Will my retirement income cover what I need?

Two questions in order: once the income that arrives anyway is counted, how much would savings have to cover each month, and are you on track to have a pot that size? It stops there deliberately, because what closes a gap is a decision, not an arithmetic result.

How this is calculated

This asks two questions in order. First, how much would savings have to cover each month once the income that arrives anyway is counted? Second, how large a pot produces that, and are you on track to have one? It deliberately stops there, because what closes a gap is a decision and not an arithmetic result.

The gap

What you want to live on, less the income that keeps arriving for life. Social Security, a pension and any income you have already turned into a guaranteed payment all count here; savings do not, because savings are what has to fill the gap.

monthly income wanted - (Social Security + pension + other lifetime income)

The pot that produces it

Divide the yearly gap by the withdrawal rate. At 4% every dollar of annual income needs twenty-five dollars of savings behind it; at 3% it needs thirty-three. That is why the withdrawal rate moves this answer more than anything else on the page.

(monthly gap x 12) / withdrawal rate

Whether you are on track

What you have now, grown at your assumed real return, plus what you add each year grown the same way, compared against the pot the gap requires.

savings x (1 + return)^years + yearly saving x [(1 + return)^years - 1] / return

Starting assumptions, and where each one comes from

Assumption	Default	Source
Social Security, per month	$2,071	Social Security Administration, estimated average for all retired workers after the 2026 COLA. Your own figure is on your statement.
Full retirement age	67 years	Social Security Administration, for anyone born 1960 or later.
Withdrawal rate	4%	A widely quoted convention, not a published figure, a rule or a guarantee.
Return after inflation	4%	Your assumption. Not a forecast and not a promise of performance.

Sources

Important

This is an estimate, not a recommendation, and it does not point at any product. A gap can be closed by working longer, saving more, spending less, delaying Social Security, or converting part of your savings into guaranteed income. Which of those fits you is a conversation with a licensed agent or an adviser, not a calculation.

Everything here runs on assumptions you chose: a return after inflation and a withdrawal rate. Neither is a forecast, neither is guaranteed, and real markets do not deliver the same return every year. The order in which good and bad years arrive changes the outcome even when the average does not.

Figures are in today's money and take no account of tax. Withdrawals from a traditional 401(k) or IRA are generally taxable, so the amount you can actually spend is lower than the amount you draw.

Your answers stay in your browser. Nothing is sent to us unless you choose to enter your email at the end.

Common questions

What counts as income that arrives whatever happens?

Income that keeps paying for life regardless of markets: Social Security, a traditional pension, and any savings you have already turned into lifetime income. Withdrawals from a 401(k) or IRA do not count here, because those are what the gap has to come from.

Is a 4% withdrawal rate safe?

It is a widely quoted starting point, not a rule or a guarantee. A lower rate makes savings last longer and needs a bigger pot; a higher rate needs less but runs a greater risk of running out, especially if markets fall early in retirement.

Does waiting to claim Social Security help?

Your benefit grows for each year you wait past full retirement age, up to age 70, and that larger benefit lasts for life. Whether waiting makes sense depends on your health, your other savings and, if you are married, your spouse's benefit.

Will my retirement income cover what I need? v1.1.0 · 3359ccd3281d

Where to go next

Coverage