How much do you really need to retire?
Retirement is the largest goal most of us will ever fund. Here's a practical framework for arriving at a number you can trust.
The single most common question we hear is deceptively simple: how much is enough to retire comfortably? The honest answer is that it depends — but there is a clear way to arrive at a realistic figure.
Start with your desired lifestyle
Begin not with a target corpus but with the monthly income you would want in today's money. Multiply for the years you expect to spend in retirement, then adjust that income upward for inflation until your retirement age.
Respect inflation and longevity
Two forces quietly reshape every retirement plan: rising prices and longer lives. A plan built for 15 years of retirement can fall short when life comfortably stretches to 25 or 30. Planning for longevity is not pessimism — it is prudence.
Build in two phases
The years before retirement are for accumulation — growth-oriented and disciplined. The years after are for drawdown — conservative and income-focused, often through a Systematic Withdrawal Plan that pays you while the rest stays invested.