Plan the road to financial independence
How much do you need to retire — and when can you actually do it? This calculator projects your investments year by year, from today until well into retirement, so you can see when your portfolio is large enough to live off and how much passive income it will produce.
Unlike a basic savings calculator, this tool models the real factors that decide your outcome: changing contribution stages over your life, investment returns, inflation, and the taxes that apply when you draw down your wealth.
How much is "enough"?
A widely used starting point is the 4% rule: if you can live on 4% of your portfolio in the first year, you need roughly 25 times your annual expenses invested. So someone spending 30,000 a year aims for a portfolio near 750,000. It is a rule of thumb, not a guarantee — which is why this calculator lets you change the withdrawal rate and stress-test the plan against your own assumptions.
Model your real life, in stages
Few people save the same amount every year for decades. This calculator lets you define contribution milestones — distinct life stages, each with its own monthly contribution and expected return. You might:
- save aggressively in your 30s,
- contribute less while raising children,
- then ramp up again as your income peaks.
Each stage compounds into the next, so the projection reflects your actual trajectory rather than a flat average.
Why taxes and inflation change everything
Two forces quietly shape every long-term plan: inflation erodes purchasing power, and taxes reduce what you actually keep. Ignoring them makes projections look rosier than reality.
- Inflation — adjust the whole projection to today's purchasing power, so a big future number does not fool you.
- Capital gains tax — configure tax tiers so the income you draw is shown after tax.
- Wealth tax — where relevant, model annual wealth tax on large portfolios.
With these included, the calculator gives you a number you can actually plan around — your real, after-tax passive income.
How to use this calculator
- Current age and starting capital — where you are today.
- Contribution milestones — add the life stages, each with its monthly contribution and expected return.
- Inflation — adjust everything to present-day purchasing power.
- Withdrawal rate — the share of your portfolio you plan to live on each year.
- Taxes — model capital gains tax tiers and, where relevant, wealth tax.
The chart and table update instantly, showing invested capital, accumulated returns, total value and projected monthly passive income, in both nominal and inflation-adjusted terms.
Build the habit behind the plan
A retirement projection is only as good as the consistent investing behind it. To understand the engine driving these numbers, explore the compound interest calculator, and to see how rising prices erode a fixed income over a long retirement, use the inflation calculator.