Free FIRE Calculator (+ How Living Abroad Changes It)

What is FIRE?

FIRE stands for financial independence, retire early. It means investing enough that the returns can pay for your life, so work becomes a choice.

The idea is simple: spend less than you earn, invest the difference, and stop when your investments can cover your spending for good.

Who is the FIRE calculator for?

It's for anyone planning to buy back their time:

• Currency converter – people who earn in one currency and plan to retire in another
• Tax rates by country – anyone checking what a move does to their taxes on investment income
• Best value cities – people looking for a place where their money goes further
• Money transfer comparison – anyone who'll move savings abroad

A FIRE number is only as good as the plan around it, and those tools cover the rest.

How to calculate your FIRE number

Your FIRE number is your yearly spending divided by your withdrawal rate. At 4%, that's your spending times 25.

The 4% comes from William Bengen's 1994 study of US stock and bond returns. Taking 4% in the first year, then the same amount plus inflation, lasted at least 30 years in every period he tested.

An early retirement can last 40 years or more, so many people plan on 3 to 3.5% instead. That makes the number bigger, and the plan safer.

How many years until you reach it?

The years depend on three things:

• What you have now – your investments today
• What you save – the amount you add each year
• The return – how fast your investments grow after inflation

The calculator adds your savings each year and grows the total by the return until it passes your number. Working after inflation keeps everything in today's money.

A 5% return after inflation is a middle-of-the-road assumption for a portfolio mostly in stocks. Try 3% to see a cautious plan.

The kinds of FIRE

People aim for different versions of the same idea:

• Lean FIRE – retiring on a frugal budget, with a smaller number
• Fat FIRE – retiring on a generous budget, with a bigger number
• Coast FIRE – having enough invested that growth alone reaches your number by traditional retirement age
• Barista FIRE – covering part of your spending with part-time or passion work

Enter your age, and the calculator shows your Coast FIRE number: what you'd need invested today to reach your full number by 65.

How living abroad changes your FIRE number

The same life costs less in some countries and more in others. If your spending falls, your FIRE number falls 25 times as much.

Here's the same $50,000 American life, priced by each country's everyday prices, with the FIRE number at a 4% withdrawal rate:

Bulgaria

Everyday prices

23% of US prices

The same life costs

$11,700 a year

FIRE number

$292,500

Indonesia

Everyday prices

29% of US prices

The same life costs

$14,350 a year

FIRE number

$358,750

Vietnam

Everyday prices

29% of US prices

The same life costs

$14,450 a year

FIRE number

$361,250

Thailand

Everyday prices

31% of US prices

The same life costs

$15,350 a year

FIRE number

$383,750

Malaysia

Everyday prices

32% of US prices

The same life costs

$15,800 a year

FIRE number

$395,000

Georgia

Everyday prices

33% of US prices

The same life costs

$16,450 a year

FIRE number

$411,250

Colombia

Everyday prices

38% of US prices

The same life costs

$18,900 a year

FIRE number

$472,500

Turkey

Everyday prices

41% of US prices

The same life costs

$20,550 a year

FIRE number

$513,750

Albania

Everyday prices

43% of US prices

The same life costs

$21,450 a year

FIRE number

$536,250

Panama

Everyday prices

45% of US prices

The same life costs

$22,550 a year

FIRE number

$563,750

Hungary

Everyday prices

52% of US prices

The same life costs

$26,000 a year

FIRE number

$650,000

Mexico

Everyday prices

54% of US prices

The same life costs

$26,850 a year

FIRE number

$671,250

Costa Rica

Everyday prices

59% of US prices

The same life costs

$29,550 a year

FIRE number

$738,750

Greece

Everyday prices

60% of US prices

The same life costs

$29,750 a year

FIRE number

$743,750

Portugal

Everyday prices

60% of US prices

The same life costs

$30,200 a year

FIRE number

$755,000

United Arab Emirates

Everyday prices

63% of US prices

The same life costs

$31,700 a year

FIRE number

$792,500

Spain

Everyday prices

64% of US prices

The same life costs

$32,250 a year

FIRE number

$806,250

Italy

Everyday prices

69% of US prices

The same life costs

$34,500 a year

FIRE number

$862,500

Country	Everyday prices	The same life costs	FIRE number
Bulgaria	23% of US prices	$11,700 a year	$292,500
Indonesia	29% of US prices	$14,350 a year	$358,750
Vietnam	29% of US prices	$14,450 a year	$361,250
Thailand	31% of US prices	$15,350 a year	$383,750
Malaysia	32% of US prices	$15,800 a year	$395,000
Georgia	33% of US prices	$16,450 a year	$411,250
Colombia	38% of US prices	$18,900 a year	$472,500
Turkey	41% of US prices	$20,550 a year	$513,750
Albania	43% of US prices	$21,450 a year	$536,250
Panama	45% of US prices	$22,550 a year	$563,750
Hungary	52% of US prices	$26,000 a year	$650,000
Mexico	54% of US prices	$26,850 a year	$671,250
Costa Rica	59% of US prices	$29,550 a year	$738,750
Greece	60% of US prices	$29,750 a year	$743,750
Portugal	60% of US prices	$30,200 a year	$755,000
United Arab Emirates	63% of US prices	$31,700 a year	$792,500
Spain	64% of US prices	$32,250 a year	$806,250
Italy	69% of US prices	$34,500 a year	$862,500

Everyday prices are the World Bank's price level: 40% means things cost about 40% of US prices. Rent in capital cities often runs higher than the national level.

In Indonesia, the number would take about 8 years instead of 21. The calculator does this for your own numbers, from any home country.

Before you plan a move

A lower number only helps if the move works on paper too:

• Visas – a retirement or passive income visa, in the digital nomad visa finder
• Taxes – how your new home taxes investment income, on the territorial tax map
• Banking – accounts that work across borders, in the best bank accounts for digital nomads

For places, compare the best value cities or the cheapest countries to live in.