Your Planning Inputs
The estimate uses your current age, current savings, annual income and yearly spending.
ABOUT RETIRE TODAY
Retirement planning, explained clearly
Retire Today helps people understand when they may be able to retire, how much they may need to save, and how their income, spending and savings affect their retirement timeline.
FOUNDER & MANAGING EDITOR
SergiiPonomarenko
Sergii Ponomarenko is the founder and managing editor of Retire Today. Based in the United States, he combines a formal education in finance with a professional background in IT. His research focuses on the U.S. retirement system, including Social Security, retirement accounts and long-term savings strategies.
Through Retire Today, he turns complex financial rules into clear explanations and practical planning tools. His work draws on official guidance from the IRS and Social Security Administration, alongside original research from institutions such as Vanguard and Fidelity. The aim is to help readers understand their options, examine the assumptions behind an estimate and make better-informed retirement decisions.
THE METHODOLOGY
How the retirement calculator works
The calculator estimates when your savings may reach a retirement target using your current age, current savings, annual income and yearly spending. Results are shown in today’s dollars and are educational estimates, not guaranteed outcomes.
Annual Savings
The amount saved each year is derived from annual income minus yearly spending.
Retirement Target
The estimate divides yearly spending by the 4% withdrawal-rate assumption to calculate a retirement savings target.
Inflation-Adjusted Growth
A 7% annual return and 2.5% inflation assumption are combined to estimate growth in today’s dollars. Savings are projected annually for up to 80 years.
RESEARCH & SOURCING
Built around transparent assumptions
Retire Today guides use primary sources such as the IRS, Social Security Administration and official retirement program documents for rules, limits and program details.
Statistics come from original reports, including research from Vanguard and Fidelity. The documents used for each guide are linked in that guide’s Sources section.
WHO IT IS FOR
Practical tools for real retirement questions
FutureRetirees
People who want to estimate when they may be able to retire.
Early RetirementPlanners
People exploring financial independence or early retirement goals.
Families BuildingSavings
Households trying to understand how income and spending affect retirement.
CuriousInvestors
Anyone who wants to test different retirement savings scenarios.
OUR PRINCIPLES
Simple, useful and transparent
Simple
Retirement planning should be easy to understand.
Free
The calculator is free to use with no registration required.
Private
Your financial information stays in your browser and is not stored.
Transparent
We explain the assumptions behind every estimate.
Educational
The calculator is built for learning and planning, not financial advice.
Practical
Results are designed to be clear, useful and easy to act on.
IMPORTANT LIMITS
What the calculator does not do
No retirement calculator can predict the future. Retire Today provides educational estimates based on assumptions, not guaranteed outcomes.
- It does not predict future stock market returns.
- It does not guarantee retirement outcomes.
- It does not include every tax situation.
- It does not replace a financial advisor.
- It does not provide personalized investment advice.
PLANNED FEATURES
What we are working toward
- More retirement planning calculators for common financial decisions.
- Additional guides for Social Security, retirement accounts and retirement income.
- Retirement tools and guides designed for specific U.S. states and professions.
- Clearer ways to compare how different assumptions affect a retirement timeline.
START PLANNING
See what your retirement timeline could look like
Explore your estimate, then use the guides to understand the decisions that can shape it.
Retire Today provides educational estimates and general information. It does not provide personalized financial, tax or investment advice.