The Savings Rate Calculator: When Can You Retire?
Published June 2026 · 5 min read
Among all the FIRE calculators, spreadsheets, and projections, one number matters more than any other: your savings rate — the percentage of your income you invest each year. Everything else — market returns, tax optimization, side hustles — is secondary.
⚡ The Savings Rate Rule
Years to FIRE ≈ (1 — Savings Rate) × 25 / Savings Rate × adjustment. In plain English: the higher your savings rate, the dramatically fewer years you need to work.
Savings Rate → Years to FIRE Table
| Savings Rate | Years to FIRE | FIRE Age (start @ 25) | Lifestyle |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10% | 51 years | 76 | Traditional retirement |
| 20% | 37 years | 62 | Standard |
| 30% | 28 years | 53 | Moderate FIRE |
| 40% | 22 years | 47 | Solid FIRE |
| 50% | 17 years | 42 | Lean FIRE range |
| 60% | 12.5 years | 37 | Aggressive FIRE |
| 70% | 8.5 years | 33 | Extreme FIRE |
How to Calculate Your Savings Rate
Savings Rate = (Income — Expenses) / Income × 100
Example: $100K income, $60K expenses → savings rate = 40%. FIRE in ~22 years.
The Non-Linear Power of Savings Rate
Going from 10% to 20% savings rate cuts 14 years from your timeline. Going from 40% to 50% cuts 5 years. The biggest gains come from the lowest rates — increasing savings from 10% to 30% cuts your working years in half. This is why cutting a $5 daily coffee habit does more for FIRE than finding a stock that returns 2% extra.
Calculate your exact FIRE timeline
Plug your income, expenses, and savings into our FIRE Calculator.
Calculate My FIRE Timeline →