Introduction
How much money do you need to retire? This calculator gives you a clear number. Type in your age, your pay, what you have saved, and when you want to stop working. The tool does the math and shows your retirement number in one click.
It works in two ways. The first tab tells you how big your nest egg must be. The second tab tells you how much to save each month to hit a target you pick. Both use your chosen investment style, from conservative to aggressive.
You also see more than just one number. The calculator shows if you are on track, how long your money will last, and how much extra you may need to save each month. It runs two cases: an average market and a weak market. That way you know what happens if things go well and if they do not.
You can change the details too. Set your own inflation rate, pay raises, employer match, and Social Security or pension income. Every step of the math is shown, so you can see exactly how the answer was built. If you want a broader plan-level view once you have your target, pair this tool with our Retirement Calculator or the FIRE Calculator.
How to use our How Much Do I Need To Retire Calculator
Enter your age, income, savings, and how you invest. The calculator shows your retirement number, what your savings should grow to, any gap, and how much more to save each month.
Pick a tab: Choose "How Much Do I Need To Retire?" to find your target nest egg. Choose "How Much Do I Need To Save?" if you already know your target and want the monthly amount.
Current Age: Type your age today. Use a whole number from 18 to 80. Not sure of the exact figure? Check it with the Age Calculator.
Planned Retirement Age: Type the age you plan to stop working. It must be higher than your age now. If you are aiming to finish early, compare the results with the Early Retirement Calculator.
Life Expectancy: Type the age your money must last until. Most people plan for 90 or higher. The Life Expectancy Calculator can help you pick a realistic number.
Current Annual Pre-Tax Income: Type your yearly pay before taxes come out. If you are paid hourly, convert it first with the Hourly to Salary Calculator.
Current Retirement Savings: Add up your 401(k), IRA, and other retirement accounts, and type the total. Our 401k Calculator, IRA Calculator, and Net Worth Calculator are handy for pulling those balances together.
Other Monthly Retirement Income: Type what you expect each month from Social Security, a pension, an annuity, or rent, in today's dollars. Estimate each piece with the Social Security Calculator, the Pension Calculator, or the Annuity Calculator.
Monthly Retirement Contribution: Pick "% of income" or "$ per month," then type the amount you save. The percent option grows as your pay grows.
Desired Retirement Income: Pick "% of income" or "$ per month," then type how much you want to live on each year in retirement, in today's dollars. A Monthly Budget Calculator is a good place to sanity-check that figure.
Target Nest Egg at Retirement (save tab): Type the balance you want on your retirement day. The 4% Rule Calculator gives a quick way to set that target.
Investment Style / Risk Profile: Pick one of the five styles. This sets the yearly return and the ups and downs used in the math.
Inflation Rate: Type how fast you think prices will rise each year. The default is 2.3%. See what past inflation did to buying power with the Inflation Calculator.
Annual Salary Growth Rate: Type how much you expect your pay to rise each year before you retire. The Pay Raise Calculator shows what a typical raise looks like.
Income Replacement Percentage: Type the share of today's pay you want in retirement. Most people use 70% to 85%.
Employer Match Percentage: Type how many cents your job adds for each dollar you save. Enter 50 for a 50-cent match.
Employer Match Cap: Type the most of your salary your job will match, such as 6%.
Contribution Tax Treatment: Pick Pre-Tax for a traditional 401(k) or IRA, or Post-Tax for a Roth. This changes how your results are labeled. Compare the two with the Roth IRA Calculator and the Roth 401k Calculator.
Calculate and Reset: Click Calculate to see your results, charts, and step-by-step math. Click Reset to start over with the default numbers.
How Much Do I Need to Retire?
Your retirement number is the amount of money you need saved on the day you stop working. It has to cover your bills for the rest of your life, after Social Security, a pension, or any other income you get. This retirement calculator works out that number and shows if your current savings plan will get you there.
What Goes Into Your Retirement Number
- Years left to save. The gap between your age now and your retirement age. More years means more time for your money to grow, thanks to the snowball effect you can see in the Compound Interest Calculator.
- Years in retirement. The gap between retiring and your life expectancy. Retiring at 65 and living to 90 means paying for 25 years. The How Long Will My Money Last Calculator stress-tests that stretch.
- Income you want. Most people plan to live on 70% to 85% of what they earn today. Some costs drop, like commuting and saving for retirement itself. Others, like health care, go up. Moving towns can shift the whole figure, which the Cost of Living Calculator makes clear.
- Other income. Social Security, a pension, an annuity, or rent money lowers the amount your savings must cover. If you own rentals, run them through the Rental Income Calculator.
- Inflation. Prices rise every year, so the same lifestyle costs more later. A $60,000 lifestyle today can cost over $100,000 in 25 years. The Future Value Calculator shows the same idea for a lump sum.
- Investment returns. How your money is invested changes how fast it grows and how bumpy the ride is. Test different rates in the Investment Calculator.
Risk and Returns
Stocks grow faster over long periods but drop more in bad years. Bonds and cash are steadier but grow slower. A conservative mix might earn about 5% a year, while an aggressive mix might earn about 9%. Neither is "right." Younger savers can often take more risk because they have time to recover from a bad market. People close to retirement often move to safer mixes, and tools like the Bond Yield Calculator and CD Calculator help price out those safer options.
Because markets are never smooth, it helps to look at two paths: an average market and a challenging market. The challenging path shows a weaker-than-normal run of returns, so you can see if your plan still holds up. The Rule of 72 Calculator is a quick way to feel how much a lower return slows your doubling time.
Free Money From Your Employer
Many jobs match part of what you put in your 401(k). A common deal is 50 cents for every dollar you save, up to 6% of your pay. If you earn $60,000 and save 6% ($3,600), your employer adds $1,800. Always save at least enough to get the full match. Skipping it is turning down a raise. Government and military savers can model the same idea with the TSP Calculator, while teachers and nonprofit staff can use the 403b Calculator.
Pre-Tax vs. Roth
Money in a traditional 401(k) or IRA goes in before taxes, grows tax free, and is taxed as income when you take it out. Roth money goes in after taxes, and qualified withdrawals come out tax free. This matters for your target: a $1 million pre-tax balance is worth less to spend than $1 million in a Roth, because the tax bill still has to be paid. Check where your withdrawals may land with the Tax Bracket Calculator, see how much of your benefit is taxed with the Taxable Social Security Benefits Calculator, and weigh a switch using the Roth Conversion Calculator. Once you turn 73, the RMD Calculator shows the minimum you must pull each year.
Ways to Close a Gap
- Raise your monthly savings, even by 1% of pay a year. The Savings Goal Calculator turns a target into a monthly habit.
- Work one or two more years. This adds savings and shortens the years you must fund.
- Delay Social Security. Waiting past full retirement age raises your benefit, and the Social Security Break-Even Calculator shows when waiting pays off.
- Trim your target spending, or plan to move somewhere cheaper. A steady withdrawal plan from the Retirement Withdrawal Calculator helps you set the pace.
- Cut investment fees, which quietly eat returns over decades. See the damage in the Expense Ratio Calculator.
- Clear high-interest debt first so more cash flows into savings. The Debt Payoff Calculator maps out the order.
Keep It Updated
A retirement plan is not a one-time job. Pay raises, job changes, market swings, and new goals all move your number. Check it once a year, and any time something big changes in your life. It also pays to revisit your emergency fund and your Coast FIRE milestone at the same time, so the whole picture stays in sync.