WealthCompounds

Calculator

Savings rate

Turn income and monthly savings into a savings rate, then see years to a FIRE number from your current portfolio and from a standing start.

Savings rate

20.0%

From your balance 31 years, 11 months

From zero at this rate 35 years, 11 months

Portfolio target $1,800,000

Spending is income minus annual savings. The target uses a 4% withdrawal rate. The from-zero line ignores the balance so you can compare it with the chart on the compound-interest page.

Two clocks

Your clock uses the portfolio you already have plus the monthly amount. The from-zero clock ignores that portfolio and is the number in the Shockingly Simple Math chart. The from-zero clock is for comparison. Do not throw away a balance you have already saved just to match a chart.

A savings rate is not a virtue score. A year of low income or high medical bills will dent it. The useful question is whether the spending you will want later is the spending implied by 100% minus this rate.

See the savings-rate chart

Questions

Why does the savings rate change the date so much?

A higher savings rate does two jobs. It adds more each month, and it lowers the spending the portfolio has to replace. Both shrink the calendar. From zero, at 5% real and a 4% withdrawal rate, this model puts 10% saved near 50 years and 50% saved near 16 years.

Should the rate be measured on gross pay or take-home pay?

Either, if you stay consistent. If income is gross, spending and taxes you pay out of pocket need a home in the unsaved share. If income is take-home, do not also subtract taxes you never received. The calculator will not fix a mismatched pair. It divides savings by the income you type.