How Long Will My Retirement Savings Last?

This calculator estimates how long your retirement savings may last based on your current balance, planned withdrawals, expected investment return, inflation and other income sources, such as Social Security, pensions or annuity payments. The results can help you understand whether your current savings and withdrawal plan may be sustainable and which adjustments may improve your long-term outlook.

How to Use This Retirement Savings Calculator

Enter information that reflects your expected retirement income and spending as closely as possible. Because even small changes can have a meaningful long-term effect, it may be helpful to run several scenarios and compare how your plan holds up under different assumptions.

Input	What It Means
Cumulative savings	The amount you have saved for retirement today.
Monthly spending	The amount you expect to withdraw each month.
Rate of return	The annual rate of return you expect your investments to earn.
Inflation	The rate at which you expect your expenses to rise over time.
Marginal tax rate	The highest rate you pay for federal income taxes and the highest rate you pay for state income taxes.
Social Security or other income	Income you expect to receive from sources outside your savings, such as Social Security, a pension, rental income or annuity payments.

The more realistic your inputs are, the more useful your estimate will be. If you’re unsure how your current nest egg compares with typical retirement savings, benchmarking by age can be a helpful way to frame your starting point before testing withdrawal scenarios in the calculator.

What Your Retirement Savings Estimate Means

Your result shows the projected number of years your retirement savings may last based on the assumptions you entered. If the calculator estimates that your money may last longer than your expected retirement, your current withdrawal plan may be on track. If your savings are projected to run out too soon, you may need to adjust your strategy.

 

Adjusting your strategy could mean saving more before retirement, spending less in retirement, delaying retirement, changing your investment approach or identifying additional income sources. These levers matter because the answer to “how long will my money last in retirement?” is rarely driven by a single factor alone.

 

Keep in mind that this estimate isn’t a guarantee. Market performance, inflation, taxes, healthcare costs, longevity and changes in your spending needs can all affect how long your money actually lasts.

 

A calculator can help you model different retirement scenarios, but a sustainable retirement income plan usually involves more than one assumption set. Taxes, portfolio risk, healthcare costs, longevity and the role of each account can all affect how long your money may last.

Planning Beyond the Calculator

A retirement savings calculator is a helpful starting point, but a more complete retirement income plan should also account for taxes, required minimum distributions, Social Security timing, estate planning, risk management and the role each account plays in supporting your long-term goals.

 

This is especially important if you’re thinking beyond the calculator and trying to build a plan around broader risks, like longevity risk and its impact on your retirement, rising inflation and the increasing complexity of healthcare costs in retirement. If you want to compare this tool with a more cash-flow-focused model, our retirement income estimator can help you evaluate future income needs from another angle.

 

Retirement planning is also being shaped by demographic and economic changes, which is why it can be helpful to understand some of the broader forces shaping retirement as you build and refine your long-term strategy.

Frequently Asked Questions About Retirement Savings Calculators

How long will my retirement savings last?

How long your retirement savings will last depends on how much you’ve saved, how much you withdraw each year, how your investments perform and how inflation affects your expenses over time – to name a few. A retirement savings calculator can help estimate your savings longevity based on these assumptions, but the result is a planning benchmark rather than a promise.

 

How long will $2 million last in retirement?

How long $2 million will last in retirement depends on your withdrawal rate, investment returns, inflation, taxes and other income sources, such as Social Security or a pension. For example, withdrawing $80,000 per year from a $2 million portfolio represents a 4% initial withdrawal rate, but whether that’s sustainable depends on your retirement age, spending flexibility and market experience over time.

 

How long will $6 million last in retirement?

A $6 million retirement portfolio may last for decades, but the exact timeline depends on how much you spend, how your money is invested and how much income you receive from other sources. For high-net-worth households, the planning question often expands beyond duration alone to include tax strategy, legacy planning and wealth preservation across generations.

 

What affects how long my money will last in retirement?

Several factors can affect how long your money lasts in retirement, including:

• How much you’ve saved
• How much you withdraw each month or year
• Your investment returns
• Inflation
• Taxes on withdrawals
• Healthcare and long-term care costs
• Social Security, pension or annuity income
• Your retirement age and life expectancy
• Market volatility, especially early in retirement

Need Help Interpreting Your Results?

If you’d like to talk through your calculator results and explore strategies to help your money last through retirement, our advisors are here to help. Schedule a meeting to review your entire plan — investments, taxes, estate planning and more — in one place.

 

Information and interactive calculators are made available to you as self-help tools for your independent use and are not intended to provide investment advice. We cannot and do not guarantee their applicability or accuracy in regards to your individual circumstances. All examples are hypothetical and are for illustrative purposes. We encourage you to seek personalized advice from qualified professionals regarding all personal finance issues.