Use this free retirement calculator to project future savings, total contributions, estimated growth, and the gap to a retirement target.
$25,000 plus $500.00/mo for 25 years
This projection does not include taxes, account fees, contribution limits, inflation, withdrawals, market volatility, changing contribution amounts, Social Security, pension income, or plan rules.
Recent retirement projections will appear here.
Retirement projections do not include tax, fees, contribution limits, inflation, withdrawals, or market volatility.
Inputs and recent answers stay in this browser tab and are not sent to a server.
Project a retirement savings balance over time.
Compare contribution amounts and estimated returns.
Check the gap between projected balance and a target number.
Use a consistent planning estimate while adjusting assumptions.
About $548,171.30 projected, with a $451,828.70 gap to a $1,000,000 target
About $458,064.33 projected, with a $291,935.67 gap to a $750,000 target
About $257,838.95 projected, with a $342,161.05 gap to a $600,000 target
Need a slower walkthrough, a related calculator, or the full library? These links keep you close to the task you started.
Plain-language answers about when to use the estimate, what your numbers mean, what is left out, and how privacy works.
Use it when you want to test the exact inputs on this page: Project a retirement savings balance over time. Compare contribution amounts and estimated returns. The result is a check against your assumptions, not proof that a lender, tax app, broker, platform, or provider will use the same number.
Current savings means the retirement money already saved before this projection starts. Monthly contribution means the amount added at the end of each month in this simple model. Estimated return means the annual growth assumption. It is not guaranteed and real markets can lose money. Years to grow means how long the projection runs before comparing the balance with the target. Target amount means the savings goal used to show whether the projection is above target or still has a gap.
It converts the annual return assumption into monthly growth, compounds the current savings, then adds each monthly contribution at the end of the month. That timing makes the answer a planning estimate, not an account statement.
No. The projection shows a future balance from savings going in. It does not reduce the result for inflation, retirement spending, withdrawals, required minimum distributions, taxes, or account fees.
The target gap is the target amount minus the projected balance. A gap does not mean the plan failed; it means the entered savings, contribution, return, and time assumptions do not reach that target in this simplified model.
In plain language: The calculator compounds current savings and monthly contributions at an estimated annual return, then compares the future value with your target amount. For the starter example, $25,000 plus $500 each month at a 7% annual return for 25 years projects about $548,171.30. The calculator shows $175,000.00 of contributions, about $373,171.30 of estimated growth, and a $451,828.70 target gap.
Start with projected retirement savings, then compare total contributions with estimated growth. The target gap or above-target line explains how far the projection is from the goal you entered.
This is a long-term projection, not retirement advice. It does not include taxes, account rules, contribution limits, market volatility, inflation, benefits, or withdrawal planning. Use the Inflation Calculator to test buying power, the 401K Calculator for workplace contribution and match details, and an official account or adviser source before relying on the result.
Check current savings, monthly contribution, estimated return, years to grow, and target amount. Then separately review inflation, taxes, fees, contribution limits, withdrawals, market losses, Social Security, pensions, and account rules.
No. The return is only the rate you enter for scenario math. Real investments can rise, fall, charge fees, or produce very uneven yearly results.
No. This page projects a savings balance. Social Security, pension income, annuity payouts, retirement spending, taxes, and withdrawal timing need separate estimates.
No. It can compare one savings scenario with one target. A real retirement number can depend on spending, location, health costs, taxes, inflation, investment risk, benefits, debt, and family needs.
No. The calculator runs in your browser tab. Recent answers stay only on the page while you use it, and they are not sent to a server.