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Your FIRE target: $1,200,000

Progress to FIRE

4.2%

FIRE Calculator

How much you need, and when you get there

Invested Assets

401k + IRA + brokerage total

Monthly Savings

Monthly investment contributions

Annual Spending

Yearly spending in retirement, in today's dollars

Current Age

Annual Return

Before inflation. 7% is an editable example, not a forecast

7.0%

3.0%12.0%

Inflation Rate

US historical avg ~3%

3.0%

1.0%8.0%

Withdrawal Rate

4.0%

2.0%6.0%

Your FIRE Number

$1,200,000

FI Age

Time Left

31 years

Budget

$48K/yr

Investing $1,500 a month, you reach FIRE at age 61. From then on, 4% withdrawals cover $48,000 a year.

Progress4.2%

Portfolio Projection

Portfolio BalanceFIRE Number

Loading projection…

Year-by-Year Breakdown

Age	Contributions	Growth	Withdrawals	End Balance	FIRE %	Phase
30	$18,000	$1,942	--	$69,942	4.2%	Saving
31	$18,000	$2,716	--	$90,658	5.8%	Saving
32	$18,000	$3,521	--	$112,179	7.6%	Saving
33	$18,000	$4,356	--	$134,535	9.3%	Saving
34	$18,000	$5,225	--	$157,760	11.2%	Saving
35	$18,000	$6,127	--	$181,887	13.1%	Saving
36	$18,000	$7,064	--	$206,951	15.2%	Saving
37	$18,000	$8,037	--	$232,988	17.2%	Saving
38	$18,000	$9,048	--	$260,036	19.4%	Saving
39	$18,000	$10,098	--	$288,134	21.7%	Saving

By the Coast FIRE Calculator editorial team · Methodology · Official source: SEC Investor.gov compound-interest calculator · Corrections: hello@coastfirecalculator.io

Your FIRE number

Your FIRE number is your yearly spending divided by your withdrawal rate.

At 4% that is 25 times what you spend in a year. The calculator grows your savings and monthly investments at your return after inflation, so the number and the age are both in today's dollars.

Yearly spending	At 4%	At 3.5%	At 3%
$30,000	$750,000	$857,143	$1,000,000
$40,000	$1,000,000	$1,142,857	$1,333,333
$60,000	$1,500,000	$1,714,286	$2,000,000
$80,000	$2,000,000	$2,285,714	$2,666,667

Years to FIRE by savings rate

The share of your take-home pay you invest matters more than your income: it decides both how fast the portfolio grows and how much spending it has to cover.

Savings rate	Years to FIRE
10%	51.4
20%	36.7
30%	28.0
40%	21.6
50%	16.6
60%	12.4
70%	8.8
80%	5.6

Starting from zero, investing at the end of each year, with a 5% return after inflation and a 4% withdrawal rate, and retiring on the spending you had while saving.

Types of FIRE

Lean FIRE

Full retirement on a frugal budget.

Fat FIRE

Full retirement with a comfortable budget.

Barista FIRE

Part-time work covers what the portfolio doesn't.

Coast FIRE

Stop saving and let growth reach your number by a normal retirement age.

Coast FIRE in Canada

Coast FIRE with CPP and OAS.

Once you have retired, see how long your savings last at your spending with the retirement withdrawal calculator.

Build a spending target before selecting a retirement date

A full FIRE target is a portfolio supporting the spending assigned to it. Start by distinguishing current saving from future spending: today’s retirement contributions should not automatically be counted as an expense continuing forever. At the same time, health cover, taxes, housing repairs and support for relatives can remain real costs. A smaller input is useful only if it describes the budget you could actually maintain, rather than omitting irregular expenses to reach a preferred age.

With $40,000 of annual spending assigned to investments and an illustrative 4% withdrawal rate, the arithmetic target is $1,000,000. At 3.5% the same spending requires about $1,142,857. These are scenarios from dividing spending by a rate, not promised sustainable withdrawal amounts. An input called a safe withdrawal rate is still a planning assumption. It does not verify a particular asset mix, retirement length or sequence of market returns.

Use the trajectory to inspect contributions and growth separately

The projected date depends on the starting balance, additional saving, time and return assumption. Raising monthly saving changes money contributed; raising the return changes modeled growth. Those are not equally controllable actions. Compare a lower-return scenario while holding the contribution budget fixed, then compare a lower contribution separately. Keeping only one input different makes the reason for a changed date visible.

The table is a smooth deterministic path, not a probability distribution. It can show the accounting implied by the selected assumptions without showing the experience of losing money near retirement. A projected balance first crossing a target is therefore a model milestone, not permission to leave work or proof the money lasts for your lifetime. Keep a record of the inputs alongside any exported result.

Choose the right FIRE task

Coast FIRE asks whether existing investments could reach a future target without additional retirement contributions; it still requires income to pay current expenses. Full FIRE asks whether investments can support the assigned retirement budget now or at a modeled date. Barista FIRE adds a part-time income assumption. These tools share arithmetic but answer different cash-flow questions, so do not use a coasting balance as if it were a portfolio already supporting a lifetime of withdrawals.

Before treating the projection as a plan, check taxes, account access, benefit start dates, non-portfolio income and costs missing from the selected spending figure. The calculator does not choose investments or approve a pension, withdrawal or insurance arrangement. Investor.gov’s compound-interest calculator illustrates the distinction between an assumed growth rate, contributions and years; it likewise does not make a future return certain.

Explanation maintained by the site operator. Methodology and limitations · Report a calculation issue.

Growth reference: SEC Investor.gov compound-interest calculator separates starting investment, contributions, assumed interest and time. It is not evidence for a guaranteed withdrawal rate or return.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is FIRE?

FIRE stands for Financial Independence, Retire Early. You are financially independent when your investments can pay for your spending, so work becomes optional.

How do I calculate my FIRE number?

Divide the yearly spending you want in retirement by your withdrawal rate. At a 4% withdrawal rate that is 25 times your spending: $40,000 a year needs $1,000,000.

What withdrawal rate should I use?

4% is the common starting point. A lower rate such as 3.5% or 3% builds in more safety for a retirement that could last 40 years or more, at the cost of a bigger target. Try a few rates in the calculator to see how much the number moves.

How long does it take to reach FIRE?

Mostly it depends on the share of your pay you save. Starting from zero with a 5% return after inflation, saving 20% takes about 37 years, 50% about 17 and 70% about 9, because a higher savings rate both builds the portfolio faster and lowers the spending it has to cover.

What is the difference between FIRE and Coast FIRE?

FIRE is having the whole portfolio now, so you can stop working. Coast FIRE is having enough that growth alone will reach your FIRE number by a normal retirement age, so you can stop saving but still work to cover today's spending.

Does the FIRE number include Social Security or pensions?

No. This calculator assumes your portfolio pays all of your spending. If a pension or Social Security will cover part of it later, your portfolio needs less from that age; the FERS calculator and the Canadian Coast FIRE calculator include public pensions.

More Calculators

Coast FIRE Calculator Barista FIRE Calculator Fat FIRE Calculator Lean FIRE Calculator Retirement Withdrawal Calculator Net Worth by Age Calculator

Worked guides: Coast FIRE examples by age · Coast FIRE vs Barista FIRE