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Barista FIRE Calculator

Quit full-time work years early and let an easier part-time job cover part of your spending while your portfolio grows into a full retirement. Tell us your timeline and we'll find the earliest age you could make the switch.

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What you expect to spend per year, in today's dollars. Include health insurance if you'll be buying your own.
Please fill in all fields. Ages must increase: current age, then part-time age, then full retirement age.
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Your money, now and during part-time

Your current investments, what you're saving, and what part-time work would bring in.

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20 hours a week at $18/hr is roughly $1,300/month after tax.
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Please enter your current balance and expected part-time income (0 is fine).

Barista FIRE is the middle path between grinding out a full career and needing a huge portfolio to retire completely. Instead of saving 25 times your annual spending before you can quit, you only need enough that a part-time job can carry you the rest of the way. For many people that moves the escape date up by five to ten years.

How this calculator finds your number

We start from your full retirement target: 25 times your annual spending, per the 4% rule. Then we work backwards through the part-time years. During those years your portfolio grows at your expected return, but it also covers the gap between your spending and your part-time income. The calculator solves for the balance you need on the day you switch, so that after all those withdrawals your portfolio still lands on the full retirement number at your chosen age. Finally, it projects your current savings and contributions forward to find the earliest age you could actually make the switch.

Barista FIRE vs Coast FIRE

The two are often confused. Coast FIRE means you have enough invested that retirement funds itself, but you keep working a job that pays all your bills. Barista FIRE goes a step further: you leave full-time work entirely, and part-time income plus small portfolio withdrawals cover your life. Barista FIRE therefore needs a bigger balance than Coast FIRE at the same age, but it buys you far more freedom, far sooner than full early retirement.

The health insurance question

In the United States, health coverage is the real obstacle to leaving a career early, and it's why this strategy is named after baristas at all. Starbucks offers benefits at 20 hours per week, and so do Costco, UPS, Trader Joe's, and REI, among others. If you'd rather not tie your coverage to an employer, ACA marketplace plans are the alternative, and a lower income during your part-time years often means substantial premium subsidies. Whichever route you take, put the premium into the spending number you enter above.

A worked example

Say you're 35, spend $50,000 a year, and could earn $2,000 a month part-time. Your portfolio only needs to cover a $26,000 annual gap during the part-time years. Fully retiring on $50,000 a year takes $1.25 million, but switching to part-time at 45 and fully retiring at 65 takes far less on the day you switch, because two decades of compounding are still ahead of the portfolio. Run your own numbers above; most people are surprised by how much a modest part-time income moves the date.

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Common Questions

What is Barista FIRE?
Barista FIRE is a form of semi-retirement. You leave your full-time career years before traditional retirement and take an easier part-time job that covers some or all of your living expenses. Meanwhile your investments keep compounding, so by your full retirement age the portfolio can support you completely and you stop working altogether.
How is Barista FIRE different from Coast FIRE?
With Coast FIRE you keep working a job that covers all of your expenses, you just stop saving for retirement. With Barista FIRE you go further: you quit full-time work entirely and let part-time income cover part of your spending, drawing small amounts from your portfolio if needed. Barista FIRE requires a larger portfolio than Coast FIRE because your investments may need to cover a spending gap during the part-time years.
Why is it called Barista FIRE?
The name comes from Starbucks, which famously offers health insurance to employees working 20 or more hours per week. The idea is that a low-stress part-time job like being a barista can provide both income and health benefits, solving the two biggest problems of retiring early: cash flow and insurance.
How much money do I need for Barista FIRE?
A common rule of thumb is 25 times the spending your part-time income will not cover. For example, if you spend $50,000 per year and part-time work brings in $20,000, the gap is $30,000, so roughly $750,000. This calculator refines that estimate by also modeling the growth of your portfolio between your part-time years and full retirement, which usually lowers the number you need on day one.
What about health insurance during Barista FIRE?
Health insurance is the biggest hidden cost of leaving a full-time job in the United States. Many people specifically choose part-time employers that offer benefits at 20 to 30 hours per week, such as Starbucks, Costco, UPS, Trader Joe's, and REI. The alternative is an ACA marketplace plan, and because your income is lower during Barista FIRE you may qualify for meaningful premium subsidies. Either way, include the cost in your annual spending number.
What if my part-time income covers all of my expenses?
Then you are effectively at Coast FIRE: your portfolio is never touched during the part-time years and only needs to grow to your full retirement number on its own. The calculator handles this case automatically, and the amount you need at your switch age becomes much smaller.