Coast FIRE Calculator

Stop saving for retirement
sooner than you think.

Coast FIRE is a savings milestone. Hit it once, and your investments will grow to fund your retirement without another contribution.

Here's how it works
There's a specific dollar amount that, if you have it invested today, will compound on its own to fund your full retirement. That's your Coast FIRE number. Once you hit it, retirement savings become optional.
What happens after you hit it
You still work and cover your living expenses, but you're no longer racing to save for retirement. That opens the door to a lower paying job you actually enjoy, going part time, or just having breathing room.
How this calculator works
We figure out how much you'll need at retirement, then work backwards to find the number you need invested today. The more time you have, the smaller that number is.
Step 1 of 2

Your retirement basics

These three numbers are all we need to find your Coast FIRE number.

yrs
yrs
$
Not sure? A common rule of thumb is 80% of your current income.
Please fill in all fields. Retirement age must be greater than current age.
Your Investments

How much do you have saved so far?

This is your current invested balance: 401k, IRA, brokerage accounts, anything invested in the market.

$
$
Please enter your current balance.

Coast FIRE is one of the most liberating milestones in personal finance. Once you hit your number, you have effectively taken retirement off the table as a financial worry. Your invested money does the work from that point forward, compounding on its own until you are ready to stop working.

How this calculator finds your number

We start with your annual spending in retirement and project it forward for inflation to the year you plan to stop working. Using the 4% rule, we turn that future spending into the total nest egg you'll need. Then we work backwards: given your expected return and the years you have left, we solve for the single amount you'd need invested today for it to compound up to that nest egg on its own. That figure is your Coast FIRE number.

Why a glide path matters

Most Coast FIRE calculators assume one fixed rate of return for your entire life, say 7% every year from age 30 to 65. Real portfolios don't work that way. As you approach retirement, the standard approach is to shift from stocks toward bonds and cash to protect against a market drop right before you need the money. That lowers your expected return in the final stretch.

A fixed rate calculator quietly overstates your ending balance because it assumes you'll keep earning stock like returns even at 64. A glide path tapers your expected return as retirement approaches, so the projection reflects how money is actually managed near the finish line. The result is a more honest, usually slightly higher, Coast FIRE number, which is the safer number to plan around.

A worked example

Say you're 30, want to fully retire at 60, and expect to spend $50,000 a year in retirement. With a fixed 7% real return, you might need roughly $130,000 invested today to coast. Taper the return as you move through your fifties and the required amount today rises, because your money grows a little more slowly in the final decade. That difference is exactly the cushion a fixed rate tool hides from you. Try your own numbers above to see how sensitive your Coast FIRE number is to each input.

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Common Questions

What is Coast FIRE?
Coast FIRE is the point where you have saved enough that your investments will grow to fund your retirement on their own, without any additional contributions. You still need to cover your living expenses until retirement, but you no longer need to save specifically for retirement.
How is Coast FIRE different from regular FIRE?
Regular FIRE means your portfolio is large enough to fund your retirement right now. Coast FIRE means your portfolio is large enough that it will get there by retirement age on its own. Coast FIRE is achievable much earlier and gives you flexibility to work less, change careers, or take a lower paying job you enjoy more.
What do I do after I hit my Coast FIRE number?
You only need to earn enough to cover your current expenses. You can stop contributing to retirement accounts, shift to a lower paying or more enjoyable career, reduce your hours, or simply enjoy more financial breathing room knowing retirement is taken care of.
What return rate should I use for Coast FIRE calculations?
Most people use around 7% annually as a real return after inflation for a diversified index fund portfolio. Using a lower number builds in a cushion. If markets perform better than expected, you hit your number sooner than projected.
What is a glide path and why does it matter?
A glide path gradually lowers your expected rate of return as you approach retirement, reflecting how most people shift from stocks toward bonds and cash over time. Calculators that assume one fixed return for your whole life tend to overstate your ending balance. Tapering the return gives a more honest Coast FIRE number that matches how portfolios are actually managed near retirement.