— Retirement & FIRE
FIRE Calculator
Find when you can stop working. Enter expenses, savings, contributions, return, and withdrawal rate to calculate your FIRE number, progress, years to reach it, FI age, and lean, fat, and coast-FIRE milestones in today’s money.
Years to FIRE
19 yrs 4 mos
- FIRE age
- 50
- FIRE number
- $1,000,000
- Current progress
- 5%
- Coast-FIRE number (now)
- $222,281.37
- Coast-FIRE age
- 37
- Lean-FIRE number
- $700,000
- Fat-FIRE number
- $1,500,000
Try: $40k expenses, save $30k/yr, Lean FIRE: $28k expenses, Fat FIRE: $80k, save $70k/yr, Cautious 3.5% withdrawal rate
— The road to FIRE, year by year
| Age | Savings | Growth | Corpus | FIRE number |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 | $30,000 | $2,195 | $82,195 | $1,000,000 |
| 32 | $30,000 | $3,609 | $115,804 | $1,000,000 |
| 33 | $30,000 | $5,084 | $150,888 | $1,000,000 |
| 34 | $30,000 | $6,624 | $187,512 | $1,000,000 |
| 35 | $30,000 | $8,232 | $225,744 | $1,000,000 |
| 36 | $30,000 | $9,911 | $265,655 | $1,000,000 |
| 37 | $30,000 | $11,663 | $307,318 | $1,000,000 |
| 38 | $30,000 | $13,492 | $350,810 | $1,000,000 |
| 39 | $30,000 | $15,401 | $396,211 | $1,000,000 |
| 40 | $30,000 | $17,395 | $443,606 | $1,000,000 |
| 41 | $30,000 | $19,475 | $493,081 | $1,000,000 |
| 42 | $30,000 | $21,647 | $544,729 | $1,000,000 |
| 43 | $30,000 | $23,915 | $598,644 | $1,000,000 |
| 44 | $30,000 | $26,282 | $654,926 | $1,000,000 |
| 45 | $30,000 | $28,753 | $713,679 | $1,000,000 |
| 46 | $30,000 | $31,332 | $775,011 | $1,000,000 |
| 47 | $30,000 | $34,025 | $839,036 | $1,000,000 |
| 48 | $30,000 | $36,836 | $905,871 | $1,000,000 |
| 49 | $30,000 | $39,770 | $975,641 | $1,000,000 |
| 50 | $30,000 | $42,833 | $1,048,474 | $1,000,000 |
— Accumulation toward your FIRE number
Download— How it works
FIRE number = annual expenses ÷ safe withdrawal rate. Accumulate current savings + annual savings at your real return until the corpus reaches it — the crossing point is your FIRE date.
Your FIRE number, and when you hit it
FIRE rests on one idea: once your investments can throw off enough to cover your spending, work becomes optional. The corpus that does it is your annual expenses divided by a safe withdrawal rate — at the classic 4% rate that’s 25 times your expenses. This calculator computes the number, then runs your current savings plus annual contributions forward at your return until the corpus crosses it. That crossing is your FIRE date; the chart shows the climb to the dashed FIRE line.
Worked example — age 30, $40,000 a year of expenses, $50,000 saved, adding $30,000 a year at 7% (2.5% inflation), 4% withdrawal rate: FIRE number $1,000,000. You reach it in about 19 years, around age 50 — currently 5% of the way there. You’d hit Coast FIRE far sooner, around age 37.
The savings rate is the lever
Counter-intuitively, your return matters less than how much of your income you save. A high savings rate does double duty: it piles money in faster and it means you need a smaller pot, because you already live on less. Going from saving 20% to 50% of your income can pull FIRE forward by decades. Enter your income to see your savings rate — then watch how raising the annual savings figure compresses the timeline.
Lean, fat and coast FIRE
FIRE comes in flavours. Lean FIRE is a frugal version on lower expenses (shown at 70% of yours); fat FIRE is a comfortable one (150%). Coast FIRE is the milestone where you’ve saved enough that, without adding another penny, compounding alone reaches your number by traditional retirement age — from there you only need to cover current expenses. The calculator shows each number so you can pick the target that fits your life.
The caveats that matter
Two health warnings. The 4% rule came from historical 30-year retirements; for an early retiree facing 40–50 years, many planners use 3–3.5% — lower the withdrawal rate and the FIRE number rises. And the projection assumes a steady return, so it ignores sequence-of-returns risk: a market slump early in retirement is the real danger for someone drawing down a portfolio. Treat the date as a target to plan around, not a guarantee, and pair it with the Retirement Withdrawal calculator to stress-test the drawdown.
— Reader questions
What is my FIRE number?
Your annual expenses divided by your safe withdrawal rate. At the 4% rule, that’s 25× expenses — so $40,000 a year of spending needs a $1,000,000 corpus. Use a lower rate (and a bigger number) for a long early retirement.
How many years until I can retire early?
It depends mostly on your savings rate. The calculator projects your savings forward until they reach your FIRE number — for example $50,000 plus $30,000 a year at 7% reaches a $1M target in about 19 years. Saving more shortens it sharply.
What is Coast FIRE?
The point where your invested savings, left to grow with no further contributions, would reach your FIRE number by traditional retirement age. After Coast FIRE you only need to earn enough to cover current expenses — the retirement pot looks after itself.
What’s the difference between lean and fat FIRE?
Lean FIRE targets a frugal lifestyle on lower expenses, so a smaller corpus; fat FIRE funds a comfortable lifestyle and needs a larger one. This shows both (70% and 150% of your expenses) alongside your main number.
Is the 4% rule safe for early retirement?
It was derived for ~30-year retirements. Retiring decades early stretches the horizon, so many use 3–3.5% to be safe — which raises the FIRE number. Adjust the safe withdrawal rate to see the effect, and remember the plan ignores sequence-of-returns risk.