Retirement Nest Egg Calculator

About this calculator

This calculator finds the lump sum needed at retirement using the present value of an annuity formula: PV = PMT × [1 − (1 + r)^−n] / r, where PMT is the annual income you want, r is your expected real (after-inflation) rate of return, and n is the number of years the money must last. Using a real rate rather than a nominal one keeps the target expressed in today's purchasing power, so the withdrawals it funds keep pace with rising prices.

Financial planners and pre-retirees use this to translate a desired lifestyle — say $40,000 a year for 25 years — into a single savings target, and it's the same logic behind the popular "25x expenses" and 4% withdrawal rules of thumb, just made precise for any return rate and time horizon.