Uncategorized

Retirement Savings Calculator

Project how large your retirement savings could grow, or work out the monthly contribution needed to reach a target balance by retirement age.

Pick a scenario

What do you want to work out?

Current age (years) Your age today, when the saving plan starts. Retirement age (years) The age when contributions stop and the projection ends. Current retirement savings The amount already invested for retirement today. Expected annual return (%) The average yearly growth you expect, before inflation and fees.

Monthly contribution The amount you plan to add every month until retirement.

Advanced: annual increase and currency

Annual contribution increase (%) Raises the monthly contribution once a year, for example in line with pay rises. Leave at 0 for a flat contribution. Currency symbol Used for display only. Change it to your own currency.

Projected balance at retirement

How much your retirement savings could grow to.

Total you contribute0

Investment growth0

Years invested0

How the balance is built: your money vs investment growth

Your contributions Investment growth

The blue part is the cash you put in; the green part is the growth earned on top. Early on the balance is almost all contributions, but the green growth layer compounds and usually overtakes it well before retirement.

Balance by decade

Age	Contributed so far	Growth so far	Balance

"Contributed so far" is your starting savings plus every contribution added up to that age. "Growth so far" is the balance minus what you put in.

For beginners: how to read this result

Growth compounds every monthEach month the balance earns a small slice of return, and next month that return also earns return. Over decades this snowball effect does most of the work.

Time matters more than amountStarting earlier gives each contribution more years to compound. A smaller monthly amount started young often beats a larger amount started late.

The return is an assumptionReal markets rise and fall. The expected annual return is an average estimate, so treat the projected balance as a planning range, not a promise.

Target mode flips the questionInstead of guessing a contribution, enter the balance you want. The calculator solves for the monthly amount that reaches it by your retirement age.

This is an estimate based on the figures you enter and assumes a constant annual return with no market ups and downs. It does not account for inflation, taxes, investment fees or employer contributions beyond what you include yourself. The projected balance is in today's currency, not adjusted for rising prices. Use it as a planning guide and confirm details with a qualified adviser before making decisions.

Start with a preset scenario or enter your own figures: your current age, your retirement age, the savings you already hold, and the average annual return you expect. The fifth field depends on the mode you choose.

The two modes

A toggle switches what the calculator solves for, and the input fields change with it so only the relevant one is shown.

Project my balance — you enter a monthly contribution, and the headline returns the projected savings balance at your retirement age.
Reach a target — you enter the balance you want, and the calculator works out the monthly contribution needed to hit it by retirement age.

An advanced section adds an optional annual contribution increase, useful if you expect to raise your saving in line with pay rises, plus a display-only currency symbol.

How the math works

The projection runs month by month. Each month the running balance is multiplied by the monthly growth rate — the expected annual return divided by 12 — and then the monthly contribution is added on top. Doing this for every month until retirement is monthly compounding: growth earned in one month also earns growth in every later month. The total you contribute is your starting savings plus every monthly amount added together; investment growth is simply the final balance minus everything you put in. In target mode the calculator first finds how far your starting savings alone fall short of the goal, then divides that shortfall by the balance that a one-unit monthly contribution would produce, which gives the contribution required.

Reading the chart and table

The stacked chart splits each year’s balance into two layers: the blue layer is your own contributions and the green layer is investment growth. Early on the bar is almost all blue, but the green layer compounds and usually overtakes contributions well before retirement — that crossover is the core argument for starting early. The decade table lists the exact contributed amount, growth and balance at each round age.

What is not included

The result is an estimate. It assumes a single constant annual return with no market ups and downs, and it does not adjust for inflation, so the projected balance is in today’s currency rather than future spending power. It excludes taxes, investment fees and any employer contributions beyond what you fold into your own monthly figure. It also does not estimate how long the money will last once you retire, which is a separate drawdown question. Treat the figures as a planning guide and confirm details with a qualified adviser.