Can you retire now? I built a free calculator to find out

I built a free "Financial Independent Retire Early" (FIRE) calculator this week, and I would like you to find your magic retirement number.

Why I made it

Over the past 4 weeks after leaving my Google job, I have received at least 1 question every week on “how much do I really need to retire?”

People are making the biggest financial decision of their life on a vibe. They feel like they have enough, or they feel like they don't.

What they really need to do is to actually run the numbers.

The math isn't complicated.

The 5 inputs (and what they actually mean)

1. Starting portfolio. Everything you have that's invested or investable right now — your current investments plus the cash you could deploy. Not your emergency fund, not your house.

2. Retirement age. The age you want to stop earning and start living off the portfolio. Want to know if you can retire today? Just enter your current age — the calculator will show you.

3. Monthly contribution. How much you add to the portfolio each month while you're still active working and building this portfolio. Important detail: the model assumes that you stop contributing to the portfolio when you hit the “retirement age” — because that's when you flip from adding money to withdrawing it.

4. Monthly spend in retirement. How much you'll pull out each month once you retire. This is your future lifestyle cost — be honest, and remember it starts at retirement age, not today.

5. The portfolio annual return. How much return could your portfolio generate every year? The return would be different depending on where you are investing your capital. Put the long term average and conservative return that you can reasonably achieve.

How to read the result

The calculator projects your portfolio forward year by year and shows you the moment it either runs dry — or comfortably outlives you.

Two ways to use it:

• The reality check. Enter your current age as your retirement age. Can you FIRE right now? Most people are surprised — in both directions.
• The what-if machine. Change one number at a time. Watch what an extra $1,000/month of contributions does. Or what happens if your returns are 4% instead of 8%. That's where the real learning is.

One thing it'll make obvious fast: the two levers that move your future the most are how much you contribute now and what return you earn on the way. Which is the whole reason I write about building a second income in the first place — a higher, more reliable return doesn't just grow your pile, it can pull your freedom years closer.

Go find your magic retirement number

Run your real numbers. Try the scary scenarios. See the year on the screen.

It might be the most clarifying five minutes of your month.

👉 Try the FIRE calculator here. Then hit reply and tell me the year it gave you — I'm genuinely curious how close to "now" people land.

Not financial advice. A projection is a model, not a promise — but it beats the gut feel.