Financial Disclaimer: This calculator is for informational purposes only. It is not financial advice. Consult a licensed financial advisor before making retirement or investment decisions.
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How the Coast FIRE Calculator Works
The calculator works backward from your retirement goal. First it determines the corpus you need at retirement. Then it discounts that figure back to today at your expected return rate to find the amount you need right now.
Coast FIRE Formula
Retirement Corpus = Annual Expenses ÷ Withdrawal Rate Coast FIRE Number = Corpus ÷ (1 + Return)^Years to Retirement Already Coasted= Current Savings >= Coast FIRE Number
Withdrawal Rate Options
4% rule (25x expenses): the classic Trinity Study benchmark for a 30-year retirement
3.5% rule (28.6x expenses): more conservative, better for early or very long retirements
5% rule (20x expenses): aggressive, with higher risk of running short in a down market
Who Is This Calculator For?
High earners in their 30s
People who saved hard early and want to know if they can stop retirement contributions.
Career changers
Those considering lower-paying work they love, wanting to confirm retirement is still on track.
Parents reducing savings
Households redirecting savings to childcare who want to confirm retirement is covered.
FIRE community planners
Anyone tracking Coast FIRE, Lean FIRE, or Barista FIRE milestones toward financial independence.
How to Use the Calculator
1
Set your ages
Enter your current age and the age you plan to retire. The gap between them is your compounding horizon.
2
Enter annual retirement expenses
Use today's dollars for the lifestyle you want in retirement, the amount you need to spend each year.
3
Enter your current savings
Include all invested balances: 401k, IRA, taxable brokerage. Do not include home equity or checking accounts.
4
Set return and withdrawal rates
7% real return and 4% withdrawal are the standard starting points. Adjust for conservatism or specific situations.
5
Enter annual contributions
This field lets the calculator show the age at which you will reach Coast FIRE if you keep saving at your current rate.
6
Review the result
If your savings already exceed the Coast FIRE number, you are coasting. If not, the calculator shows how many years until you get there.
Example Calculation
Priya is 34, plans to retire at 60, wants $65,000/year in retirement, has $110,000 saved, and assumes 7% growth with the 4% withdrawal rule.
Retirement corpus ($65,000 ÷ 4%)$1,625,000
Years to retirement (60 to 34)26 years
Coast FIRE ($1,625,000 ÷ 1.07^26)$277,400
Current savings$110,000
Gap to coast-$167,400
Saving $15,000/yr, coasts at age40
Once Priya hits Coast FIRE at 40, she can stop retirement contributions entirely. Her $277,400 will grow to $1.625M by age 60 on its own, funded solely by compound returns.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
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Using nominal returns instead of real returns
A 10% nominal return with 3% inflation is a 7% real return. Using 10% overstates your portfolio's purchasing power at retirement.
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Forgetting taxes on withdrawals
Traditional 401k and IRA withdrawals are taxed as ordinary income. Your gross corpus target should be higher to cover the tax hit if most savings are in pre-tax accounts.
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Ignoring sequence-of-returns risk
A bad market in the first few years of retirement can derail even a well-funded plan. A 3.5% withdrawal rate provides more cushion than 4%.
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Counting only retirement accounts
Taxable brokerage accounts count too. Include all long-term invested assets, not just 401k and IRA balances.
Frequently Asked Questions
Coast FIRE is the point where your invested savings are large enough to grow to your full retirement goal on their own, without any more contributions. Once you hit your Coast FIRE number, you only need to earn enough to cover current living expenses.
Bengen, W. (1994): Determining Withdrawal Rates Using Historical Data
Journal of Financial Planning. Original source for the 4% withdrawal rate rule and its 30-year sustainability basis.
2
Cooley, Hubbard, Walz (1998): Retirement Savings: Choosing a Withdrawal Rate That Is Sustainable
The Trinity Study. Provides empirical success rates for various withdrawal rates across historical market cycles.
D
David Nguyen, CFP
Certified Financial Planner, 14 years in retirement and early retirement strategy
David works with clients in their 30s and 40s on early retirement planning. He reviewed the Coast FIRE formula, withdrawal rate assumptions, and calculation logic on this page.
Reviewed: April 2025Last updated: April 2025
Corpus by Withdrawal Rate
For $60,000/year in retirement:
Rate
Corpus needed
3.5%
$1,714,286
4.0%
$1,500,000
4.5%
$1,333,333
5.0%
$1,200,000
FIRE Milestone Types
Coast FIRE
Savings will grow to goal with no further contributions needed
Lean FIRE
Full retirement on minimal spending (~$40k/yr)
FIRE
Full retirement on normal spending
Fat FIRE
Full retirement on high spending
Barista FIRE
Part-time work covers expenses; portfolio left to grow
Pro Tip
$7,000/year in a Roth IRA from age 22 to 32, then nothing, grows to over $500,000 by age 65 at 7% real return. Those 10 years of contributions alone can fully fund a coast strategy.