# Savings rate calculator

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.

## 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.

## 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.

HTML: https://wealthcompounds.com/savings-rate

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Educational only. Not investment, tax, or financial advice. Canonical HTML: https://wealthcompounds.com