FIRE Calculator
Find your FIRE number — the amount you need invested to retire early and live off your portfolio — and how many years it will take to get there. Enter your annual spending, what you have invested, and how much you save each year.
FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early) rests on the safe withdrawal rate: at a 4% rate, you need 25 times your annual spending invested. The calculator sizes that target and projects your savings forward to the year and age you reach it.
Use a real (after-inflation) return — around 5–7% — so the result is in today’s dollars. A 4% withdrawal rate is the classic FIRE target (the 25× rule).
Your FIRE number
$1,500,000
25× your annual spending
- Years to financial independence
- 20 years
- Age at FI
- 50
- Target portfolio
- $1,500,000
Saving $30,000/year on top of $100,000 invested reaches $1,500,000 in about 20 years.
Estimate only — not financial advice. The FIRE number uses your chosen safe withdrawal rate; the timeline assumes a steady real return and constant annual saving, and ignores taxes, market sequence-of-returns risk, and future changes in income or spending. Treat it as a planning guide, not a guarantee.
Calculation Formulas
The portfolio large enough that your yearly withdrawals cover your spending indefinitely. At a 4% withdrawal rate this is 25× annual spending — the well-known 25× rule.
Example:
$60,000 of annual spending at a 4% withdrawal rate needs a $1,500,000 portfolio (60,000 ÷ 0.04).
Starting from your current investments, we add each year’s saving and apply your expected real return, counting the years until the balance reaches your FIRE number.
Key Figures
| Figure | Value | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Classic withdrawal rate | 4% | The Trinity-study rate behind the 25× rule; more conservative planners use 3–3.5%. |
| Use real returns | ~5–7% | An after-inflation return keeps the result in today’s dollars. |
Note: Results are estimates for planning purposes. Rates, fees, taxes, and insurance vary by lender and location — confirm exact figures with a licensed professional before making financial decisions.
Standards & Sources
Last verified: August 2026
- Safe withdrawal rate research
The 4% rule comes from the Trinity study and Bengen’s research on historical U.S. market returns — a portfolio withdrawing 4% (adjusted for inflation) survived 30 years in nearly all historical periods.
- Real returns and today’s dollars
Entering an inflation-adjusted return means both the FIRE number and the timeline are expressed in today’s purchasing power, so the target stays meaningful decades out.
- What the estimate leaves out
It assumes steady returns and constant saving, and ignores taxes, healthcare before Medicare, and sequence-of-returns risk (a bad market early in retirement). Treat it as a target to plan around, not a guarantee.
How to Use This Calculator
- Enter the annual spending you want your portfolio to cover in retirement.
- Set your withdrawal rate (4% is the classic FIRE target) and your current age.
- Enter your current investments, how much you save per year, and your expected real return.
- Read your FIRE number, the years to financial independence, and the age you would reach it.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a FIRE number?
Your FIRE number is the amount you need invested to live off your portfolio indefinitely. At a 4% safe withdrawal rate it equals 25 times your annual spending — so $60,000 of spending implies a $1.5 million target.
What is the 4% rule?
The 4% rule, from the Trinity study, says a portfolio can support withdrawals of 4% of its starting value (adjusted for inflation) for 30+ years in nearly all historical periods. More cautious planners use 3–3.5%, which raises the FIRE number.
What return should I enter?
Use a real (after-inflation) return, typically around 5–7% for a stock-heavy portfolio, so your FIRE number and timeline stay in today’s dollars. Using a nominal return would overstate how fast you reach a target that inflation is also raising.
Does FIRE account for taxes and healthcare?
This calculator does not — it estimates the portfolio and timeline before taxes and pre-Medicare healthcare costs, which can be significant in early retirement. Build a buffer above the raw FIRE number to cover them, and remember sequence-of-returns risk early in retirement.
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