Time to FI Calculator
Estimate how many years it will take you to reach Financial Independence (FI) based on your current portfolio, contributions, and expected returns.
Your Journey to Financial Independence
This calculator brings it all together. By combining your current financial snapshot with your future savings habits, it projects your path to reaching your Financial Independence Number.
The chart visualizes your net worth growth over time, showing the powerful curve of compounding interest as it marches towards your goal. Use this tool to see how long your journey might take and to experiment with the variables that can shorten your timeline.
How to Use This Calculator
Enter Your Current Financials
Input your current age, your current invested portfolio, and your planned annual contribution.
Define Your FI Goal
Enter your target annual retirement expenses and your expected real annual return (after inflation).
Discover Your Timeline
The calculator will estimate the number of years it will take for you to reach Financial Independence and the age at which you'll get there.
How to Shorten Your Timeline
There are three main levers you can pull to accelerate your journey to Financial Independence.
Increase Annual Contribution
This is a raw power move. Every extra dollar invested today has decades to grow. It shortens the timeline by building the pile faster.
Decrease Annual Expenses
The double-edged sword: slashing spending allows you to save more now AND lowers the amount you need to save forever. Highly effective.
Increase Investment Return
While mostly market-dependent, asset allocation plays a role. Higher potential returns come with higher volatility/risk.
Start Now
Time is the scarcest resource. Delaying by just a few years can drastically increase the total amount you need to contribute.
Take Your Plan to the Next Level
This calculator is just one piece of the puzzle. Use our full Financial Independence Simulator to unite your income, investments, and expenses into a single, interactive roadmap.
Optimize Your Plan
Drill down into specific levers to see how they change your picture.
Frequently Asked Questions
A 'real' rate of return is the return on an investment after accounting for inflation. For example, if your investments earn 7% in a year (the nominal return) and inflation is 3%, your real rate of return is approximately 4%. Using a real rate of return in calculations gives you a more accurate picture of your future purchasing power.
Your savings rate is the single most powerful lever for reaching Financial Independence quickly. A higher savings rate not only means you are accumulating more money to invest, but it also means you are learning to live on less, which reduces the size of the portfolio you need to build (your FIRE Number). A high savings rate attacks the problem from both ends.
This calculator uses the 4% Rule as a baseline to determine your FIRE number. It multiplies your 'Target Annual Retirement Expenses' by 25. This is a common method in the FI community to estimate the portfolio size needed to live off the returns.