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Retirement Savings Calculator
Estimate your retirement balance, its value in today’s money, how long withdrawals are funded and the monthly contribution needed for your chosen planning age.
Retirement Savings Calculator: Enter your age, savings, monthly contributions, employer match and expected returns to see how much you could have at retirement, in future money and today's money, and how long it would last with withdrawals that rise with inflation. It also works out the monthly saving needed to reach your target, with a year-by-year table and chart. Runs 100% locally in your browser with zero server file uploads.
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Explore a savings and withdrawal plan in one currency. Returns are assumptions, not forecasts. This model includes no country tax rules, pensions, fees or contribution limits.
An estimate for planning, not financial advice. Constant returns do not show market volatility or the effect of losses early in retirement.
Compounding and monthly contributions
Investor.gov, Compound Interest Calculator, explains starting savings, recurring contributions and compounding inputs: https://www.investor.gov/financial-tools-calculators/calculators/compound-interest-calculator . Here, an effective annual return R becomes a monthly rate r = (1 + R)^(1/12) - 1. With constant month-end contributions C over n months, the balance is P(1+r)^n + C((1+r)^n - 1)/r; at zero return it is P + nC.
Employer matching is x% of the smaller of the employee contribution and y% of monthly salary. Contributions and salary rise at each anniversary before retirement. These are adjustable planning assumptions, not legal contribution limits.
Inflation and the income goal
Investor.gov, Inflation: https://www.investor.gov/introduction-investing/investing-basics/glossary/inflation . Inflation reduces purchasing power. Today’s value equals the nominal balance divided by (1 + inflation)^years.
The target at retirement is the present value of the planned beginning-of-month withdrawals through life expectancy, using the chosen return after retirement. The monthly contribution is solved by bisection with employer matching recalculated for each candidate. Amounts retain precision during the projection. The first underfunded withdrawal marks the end of fully funded retirement months.
The 4% guideline and historical evidence
William P. Bengen, Determining Withdrawal Rates Using Historical Data, Journal of Financial Planning, October 1994. Publisher’s article page: https://www.financialplanningassociation.org/learning/publications/journal/OCT94-determining-withdrawal-rates-using-historical-data . Publisher’s 2004 reprint: https://www.financialplanningassociation.org/sites/default/files/2021-04/MAR04%20Determining%20Withdrawal%20Rates%20Using%20Historical%20Data.pdf
The commonly cited 4% guideline describes an initial withdrawal based on the starting portfolio, followed by inflation adjustments. It is historical context only; this calculator does not use it to set your goal or claim a safe withdrawal rate. Constant-return projections do not capture the order of gains and losses.
How to use it
- Enter your ages, savings, monthly contribution and annual contribution increase.
- Add salary, annual raises and the employer matching terms, then set return, inflation and income assumptions.
- Calculate the retirement balance and required contribution, then inspect the chart and annual table.
Privacy & limitations
Your figures stay in your browser. No account is required and nothing is uploaded or saved.
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Frequently asked questions
What does the required monthly contribution include?
It is your starting monthly contribution, rounded up to cents. Future contributions grow at your annual increase rate. The employer match is recalculated for this contribution, subject to the salary cap and annual salary raises. The chart and table continue to show the contribution you entered.
What does “50% up to 6% of salary” mean?
The employer adds half of your eligible contribution, with eligible contributions capped at 6% of salary. If you contribute 6% of salary, the match is 3% of salary. If you contribute nothing, the match is zero.
How is retirement income adjusted for inflation?
The annual income entered is in today’s money. It grows with inflation until retirement, is divided into monthly withdrawals, and continues growing monthly during retirement. The displayed retirement balance in today’s money removes inflation from the nominal balance.
Does the result guarantee that my savings will last?
No. It uses constant returns and inflation. Actual returns vary, and early losses can make a withdrawal plan fail sooner. A funded result applies only through the planning age, not indefinitely. No taxes, fees, pensions, contribution limits or inheritance target are included.
Does this use the 4% rule?
No. The goal follows your income, return, inflation and planning-age assumptions. The commonly cited 4% guideline starts with 4% of the initial retirement portfolio, then adjusts the withdrawal amount for inflation. It comes from historical research such as William Bengen’s 1994 study and is not a guarantee.
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