Retirement Calculator

Free retirement calculator that projects your nest egg from your current savings and contributions, then estimates the annual income it could support using the 4% rule.

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How the retirement calculator works

This calculator projects your retirement nest egg from four inputs: your current age, the age you plan to retire, what you have saved so far, and how much you contribute each month, plus an expected annual return. It grows your savings month by month with compounding — the same engine behind our compound interest calculator — and then translates the final balance into an estimate of the annual income it could support.

That income estimate uses the well-known 4% rule:

annual retirement income ≈ nest egg × 4%

The 4% rule is a rough guideline suggesting you can withdraw about 4% of your balance in the first year of retirement, then adjust for inflation, with a reasonable chance the money lasts around 30 years. It is a planning benchmark, not a guarantee.

Why the numbers can look surprisingly large

The long runway effect

A 30-year-old with $25,000 saved who adds $500 a month at a 7% return could reach roughly $1.2 million by age 65. Only about $235,000 of that is money they contributed — the rest, nearly a million dollars, is growth. That is compounding over a 35-year runway. It also shows why starting in your twenties or thirties is so powerful: the early contributions have the most time to multiply.

How to use it

Capture your employer match first. If your job matches 401(k) contributions, that is an instant, guaranteed return no market can reliably beat — contribute at least enough to get the full match.
Test a few return rates. Many long-term plans assume 6–7% for a diversified, stock-heavy portfolio, but returns are never guaranteed. Trying a range shows how sensitive your result is.
Increase contributions after raises. Bumping the monthly amount even slightly, early, has an outsized effect decades later.
Sanity-check the income line. If the 4%-rule income looks short of what you will need, you have years to adjust the plan — that is the point of projecting.

Limitations

This is a clean pre-tax projection in today's dollars unless you enter an inflation-adjusted return. It does not model Social Security, pensions, taxes on withdrawals (which depend on your account types), or the market's year-to-year ups and downs. Real safe-withdrawal rates also depend on markets, fees, and longevity. Treat the result as a directional guide, and revisit it as your income and savings change. The math is detailed on our methodology page.

Frequently asked questions

What is the 4% rule?

The 4% rule is a well-known guideline suggesting you can withdraw about 4% of your nest egg in the first year of retirement, then adjust for inflation, with a good chance the money lasts ~30 years. It is a rough planning benchmark, not a guarantee — real safe-withdrawal rates depend on markets, fees, and how long you live.

What return should I assume?

Many long-term plans use around 6–7% for a diversified stock-heavy portfolio after inflation, but returns are never guaranteed and vary widely year to year. Try a few rates to see how sensitive your result is — time invested usually matters more than a slightly higher rate.

Does this account for inflation or taxes?

No. This is a clean pre-tax projection in today's dollars unless you enter an inflation-adjusted (real) return. Taxes on withdrawals depend on your account types. See our methodology page for exactly what the numbers include.