Retirement Calculator
Check whether your savings are on track for the retirement income you want, allowing for inflation.
About the Retirement Calculator
The calculator grows your savings to retirement, then works out the pot needed to pay your target income, rising each year with inflation, until the end of your plan. Using a real (after-inflation) return in retirement keeps everything in today's money.
Add expected state or employer pensions by lowering the income you need from savings.
The formula
Pot needed = income × (1 − (1 + r)⁻ⁿ) ÷ r, with r the monthly real return
Worked example
Example: Shortfall at retirement = $1,023,695
- Inputs: Current age: 39 years; Retirement age: 72 years; Plan until age: 99 years; Saved so far: $66,000; Saving each month: $880; Return before retirement: 7%; Return in retirement: 4%; Inflation: 2.8%; Income you want each month (today's money): $4,400.
- Formula: Pot needed = income × (1 − (1 + r)⁻ⁿ) ÷ r, with r the monthly real return
- Result: Shortfall at retirement = $1,023,695
- Projected savings: $2,019,240
- Needed: $3,042,935
- Extra saving needed each month: $663
Things to keep in mind
- Returns are assumed steady; real markets vary, and a bad run early in retirement matters most.
Questions people ask
How much do I need to retire?
A common rule is 25× your yearly spending (the 4% rule), less any guaranteed pensions.
What return should I assume?
Be cautious: 4–6% before inflation for a balanced portfolio, lower in retirement.