Free retirement projection calculator
See what your savings become by retirement. Enter your age, retirement age, current savings, monthly contribution, and expected return, and the calculator projects your nest egg, your total contributions, and its inflation-adjusted value in today's dollars — updated live, as you type.
On this page13 sections
Results are estimates. Consult a professional.
What the retirement calculator projects
The retirement calculator answers one question: what will my savings be worth on the day I retire? Enter your age, the age you plan to stop working, what you have saved now, how much you add each month, and the return you expect — and it projects a single ending balance, your nest egg, compounding every month until retirement.
It is the starting point for every other retirement number. Once you know the projected balance, you can ask how much income it produces, whether it falls short of what you need, and what savings rate would close any gap. This page is the projection itself; sibling tools handle income, targets, and shortfalls.
How the retirement projection is calculated
The calculator does not use a single closed-form equation — it steps through every month from now to retirement, applying growth and adding your contribution each step. That month-by-month loop is what lets it handle a starting balance and ongoing deposits at once:
Because growth is applied monthly, a 7% expected return becomes about 0.583% a month. The first dollar you contribute compounds for the full term; the last compounds for a single month. That uneven compounding is exactly why the ending balance is far larger than the total you pay in.
How to use each input
- Current age and retirement age. The gap between them sets the number of compounding years — the single most powerful lever in the whole projection.
- Current savings. Everything already in your retirement accounts. It compounds for the entire term, so existing balances do a lot of the heavy lifting.
- Monthly contribution. What you add each month. This is the dial you most directly control today.
- Expected return. Your assumed average annual growth. Use a conservative figure (5–6%) for a cautious plan, higher (7–8%) for an aggressive all-stock allocation.
- Employer match, match cap, and salary. Optional. If your employer matches contributions, enter the match percentage, the cap as a percent of salary, and your salary — the match is added to every contribution up to the cap.
A worked example: $500 a month from age 35 to 65
Maya is 35, has $50,000 saved, adds $500 a month, expects a 7% return, and plans to retire at 65 with no employer match. These are the calculator's default inputs, so you can reproduce the result exactly.
Step 1 — Set the horizon
From 35 to 65 is 30 years, or 360 monthly compounding periods. A 7% annual return is about 0.583% a month.
Step 2 — Compound the balance forward
The $50,000 starting balance compounds for all 360 months, and each $500 deposit compounds for the months it has left. Over 30 years Maya contributes $180,000 of her own money.
Step 3 — Read the nest egg
The headline is that compounding contributed more than four times what Maya did. Change any input and the result updates live — drop the return to 6% or push retirement to 67 and watch how much the ending balance moves.
How the nest egg grows year by year
Growth is not a straight line — it bends upward as earnings start earning. The table follows Maya's exact scenario ($50,000 start, $500/mo, 7%) and shows the balance pulling away from the money she has actually put in.
| Age | Total contributed | Projected balance | Growth earned |
|---|---|---|---|
| 35 (start) | $50,000 | $50,000 | $0 |
| 45 | $110,000 | $187,025 | $77,025 |
| 55 | $170,000 | $462,400 | $292,400 |
| 65 | $230,000 | $1,015,810 | $785,810 |
Starting balance $50,000 plus $500/month at a 7% annual return, compounded monthly. "Total contributed" includes the $50,000 starting balance. Figures computed by this calculator.
Choosing a realistic expected return
The expected return is the assumption people most often get wrong. The U.S. stock market's long-run average is frequently quoted around 10% before inflation, but a real plan should be more conservative — fees, a bond allocation, and inflation all drag on what you keep.
| Assumption | Maya's nest egg at 65 | Real value (today's $) |
|---|---|---|
| 5% return | $639,517 | $263,472 |
| 6% return | $803,386 | $330,985 |
| 7% return (default) | $1,015,810 | $418,500 |
| 8% return | $1,291,966 | $532,273 |
Same $50,000 start and $500/month, age 35 to 65, varying only the expected return. Real value discounts at 3% inflation. Figures computed by this calculator.
A single percentage point of return swings the ending balance by hundreds of thousands of dollars over 30 years — which is why it pays to model a conservative and an optimistic case rather than betting the plan on one number. Most planners suggest 5–7% real-world equity assumptions for a long horizon.
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (Investor.gov) — compound interest and the importance of starting early.Where the contributions should go (2025 limits)
The projection is account-agnostic, but where you save changes how much of the nest egg you keep. Tax-advantaged accounts let contributions grow without an annual tax drag. The 2025 IRS limits cap how much you can add:
| Account | 2025 base limit | Catch-up (50+) | Super catch-up (60–63) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 401(k) / 403(b) / 457 | $23,500 | +$7,500 | +$11,250 |
| Traditional / Roth IRA | $7,000 | +$1,000 | — |
2025 IRS contribution limits. The super catch-up for ages 60–63 was introduced by SECURE 2.0. Source: IRS.gov.
IRS — 401(k) limit increases to $23,500 for 2025; IRA limit remains $7,000 (super catch-up for ages 60–63).If your employer offers a match, capturing it should come first — it is an immediate, guaranteed return on your own contribution that the projection adds straight to the balance. Model your specific plan with the 401(k) calculator or compare account types in the retirement calculators hub.
Common mistakes when projecting retirement savings
- Assuming too high a return. Plugging in 10% because that is the historical average ignores inflation and fees. A nest egg that looks huge in nominal dollars can buy far less — always check the real value.
- Ignoring inflation entirely. $1 million in 30 years is not $1 million of today's spending power. The inflation-adjusted figure is the honest one for planning.
- Forgetting the employer match. Leaving a 50–100% match on the table is the single most expensive retirement mistake, because the match compounds for decades alongside your own money.
- Treating one projection as fixed. Returns, contributions, and your retirement date all change. Re-run the projection at least once a year and after any raise.
Accuracy, assumptions, and sources
This retirement calculator compounds your starting balance and monthly contributions month by month at your expected return, adds any employer match up to the cap, and discounts the result at 3% annual inflation for the real value. It assumes a constant contribution and a constant return — real markets vary year to year, so treat the output as a planning estimate, not a guarantee or financial advice. Confirm contribution limits against IRS.gov and speak with a qualified adviser before acting.
IRS — Retirement topics: contribution limits and catch-up contributions (2025).U.S. SEC Investor.gov — Compound interest calculator and saving-early guidance.Frequently asked questions about the free retirement projection calculator
About this retirement calculator
This retirement calculator runs entirely in your browser — every figure stays on your device and nothing is sent to a server. It compounds your current savings and monthly contributions month by month at your expected return, adds any employer match up to the cap, and discounts the result at 3% inflation to show its value in today's dollars, updating instantly as you type.
Calculators Cloud offers 400+ free tools with no sign-up. The full retirement calculators shelf includes Retirement income, Retirement nest egg, and 401(k) tools alongside this one. Or browse the full calculator directory.