Saving & investing

FIRE Calculator

Q: What is a FIRE number?

It is roughly the amount you would need invested to live off the returns without running out. The common rule of thumb is 25 times your yearly spending, which comes from planning to withdraw about 4% a year. Spend $50,000 a year and your number is about $1.25 million.

Built and maintained by Chandranshu Kumar · Figures from the IRS, SSA, BLS and Freddie Mac

If you spend about $50,000 a year, your FIRE number is roughly $1,250,000, which is 25 times your spending. Starting from $100,000 and adding $2,500 a month, you'd get there in about 17 years. FIRE stands for financial independence, retire early. Set your spending, savings and monthly contribution below.

FIRE Number

$1,250,000

reachable in about 17 years

Yearly spending

Invested so far

You invest each month

Your number (25x spending)$1,250,000

Time to reach it17 yr

Spending is the real lever

The number that decides your FIRE target is not your income, it is your spending. Because the goal is 25 times what you spend, trimming your yearly costs does two things at once: it lowers the finish line and it frees up more to invest, so the gap closes from both sides. Someone who lives on $40,000 needs a million; someone who lives on $80,000 needs two. The 4% rule this is based on is a guideline drawn from historical returns, not a guarantee, and early retirees often keep a cushion or stay flexible. Use this to see the shape of the goal, then plan with a real budget.

Based on the 4% rule and a 7% average return. Not financial advice.

How the FIRE number is worked out

The target starts from one figure: what you spend in a year. Divide that by a safe withdrawal rate, commonly 4%, and you get the amount you would need invested to cover your spending from returns. Dividing by 4% is the same as multiplying by 25, which is where the "25 times spending" rule comes from. On $50,000 of yearly spending the number is about $1,250,000.

The years-to-reach estimate grows your current investments forward. Starting from $100,000 and adding $2,500 a month at an assumed 7% return, the balance is stepped forward month by month until it crosses your number, which happens in roughly 17 years here.

Both the 4% withdrawal rate and the 7% return are assumptions drawn from historical averages, not guarantees. A 4% rate suits a roughly 30-year retirement, and many early retirees stay flexible or keep a cushion. Use this to see the shape of the goal, and check the full method for the assumptions. The retirement calculator can then model the saving side in more detail.

Common questions

What is a FIRE number?

Roughly what you would need invested to live off the returns, commonly 25 times your yearly spending. Spend $50,000 a year and the number is about $1.25 million.

Why is the 4% figure called a rule of thumb?

It comes from studies of historical returns showing that withdrawing about 4% of a portfolio in the first year, then adjusting for inflation, rarely ran the money out over 30 years. It is a guideline, not a law. Longer retirements or weaker markets can call for a lower rate.

Does spending or income set the target?

Spending. Because the number is 25 times what you spend, trimming yearly costs lowers the finish line and frees up more to invest at the same time. Someone who lives on $40,000 needs a million; someone who lives on $80,000 needs two.