Retirement is the biggest financial goal most people will ever have, and also the easiest to underestimate. Your expenses keep rising with inflation for 25–30 years after your salary stops. This calculator works out how much money you need on the day you retire, and how much to invest every month from today to get there.
How to use the retirement calculator
- Enter your current age, the age you want to retire, and the age you want to plan money until.
- Enter your current monthly expenses. Leave out costs that will end before retirement, such as a home loan EMI.
- Enter the expected inflation and the expected returns before and after retirement. After retirement, most people move to safer investments, so that return is usually lower.
- Optional: enter savings already set aside for retirement, such as your EPF or PPF balance.
The year-wise breakdown shows your yearly expenses and the corpus left each year after retirement.
How the calculation works
- Expenses at retirement: today's monthly expenses are grown by inflation until your retirement age.
- Corpus needed: the amount that, invested at your post-retirement return, can pay those expenses every year, with the expenses rising by inflation each year, until your planning age:
Corpus = A × [1 − ((1 + g) ÷ (1 + r))^N] ÷ (r − g) × (1 + r)- A = expenses in the first year of retirement
- g = inflation, r = return after retirement
- N = years in retirement
- Monthly SIP: your existing savings are grown to retirement, and the SIP needed to cover the rest is worked out with the standard SIP formula.
Example
You are 30, want to retire at 60, and plan for money to last until 85. You spend ₹40,000 a month today. You assume 6% inflation, 12% return before retirement and 7% after.
- Monthly expenses at 60 = ₹2,29,740
- Retirement corpus needed = ₹6,17,18,783 (about ₹6.17 crore)
- Monthly SIP needed from today = ₹17,485
If you already have ₹5,00,000 saved for retirement, it can grow to about ₹1,49,79,961 by 60, and the SIP needed falls to ₹13,241.
The cost of starting late
The same ₹6.17 crore corpus at age 60, at a 12% return:
| Start investing at | Years to invest | Monthly SIP needed | Total invested |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 | 30 | ₹17,485 | ₹62,94,421 |
| 35 | 25 | ₹32,524 | ₹97,57,216 |
| 40 | 20 | ₹61,771 | ₹1,48,25,140 |
| 45 | 15 | ₹1,22,318 | ₹2,20,17,260 |
Waiting 10 years more than triples the monthly SIP.
What this calculator does not include
- Pension, rental income or other income after retirement. Reduce your expenses by that amount to account for it.
- Large one-time costs such as medical emergencies, a child's wedding or home repairs. Keep a separate fund for these.
- Taxes on withdrawals, which depend on where your corpus is invested.
FAQ
How much money do I need to retire in India?
It depends on your expenses, age and inflation. For someone spending ₹40,000 a month at age 30 and retiring at 60, the corpus needed is about ₹6 crore at 6% inflation. Enter your own numbers to see yours.
Is ₹1 crore enough for retirement?
For most urban families retiring 20–30 years from now, no. Inflation raises expenses so much that ₹1 crore may last only a few years. Try it in the calculator with your own expenses.
What return should I assume after retirement?
Most retirees shift towards safer options such as debt funds, FDs and government schemes, so 6–8% is a common planning assumption.
How do I draw a monthly income from my corpus?
A systematic withdrawal plan is a common approach. See how long a corpus lasts with the SWP calculator.