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Retirement Readiness Score

Enter your savings, contributions, match, and retirement spending — get a readiness score, projected balance, income gap, and Fidelity benchmark check (1× salary by 30, 3× by 40, 6× by 50).

Where this fits

📈 Investing & WealthCash FlowRetirement PlanFounders

This tool lives inside Cash Flow + Retirement Plan and is most useful for founders.

401(k) Limit 2024$23,000
Roth IRA Limit$7,000
S&P 500 Avg Return~10%/yr

Your situation

Your age today

Target retirement age

Used for Fidelity benchmarks

$

401k + IRA + Roth + pension

$

Your contribution per month

$

Match % (e.g. 50 = 50% match)

%

Match applies up to X% of salary

%

Historical avg: 7% (inflation-adj)

%

Desired monthly spending in retirement

$

Estimate from ssa.gov (default $1,800)

$

Pension, rental income, part-time work

$
Projected Balance$1.9Mat age 65
Monthly Income$8,268portfolio + SS + other
Income Gap+$3,768monthly surplus
Years to Retire30age 35 → 65
Exceeds Target184% of expenses covered

Projected income surpasses your retirement expenses. You're on pace for a comfortable retirement — consider front-loading or retiring earlier.

Readiness score100/100
0 — Significantly Behind100 — Exceeds Target

Monthly retirement income breakdown

Portfolio (4% rule)
$6,468/mo
Social Security
$1,800/mo
Expenses needed
$4,500/mo

Fidelity savings benchmarks

Fidelity recommends having a multiple of your salary saved by each age milestone.

by 30 — need $90K($5K short)
$85K
by 40 — target $270K
$194K
by 50 — target $540K
$567K
by 60 — target $720K
$1.3M
by retirement — target $900K
$2.3M
1

Years until retirement

years = retirement_age − current_age

65 − 35

= 30 years

Compounding works on time first, contributions second. Each extra year roughly doubles your final balance at typical equity returns.

Compound growth identity (FV scales with (1+r)ⁿ); SSA Period Life Tables 2024

2

Total monthly contribution (with employer match)

Total PMT = employee + employer_match

$800 + $225

= $1,025/mo — $3K/yr employer match

Employer match is an immediate 100% return — never leave it on the table. 2024 401(k) employee deferral limit: $23,000 ($30,500 if 50+).

IRS Notice 2023-75 (2024 retirement plan limits); ERISA §407 vesting rules

3

Projected balance at retirement (Future Value formula)

FV = PV×(1+r)ⁿ + PMT×((1+r)ⁿ−1)/r

PV=$85K, r=0.0058%/mo, n=360 months, PMT=$1,025

= $1.9M

At 7% annual return over 30 years. Two terms: existing savings compounding (PV growth) plus new contributions compounding (annuity formula).

Standard FV-of-annuity formula; SEC Investor.gov compound interest reference

4

Monthly income from portfolio (4% rule)

Monthly income = Projected Balance × 4% ÷ 12

$1.9M × 0.04 ÷ 12

= $6,468/mo

The 4% rule (Trinity Study, 1998) found that a 60/40 stock-bond portfolio survived 30-year retirements at 4% inflation-adjusted withdrawals in 95%+ of historical scenarios.

Cooley/Hubbard/Walz (1998) — Trinity Study; Bengen (1994) — SAFEMAX

5

Total retirement income

Total = portfolio income + Social Security + other

$6,468 + $1,800 + $0

= $8,268/mo

Social Security replaces ~40% of pre-retirement income for the average earner. Get your personalized estimate at ssa.gov/myaccount.

Social Security Administration: Fast Facts & Figures 2024

6

Income gap

Gap = monthly expenses − total income

$4,500 − $8,268

= $3,768/mo surplus

You're projected to have a surplus — consider Roth conversions in low-income early-retirement years to reduce future RMDs.

Fidelity Retirement Saving Guidelines (10× salary by age 67); IRC §401(a)(9) RMD rules

Key insight

The 4% rule comes from the Trinity Study (1998) — portfolios at 60/40 stock/bond mix survived 30-year retirements at 4% annual withdrawals in 95%+ of historical scenarios.

Use this result in →

Savings Rate Calculator →Roth vs Traditional IRA →1099 Quarterly Tax →

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