FIRE calculator: how much do you need to not depend on a salary?
Calculate your target portfolio with the withdrawal rate you choose, how many years away you are at your current pace, and your Coast FIRE point — the amount you'd need today to stop contributing and still get there.
Target portfolio (FIRE number)
€600,000
Years until you get there
22 years and 2 months
Your Coast FIRE point
€73,924
You're still €53,924 away from this point. Once you reach it, you could stop contributing and let compound growth do the rest over the 30 years left until traditional retirement.
Progress toward your target portfolio
How long is it worth contributing?
There comes a point where your contributions stop being the engine of the portfolio. That does not mean they stop being useful — it means each euro you add is worth less than the ones you added early on, because it has less time to compound. Here are both sides of it.
Your money earns more than you do
From year 9, your portfolio earns €10,356 over twelve months — more than the €9,600 you contribute in that same period. You stop being the main engine.
Interest overtakes contributions
In year 17, accumulated interest becomes larger than every euro you have paid in. From then on, most of your wealth is not money you contributed.
What your first euro is worth
A euro contributed in the first year ends up worth €7.86. One contributed in the final year, €1.04. That is the whole story of compound interest in two figures.
What each euro is worth depending on when you add it
| Contributed in year | Contributed that year | Adds to the final result | Per euro |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | €9,600 | €75,480 | €7.86 |
| 5 | €9,600 | €57,093 | €5.95 |
| 9 | €9,600 | €43,185 | €4.50 |
| 13 | €9,600 | €32,665 | €3.40 |
| 18 | €9,600 | €23,042 | €2.40 |
| 22 | €9,600 | €17,429 | €1.82 |
| 26 | €9,600 | €13,183 | €1.37 |
| 30 | €9,600 | €9,972 | €1.04 |
What if I stop contributing?
Pick a year and see the two figures side by side: what you save out of pocket and what you lose in results.
You would end up with
€888,951
Saved out of pocket
€144,000
Lost in results
€255,049
Every euro you stop contributing costs you €1.77 of final result. That is why stopping never pays off, even though contributing late is worth far less than contributing early.
Computed with the same simulation as the rest of the page: once you stop contributing, the accumulated capital keeps compounding at the expected return until the end of the horizon. It is a constant-return projection, not a forecast.
Frequently asked questions
What is the 4% rule?+
It's a common rule of thumb from the "Trinity study": if you withdraw 4% of your portfolio in the first year and adjust that amount for inflation every year after, historically your money had a good chance of lasting 30+ years. It gives you a target portfolio: your annual expenses divided by 0.04 — here, €600,000.
Is the 4% rule guaranteed to work?+
No. It's based on historical U.S. market data over specific 30-year periods; it doesn't guarantee anything about the future, and it was designed for roughly 30-year retirements — a much longer retirement (which is common with early retirement) usually calls for a more conservative withdrawal rate, closer to 3-3.5%.
What is Coast FIRE?+
Coast FIRE is the amount you'd need to have invested today so that, with zero further contributions, pure compound growth gets you to your FIRE number by the time you reach traditional retirement age. With these numbers, that's €73,924 in 30 years — you're not there yet, but every euro saved now brings it closer.
Does this simulation predict my real retirement?+
No — it assumes a constant annual return every year, not a real sequence of good and bad years. Markets are volatile: some years you could be years ahead of this projection, other years behind. Use it to compare scenarios, not as a guarantee of a specific date.
Should I use exactly 4% as my withdrawal rate?+
It depends on your time horizon and risk tolerance. A longer retirement (typical in early retirement / FIRE) usually calls for a lower, more conservative rate (3-3.5%); a shorter, more traditional retirement can sometimes support a bit more. Adjust the slider and see how it changes your target.
Educational simulation using a constant annual return, not a real market sequence, and a simplified application of the withdrawal rate you choose. Not financial advice, and not a promise that you will actually be able to retire on that exact date.