Age 61	$422,000	$1,755,717
Age 62	$434,000	$1,895,031
Age 63	$446,000	$2,044,415
Age 64	$458,000	$2,204,599
Age 65	$470,000	$2,376,362

Age 30$50,000

Total Contributions:$50,000

Age 31$66,007

Total Contributions:$62,000

Age 32$83,171

Total Contributions:$74,000

Age 33$101,576

Total Contributions:$86,000

Age 34$121,312

Total Contributions:$98,000

Age 35$142,474

Total Contributions:$110,000

Age 36$165,166

Total Contributions:$122,000

Age 37$189,499

Total Contributions:$134,000

Age 38$215,590

Total Contributions:$146,000

Age 39$243,568

Total Contributions:$158,000

Age 40$273,568

Total Contributions:$170,000

Age 41$305,737

Total Contributions:$182,000

Age 42$340,231

Total Contributions:$194,000

Age 43$377,219

Total Contributions:$206,000

Age 44$416,881

Total Contributions:$218,000

Age 45$459,410

Total Contributions:$230,000

Age 46$505,013

Total Contributions:$242,000

Age 47$553,913

Total Contributions:$254,000

Age 48$606,348

Total Contributions:$266,000

Age 49$662,574

Total Contributions:$278,000

Age 50$722,864

Total Contributions:$290,000

Age 51$787,512

Total Contributions:$302,000

Age 52$856,834

Total Contributions:$314,000

Age 53$931,167

Total Contributions:$326,000

Age 54$1,010,874

Total Contributions:$338,000

Age 55$1,096,343

Total Contributions:$350,000

Age 56$1,187,990

Total Contributions:$362,000

Age 57$1,286,262

Total Contributions:$374,000

Age 58$1,391,639

Total Contributions:$386,000

Age 59$1,504,633

Total Contributions:$398,000

Age 60$1,625,796

Total Contributions:$410,000

Age 61$1,755,717

Total Contributions:$422,000

Age 62$1,895,031

Total Contributions:$434,000

Age 63$2,044,415

Total Contributions:$446,000

Age 64$2,204,599

Total Contributions:$458,000

Age 65$2,376,362

Total Contributions:$470,000

How to Use the Retirement Calculator

Planning for retirement means estimating how your current savings and future contributions will grow over time, and comparing that against what you'll actually need to live comfortably.

Current Age & Retirement Age: Determines your "accumulation phase" (how many years you have left to save and let compound interest work).
Current Savings: The total amount you already have invested in retirement accounts (401k, IRA, brokerage).
Monthly Contributions: How much you plan to add to your retirement accounts every month.
Annual Return: The expected average yearly growth of your investments. A common conservative estimate for a diversified index fund portfolio is 6% to 8% (after inflation).
Desired Retirement Income: How much money you want to live on each year in retirement.

The Power of Compound Interest

Compound interest is the process where you earn interest on your initial investment, and then you earn interest on that interest in subsequent years.

Because of compounding, the earlier you start saving, the less you actually have to contribute out of your own pocket. If you start saving in your 20s, the vast majority of your final retirement balance will be growth, not your actual contributions.

Example: If you invest $500/month from age 25 to 65 at a 7% return, you will have contributed $240,000 out of pocket. But your final balance will be over $1.2 million. Over $1 million of that is purely from compound growth!

The 4% Rule (Safe Withdrawal Rate)

What is it?

The 4% rule is a rule of thumb used to determine how much you can safely withdraw from your retirement portfolio each year without running out of money over a 30-year retirement.

How to calculate your "number"

If you know how much annual income you want, multiply it by 25 to find your target portfolio size. For example, to safely withdraw $40,000/year, you need a portfolio of $1,000,000 ($40,000 × 25).

Understanding Inflation

Inflation reduces the purchasing power of money over time. What costs $50,000 today might cost $100,000 in 25 years.

When planning for retirement, you must account for inflation. There are two common ways to do this:

Inflation-Adjusted Returns (Recommended): Use a lower expected return rate (e.g., 6% instead of 9%). This automatically accounts for 3% inflation, meaning all your final numbers are in "today's dollars," making them much easier to comprehend.
Nominal Returns: Use the actual expected return (e.g., 9%), but remember that your final million-dollar balance won't buy as much as a million dollars does today.

Sources & Methodology

Our calculator uses standard future value compounding formulas:

FV = P(1 + r/n)^(nt) + PMT × [ ((1 + r/n)^(nt) - 1) / (r/n) ]

Where:

FV = Future Value (Retirement Balance)
P = Principal (Current Savings)
PMT = Monthly Contribution
r = Annual Interest Rate (decimal)
n = Number of times compounded per year (12)
t = Time in years

Data References:

Investopedia: The 4% Rule (Based on the Trinity Study)
SEC: Savings and Investing

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a realistic annual return?▼

Historically, the S&P 500 has returned about 9-10% annually before inflation. If you want to view your results in "today's dollars" (adjusting for an average 3% inflation), you should use a return rate of 6% or 7% in the calculator.

Does this calculator include Social Security?▼

No, this calculator only projects the growth of your personal investment portfolio. Social Security benefits would be in addition to the safe withdrawal amount generated by your portfolio.

Should I maximize my 401(k) or IRA first?▼

A common strategy is: 1) Contribute enough to your 401(k) to get the full employer match (it's free money!). 2) Max out a Roth IRA. 3) Go back and max out the rest of your 401(k).