Retirement Savings Calculator
Are your current savings and monthly contributions on track for the retirement income you want? See your projected balance and what it could sustainably pay you each month.
Your Retirement Numbers
How much are you saving today, and when do you want to retire?
Projected balance at age 65
835,483
178,000 contributed, 657,483 from growth, over 35 years.
Using the widely-cited “4% rule” of thumb, that balance could sustainably support roughly 2,785 per month (33,419/yr) in retirement withdrawals. Against your 3,000/mo target, you're currently short by 64,517 in retirement-balance terms.
The 4% rule is a widely-used retirement-planning heuristic, not a guarantee — actual safe withdrawal rates vary with market conditions, retirement length, and portfolio mix. Growth is a constant-rate, long-horizon projection you choose yourself, not a forecast. For informational purposes only, not financial advice.
For educational and informational purposes only — not financial, investment, trading, legal or tax advice. See our full Financial Disclaimer.
Turning a savings balance into a retirement income estimate
A retirement balance on its own is just a number — the question that actually matters is what it can pay you, year after year, without running out. The most widely-cited rule of thumb for answering that is the 4% rule: withdraw about 4% of the starting balance in the first year, adjust that amount for inflation each year after, and historically that has held up over most 30-year retirement periods. It is a planning heuristic built from historical market data, not a mathematical guarantee — a severe or prolonged downturn early in retirement can still strain it.
This calculator compounds your current savings plus your monthly contribution, month by month, at your chosen expected return rate, over however many years separate your current age from your target retirement age. It then applies the 4% rule to that projected balance to estimate a sustainable monthly income, and compares that estimate against the monthly income target you entered — so instead of an abstract balance, you get a direct answer: on track, or short by how much.
The expected return rate you enter is a long-horizon assumption held constant across the whole projection. Real investment returns vary significantly year to year — this tool is a planning lens for understanding the mechanics of saving toward a target, not a forecast of what any specific account or investment will actually return.
Formula used:
Projected Balance = compound growth of (Current Savings + Monthly Contribution) at Expected Return, monthly, for (Retirement Age − Current Age) years
Sustainable Monthly Income ≈ Projected Balance × 4% ÷ 12
Key terms:
- 4% rule: a widely-used, historically-grounded withdrawal heuristic, not a guarantee
- On track / shortfall: your projected balance compared against the balance your target income would need
Quick answer
A retirement savings calculator projects your current savings plus monthly contributions compounded at an expected return rate out to your retirement age, then applies the widely-cited 4% rule (balance × 4% ÷ 12 for a monthly figure) to estimate sustainable retirement income, comparing it against your own target to show whether you're on track or short.
Retirement Savings — Guide & FAQs
What the 4% rule means, how the projection works, and what this isn't.