The retirement calculator projects your total savings at retirement age based on your current balance, monthly contributions, expected investment return, and years remaining. Whether you're 25 or 55, it shows you exactly where you stand and how much you need to save to retire comfortably.
Enter your current retirement savings balance, monthly contribution amount, expected annual return rate (historically 7% for a diversified stock portfolio), current age, and target retirement age. The calculator uses monthly compound growth to give the most accurate projection.
The most important insight from retirement calculators: time is more powerful than contribution amount. Starting at 25 vs 35 with identical contributions typically results in 2× the final balance, thanks to an additional decade of compounding.
Reach for this tool whenever a financial decision hinges on this type of calculation. Small differences in rate or term become large differences in total cost or return over multi-year horizons — differences that only become visible when you run the actual numbers.
A frequent error is using annual rates where monthly rates are required (or vice versa). Simply dividing an annual rate by 12 is only an approximation — the correct conversion for compound calculations uses the (1 + r)^(1/12) − 1 formula.
An employee receives a counter-offer from another employer: a £4,000 salary increase but no pension contribution versus the current role's lower salary with 8% employer pension. Running both through the finance calculator shows the true net financial value of each offer.
Retirement Future Value Formula
FV = P×(1+r)^n + PMT×[((1+r)^n − 1)/r]
P = current savings, r = monthly return rate, n = months to retirement, PMT = monthly contribution.
A 35-year-old with $50,000 saved contributes $800/month and expects 7% annual return. Retirement at 65.
Result: Total at retirement = ~
The 15% rule: save 15% of gross income including employer match. At minimum, contribute enough to max out any employer matching — it's free money.
The 4% rule: you need 25× your annual expenses. For $60,000/year in expenses, you need
No. 45 to 65 is 20 years of compounding. Even $500/month at 7% grows to over $260,000 — plus Social Security and any existing savings.