Benefits
- Save your assumptions and estimates for future review.
- Compare conservative, base and optimistic outcomes.
- Share the plan for discussion with an adviser or family.
Workspace / Financial planning tools
Planning / Guided flow
Personal Capital Retirement Planner
Use this detailed retirement calculator to estimate the corpus you may need from your monthly expenses, healthcare costs, pension and other income. Include inflation, compare three illustrative outcomes, and test whether your savings plan may be on track. This independent tool is not affiliated with Personal Capital or Empower. Your entries stay in this session.
- 1 Timeline & savings
- 2 Retirement spending
- 3 Growth & inflation
Timeline & savings
Estimate what you can build before retirement begins.
The planner compounds current savings and assumes contributions are made at the end of each month until retirement. It does not assume future salary increases.
Retirement readiness snapshot
Updates as your assumptions change.
Years until retirement—
Projected corpus—
Monthly withdrawal needed—
Required corpus, incl. one-offs & reserve—
Surplus / shortfall—
Complete the required inputs, including savings, spending, duration, return and inflation, to calculate retirement readiness.
Monthly spending gap
Spending + healthcare—
Pension + other income—
Monthly surplus / shortfall—
Monthly withdrawal needed from savings—
Keep a copy of your retirement plan
Download a PDF snapshot of your assumptions, readiness estimate, scenario comparison, benefits, risks and practical next steps.
Why download it?
Keep a record, compare changes over time, or discuss your assumptions with a qualified financial professional. Your PDF is a snapshot—not a live tracker or a guarantee that the plan will work.
To enable the PDF, complete the current age, retirement age, current savings, monthly retirement spending, retirement duration, expected return and inflation fields.
Limitations
- It does not update when markets, expenses or income change.
- It cannot predict returns or guarantee that money will last.
- Taxes, fees, market volatility and unexpected costs can change the outcome.
Compare retirement scenarios
Contributions grow before retirement; withdrawals rise annually with each scenario's inflation assumption.
Conservative
Complete the required inputs to calculate this scenario.
Enter all required assumptions to see projected and required corpus, shortfall and depletion estimates.
Base
Complete the required inputs to calculate this scenario.
Enter all required assumptions to see projected and required corpus, shortfall and depletion estimates.
Optimistic
Complete the required inputs to calculate this scenario.
Enter all required assumptions to see projected and required corpus, shortfall and depletion estimates.
These are smooth-return illustrations, not forecasts. They do not model market volatility, sequence-of-returns risk, taxes, fees or changes in spending. The optimistic scenario's inflation assumption is floored at 0%.
How to use these estimates
Read the assumptions alongside the numbers, then inspect the detailed monthly projection.
1. Build the corpus before retirement
Current savings compound monthly and contributions are added at each month-end until the intended retirement age. The result is a mathematical projection, not a promise of investment performance.
2. Fund only the spending gap
Monthly pension and other reliable income are subtracted from planned spending and healthcare costs. The remaining gap is what this model asks the portfolio to fund.
3. Include large costs and a reserve
One-off retirement costs are modelled at the start of retirement. The emergency reserve is added to the required target and excluded from the corpus available for planned withdrawals.
4. Stress-test the plan
Lower returns and higher inflation can materially change the result. Actual markets do not deliver a smooth annual return, so review assumptions and revisit the plan regularly.
Calculation methodology and limitations
- Pre-retirement corpus compounds at an equivalent monthly rate, with monthly contributions added at the end of each month.
- Required corpus is found by binary-searching for a starting balance that covers monthly withdrawals increased annually with scenario inflation, plus one-off costs and a separate emergency reserve.
- The monthly spending gap is max(0, spending + healthcare − pension − other income). The model assumes that this net gap rises with inflation; it does not separately index pension income.
- The SWP handoff carries the projected corpus after one-off costs and reserve, the net monthly gap, the retirement duration, and an annual withdrawal increase equal to the selected inflation assumption.
- Taxes, fees, changing contributions, pension indexation, market volatility and sequence-of-returns risk are not modelled.
Retirement corpus calculator: common questions
Understand monthly expenses, inflation, downloads and how to use these estimates.
How do I estimate a retirement corpus using monthly expenses?
Start with expected monthly retirement spending, add healthcare costs, and subtract reliable pension or other income. This planner estimates the remaining monthly gap, then considers years until retirement, savings, contributions, return assumptions, inflation, one-off costs and an emergency reserve.
Why does inflation increase the retirement corpus I may need?
Inflation reduces the future buying power of money. A retirement plan that ignores rising costs can underestimate the income needed later. This planner lets you test an annual inflation assumption and compare conservative, base and optimistic illustrations.
Can I download this retirement corpus calculator in Excel?
This planner currently offers a PDF snapshot of your assumptions and estimates, not an Excel workbook. The PDF is a record for review and does not update automatically when your circumstances change.
Does this calculator account for taxes and pension rules?
No. It uses the spending, income, return and inflation assumptions you enter. It does not automatically apply local tax laws, pension rules, fees or investment product terms, so consider those separately for your circumstances.
Do I need a financial planner for retirement?
You may be able to make a straightforward retirement plan yourself if your finances are simple, you understand your savings and pension options, and you are comfortable reviewing your assumptions regularly. A qualified financial planner may be helpful if you have several income sources or retirement accounts, need to decide when to retire, are unsure how much you can withdraw sustainably, or want help coordinating investments, taxes, insurance, estate plans and changing family needs. Before hiring someone, consider the complexity of your situation, the value of the service, and its total cost. Ask what advice they provide, how they are paid and whether they have relevant qualifications and authorisation where you live. This calculator can help you organise your figures and identify topics to discuss, but it cannot assess your full circumstances or replace individualised advice.
What questions should I ask a retirement financial planner?
Ask questions that help you understand the planner's expertise, costs and approach before you commit. For example: What qualifications and authorisations do you hold, and how can I verify them? Do you charge a fixed fee, an hourly rate, a percentage of assets, commissions, or a combination? Could you receive payments or other benefits from products you recommend? What exactly is included in the service, and what might cost extra? How will you estimate my retirement income needs and account for inflation, taxes, fees, healthcare costs, market losses and the possibility that I live longer than expected? How will you balance reliable income with investment risk, and explain the trade-offs? How often will we review the plan, what happens if my circumstances change, and will I receive the recommendations and fees in writing? Ask for clear answers in language you understand, and take time to compare providers rather than feeling pressured to decide immediately.
How do I choose a retirement financial planner?
Start by defining the help you need—for example, estimating a retirement income target, planning withdrawals, comparing pension options or coordinating your wider finances. Shortlist planners with relevant retirement-planning experience, then verify their qualifications, licence or registration through the appropriate regulator or professional body in your country. Compare how each person is paid, the total cost, the services included and any conflicts of interest; ask whether they receive commissions or incentives linked to products. During an initial conversation, notice whether they listen to your goals, ask about your full circumstances, explain uncertainty and trade-offs clearly, and respect your risk tolerance rather than promising particular returns. Request a written outline of the service, fees and responsibilities, and check references or any available disciplinary history. The right fit should be transparent, understandable and appropriate for your needs—not simply the person with the most impressive marketing or the highest projected returns.
For a more detailed withdrawal estimate, try the SWP calculator with inflation. To compare different ways of building or using savings, see the Investment Comparison calculator.
Educational estimate only—not investment, tax or financial advice. Actual returns, inflation, expenses and taxes vary. Consider professional advice for important retirement decisions.