Financial Independence Calculator
The years to financial independence depend on your savings rate far more than on your income: save 10% of your pay and FI is about 51.4 years away; save 50% and it is about 16.6 years; save 75% and about 7.1 years, at 5% real and a 4% withdrawal rate, from nothing. Type your rate to see yours and the full table.
Years to financial independence
28 years
Years to financial independence at a 30% savings rate
- Save 10 points more 21.6 years
- Save 10 points less 36.7 years
- At 7% real instead 24 years
- At 3% real instead 34.2 years
- Your target $1,400,000
| Savings rate | Years to FI |
|---|---|
| 5% | 65.8 years |
| 10% | 51.4 years |
| 15% | 42.8 years |
| 20% | 36.7 years |
| 25% | 31.9 years |
| 30% | 28 years |
| 35% | 24.6 years |
| 40% | 21.6 years |
| 45% | 19 years |
| 50% | 16.6 years |
| 55% | 14.4 years |
| 60% | 12.4 years |
| 65% | 10.5 years |
| 70% | 8.8 years |
| 75% | 7.1 years |
| 80% | 5.6 years |
| 85% | 4.1 years |
| 90% | 2.7 years |
| 95% | 1.3 years |
How do the years come from the savings rate?
With savings rate s, real return r and withdrawal rate w, starting from zero and income set to 1: spending = 1 − s, target = (1 − s) ÷ w, saving = s a year, and years = ln(1 + target × r ÷ s) ÷ ln(1 + r).
Worked example. At a 30% rate, 5% real and 4% withdrawal: spending is 0.7 of pay, the target is 0.7 ÷ 0.04 = 17.5 years of pay, and 0.3 of pay is saved each year. ln(1 + 17.5 × 0.05 ÷ 0.3) ÷ ln 1.05 = ln(3.917) ÷ 0.04879 = 28.0 years. On $80,000 of take-home pay that is $24,000 saved and $56,000 spent a year, with a target of $1,400,000.
Reading the table
The curve is steep at the low end and flat at the high end: going from 10% to 20% saves about 15 years, from 50% to 60% about 4. The first ten points of savings rate are worth more than any later ten, which is the argument for fixing the big fixed costs (housing, cars) before worrying about small ones.
Raising the rate
Two routes, and the second is usually easier: spend less, or earn more and keep spending the same. A pay rise saved entirely raises the rate without touching your life. The calculator does not care which; it only sees the share.
When the simple model stops being enough
The formula assumes a steady return and a constant rate from a standing start. Once you have real numbers, the FIRE calculator uses them and draws the path, and the early retirement calculator tests a particular age. The savings-rate answer stays useful as the quick check: if it says 40 years, no amount of return assumptions will make it 15.
Questions about savings rate and FI
Why does only the savings rate matter?
Because it sets both sides of the sum at once. Saving half your pay means you live on half, so your target is 25 times half your pay, and you put the other half towards it. Double the income with the same rate and both the target and the saving double, so the years do not change.
How long does it take at common rates?
At 5% real and a 4% withdrawal rate, from nothing: 10% takes 51.4 years, 25% takes 31.9 years, 50% takes 16.6 years, 75% takes 7.1 years. The table in the results runs from 5% to 95%.
What is the savings rate exactly?
The share of your take-home pay you invest: saving ÷ take-home pay. Employer pension contributions count as saving and as pay. Mortgage principal is saving in a loose sense but not in this calculator, since a house does not pay a withdrawal rate.
What if I already have savings?
Type your take-home pay and the balance already invested, and the results add a second figure that counts it. The headline stays the pure savings-rate answer, which is the one that does not depend on your income.
What return and withdrawal rate are assumed?
5% real and 4% by default; both can be changed. At 7% real the years fall by about a seventh at a 30% rate, more at high rates and less at low ones; at 3% they rise. The result rows show the years at 7% and 3% so you can see the spread.