How much do you need for retirement?

How this works

Three numbers anchor any retirement plan: how much you spend today, how long you'll live in retirement, and what inflation does to your bills along the way. This calculator does three things in sequence:

1. Inflates today's expense to retirement-age rupees — at 6% inflation over 30 years, ₹50,000/month becomes ~₹2.87 L/month.
2. Computes the corpus needed to fund those inflated expenses for the full retirement period — accounting for the post-retirement portfolio still earning a return (typically lower, debt-heavy mix).
3. Solves for the monthly SIP that gets you there given your pre-retirement return assumption and existing savings.

The 25× rule of thumb (and its limits)

A popular shortcut: corpus = 25× annual expenses (i.e., a 4% safe withdrawal rate). It's based on US equity returns over 30-year retirements. In India, with higher inflation and shorter equity history, a more conservative 30× is safer. This calculator does the full math instead of relying on the rule, so it accounts for your specific inflation, return, and longevity assumptions.

What to watch for

• Inflation kills retirement plans more than markets do. A 1% miss on inflation compounded over 30 years is a 35% miss on the corpus you'll need.
• Life expectancy is rising. Indian urban life expectancy is already ~75 and climbing — plan for 90 to be safe.
• Healthcare is your wildcard. This calculator assumes flat real expenses. In practice, medical bills spike in the last 10 years of life. Build a buffer.
• Sequence risk is real. A bad market in the first 5 years of retirement is far worse than the same drawdown later. Glide your asset allocation more conservative as retirement approaches.