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Savings Rate Calculator

Your savings rate - not your salary - decides how long you have to keep working. This shows the number of years your current rate implies.

How this is calculated

Your savings rate does two things at once, which is why it matters more than your salary. It sets how fast the portfolio grows, and - because whatever you do not save is what you spend - it also sets how large the portfolio needs to be.

The target is your annual spending divided by the withdrawal rate. At 4%, that is 25 times what you spend in a year. Raise your savings rate and you move faster towards a finish line that is simultaneously moving closer.

Use a return figure that is already adjusted for inflation if you want the answer in today's money. The 4% withdrawal rate is a widely used planning heuristic drawn from historical data, not a guarantee - sequence-of-returns risk means the early years matter disproportionately.

These figures are illustrative projections, not predictions or advice. See our financial disclaimer.

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