How this calculator works
Your FIRE number is annual retirement spending divided by your withdrawal rate. The Coast FIRE number is that target discounted back to today at your real return (return after inflation) over the years until retirement. Reach it, and growth alone can carry you there.
Worked example
With the example values below: Your Coast FIRE number, $426,634 ($306,634 to go). Change any number above to run your own.
What you enter
| Input | Example |
|---|---|
| Current age | 32 |
| Retirement age | 65 |
| Annual spending in retirement (today's $) | $60,000 |
| Withdrawal rate | 4% |
| Annual return | 7% |
| Inflation | 3% |
| Currently invested | $120,000 |
Coast FIRE in practice
Once you reach your Coast FIRE number, you no longer need to save for retirement. Your income only has to cover current expenses, which opens options: switching to a lower-paying but more satisfying career, working part time, or taking time off to raise kids.
It's a milestone on the way to full FIRE, not a replacement for it. If you keep saving after you reach it, you'll reach financial independence sooner.
Assumptions that matter
Because the number depends heavily on returns, recheck it every year or two and after big market moves.
- Real return: use the return after inflation, typically 4% to 6% for a stock-heavy portfolio.
- Retirement spending: base it on what you expect to spend, including healthcare before Medicare.
- Withdrawal rate: 4% is common; 3.25% to 3.5% is more cautious for early retirees with long horizons.
- Retirement age: a later target makes the Coast number much smaller.
Related calculators
The FIRE calculator shows how long it takes to reach full independence with continued saving, and the how long will my money last calculator tests your withdrawal plan once you retire.
Frequently asked questions
What is Coast FIRE?
Coast FIRE means you've saved enough that, with no more contributions, your investments will grow to your full retirement number by your target age. From then on, your income only has to cover today's living costs, so you can take a lower-paying job or work less.
How do you calculate your Coast FIRE number?
Find your FIRE number (annual retirement spending divided by your withdrawal rate) and discount it back to today: FIRE number ÷ (1 + real return) raised to the years until retirement. With $50,000 of spending at a 4% withdrawal rate, the FIRE number is $1.25 million; 30 years out at a 5% real return, the Coast FIRE number is about $289,000.
What's the difference between Coast FIRE and FIRE?
FIRE means you have enough invested to stop working now and live off withdrawals. Coast FIRE means you have enough to stop saving for retirement, but you still work to pay current expenses until growth carries the portfolio to your FIRE number.
What is a good Coast FIRE number?
It's personal. It depends on your retirement spending, withdrawal rate, real return and years to retirement. At $50,000 of spending, 4% withdrawal, 5% real return and 30 years, it's about $289,000.
Is Coast FIRE realistic?
For people who save heavily in their 20s and 30s, yes. The main risks are lower-than-expected returns and higher spending, so many people build a margin of 10% to 20% above their number.
Grow what this calculator projects.
TruthSayer AI sends quantitative stock signals across valuations, earnings and dark-pool activity, each one traded in its own funded account first.
Estimates for planning only, not financial, tax or legal advice. Tax tools use 2026 federal figures (brackets, $16,100 / $32,200 standard deduction, $19,000 gift exclusion, $15M lifetime exemption). Rates shown as defaults are examples; replace them with quotes you actually receive.