Retirement Calculator

The retirement calculator projects whether your current savings plan is on pace to fund a target nest egg. Enter your age, retirement age, current savings, monthly contribution, return assumptions, and desired monthly income. The calculator estimates how large your savings may become, how much you may need at retirement, and whether the plan shows a surplus or shortfall.

How to use

Start with your current age and the age when you expect to retire. Add your current retirement savings and the amount you contribute each month. Next, enter an expected annual return before retirement and a separate return during retirement. Finally, enter the retirement spending goal in today’s dollars, the number of retirement years you want to fund, and an inflation assumption.

The result is not a guarantee; it is a planning snapshot. Use it to compare contribution levels, retire-later scenarios, and spending targets. If you are deciding when retirement becomes possible, pair this tool with the retirement age calculator. To model account growth in more detail, try the compound interest calculator, or use the budget calculator to refine the monthly income target.

How it works

The calculator first grows your current savings and monthly contributions until retirement. Then it inflates your desired monthly income to the first retirement year. It treats that future monthly income as a withdrawal stream and discounts it at the return you expect during retirement. The difference between the projected nest egg and the nest egg needed is the estimated surplus or shortfall.

Formula

Projected savings at retirement:

$\text{projected nest egg} = \text{current savings}(1+i)^n + \text{monthly contribution} \times \frac{(1+i)^n - 1}{i}$

Monthly income target at retirement:

$\text{future monthly income} = \text{today's monthly income} \times (1+\text{inflation})^{\text{years}}$

Savings needed for retirement withdrawals:

$\text{needed nest egg} = \text{future monthly income} \times \frac{1-(1+j)^{-m}}{j}$

Here, (i) is the monthly return before retirement, (j) is the monthly return during retirement, (n) is months until retirement, and (m) is months in retirement.

Examples

Common mistakes

• Entering a retirement income goal in future dollars even though the calculator already applies inflation.
• Assuming pre-retirement returns will continue after retirement while also planning a much safer portfolio.
• Ignoring taxes, health costs, long-term care, and one-time purchases.
• Treating the shortfall as exact. Small changes in return, inflation, timing, or spending can move the result substantially.