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FIRE Calculator

Find your FIRE number, the age you could retire early from your savings rate, and your Coast FIRE number, with how RRSPs, TFSAs, CPP and OAS fit into an early retirement.

$

Including retirement accounts

$

A year, after tax, plus your RRSP contributions

$

A year. You invest $25,000: 36% of your pay

More options· 7% growth, 4% withdrawals
%

A year, after fees

%

A year

%

4% is the usual rule

%

Of what you spend now: $45,000 a year

If you stopped investing

You could retire at

52

In 22 years, 2 months, investing 36% of your pay

Your FIRE number
$1,125,000
Savings rate
36%
Your FIRE number: where it comes from
  • Invested now$50,000
  • You invest$554,167
  • Investment growth$524,963

What this means

Your FIRE number is what you’d spend in a year divided by the 4% you’d take out. Spending $1,000 a year less lowers it by $25,000.

That’s why spending matters twice: you invest more now and need less later.

Next step

Your investments by age, split by where the money came from
$1,500,000$750,000$0
3133363942454851
Invested nowYou investGrowthFIRE number

Coast FIRE

Coast FIRE number today$210,730
Invested now$50,000

Keep investing until about 38. After that, your investments could grow to $1,125,000 by 65 without you investing any more, so you’d only need to earn what you spend.

Using your RRSP early

You can cash in an RRSP at any age, so there are no years to bridge. But withdrawals are taxed as income, and tax is held back when you take money out.

TFSA withdrawals are tax-free, which makes a TFSA a flexible home for early-retirement money. Workplace pensions and locked-in accounts have their own rules.

What would change it

Spend 10% lessAt 48 · 3½ years sooner
Spend 10% moreAt 56 · 4 years later
Growth 1% lowerAt 54 · 2 years later
Withdraw 3.5% a yearAt 54 · 2 years later

Spending less helps twice: you invest more now, and you need a smaller pot later.

Assumptions in this estimate
  • Everything is in today’s money: your pay, spending and investments keep pace with 2% inflation, so 7% growth is 4.9% a year after inflation. Real returns go up and down; a bad first few years of retirement matters most.
  • Your FIRE number is what you’d spend in a year of retirement divided by the withdrawal rate: at 4%, 25 times your spending. The 4% rule comes from US studies of 30-year retirements; for a longer early retirement, many people use 3% to 3.5%.
  • What you don’t spend is invested each month. Taxes on investment growth and withdrawals aren’t included.
  • CPP and OAS aren’t included. They would cover some of your spending later in life, so you may need less.
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How the calculator works

  1. Your savings rate: what you don’t spend from your take-home pay is invested each month. Count your RRSP contributions as part of your pay, since they’re money you save.
  2. Your FIRE number: your yearly spending in retirement divided by the withdrawal rate (4% means 25 times your spending).
  3. Growth: your investments grow at the rate you choose. Everything is in today’s money, so your pay and spending rise with inflation.

Your savings rate sets the timeline

Starting from nothing, with 7% growth, 2% inflation and a 4% withdrawal rate:

You invest Years to FIRE
10% 52
20% 37
30% 28
40% 22
50% 16½
60% 12
70% 9

How much you earn doesn’t change these figures. Only the share of your pay you invest does.

Example

At 30, with $50,000 invested, $70,000 of take-home pay and $45,000 of spending a year, you invest 36% of your pay. Your FIRE number is $1,125,000 and you could retire at 52. Cut spending by 10%, and you could retire at 48.

You’d reach Coast FIRE at about 38: after that, your investments could grow to your FIRE number by 65 on their own.

RRSPs, TFSAs and early retirement

Unlike retirement accounts in the US, UK or Australia, an RRSP isn’t locked until a set age, so there are no years to bridge. What matters is tax:

  • RRSP withdrawals are taxed as income. Spreading them over the low-income years between retiring and starting CPP and OAS can keep your tax rate down. By the end of the year you turn 71, an RRSP must become a RRIF or an annuity.
  • TFSA withdrawals are tax-free and don’t count as income, and the room comes back the next year. That makes a TFSA a flexible home for early-retirement money.
  • Workplace pensions and locked-in accounts (LIRAs) have their own rules on when you can take money out.

See what your RRSP alone could grow to with our RRSP calculator, or plan your spending with the budget calculator.

Last updated

Frequently asked questions

What is FIRE?

FIRE stands for financial independence, retire early. You invest a large share of your pay until your investments can cover your spending, so work becomes a choice. Your savings rate decides how quickly you get there.

How much do I need to retire early in Canada?

A common target is 25 times what you’d spend in a year, which allows for withdrawing 4% a year. Spending $45,000 a year, that’s $1,125,000. Withdrawing 3.5% instead, a cautious choice for a long retirement, raises it to about $1,286,000.

What is Coast FIRE?

Coast FIRE is when your investments could grow to your FIRE number by a normal retirement age without you adding anything more. You still work, but only to cover your spending, not to save.

Can I use my RRSP before I retire at 65?

Yes. You can take money out of an RRSP at any age, but it’s added to your income and taxed, and tax is held back when you withdraw. Early retirees often draw on their RRSP in the years before CPP and OAS start, when their income is low.

When do CPP and OAS start?

CPP can start from 60 (reduced) to 70 (increased), with 65 the standard age. OAS starts at 65, or later if you defer it. Neither is included in this calculator, so they would lower what you need from your investments later in life.