Australian FIRE Calculator
The FIRE calculator that respects super preservation age. See your FI number split into the bridge years before 60 and your super phase after.
If under 60, we'll show your bridge years
What you actually want to spend each year, in today's dollars
ETFs, shares, cash, investment property equity
Total across all your super accounts
Money you save / invest each month outside super
After inflation, before tax. 6% is a reasonable AU long-run assumption.
You'll hit FIRE at age 57 — that's in 27 years — that's 7 years past your target retirement age of 50.
Based on a 4.0% safe withdrawal rate. You're currently 30.
Lean FIRE
$900k
Regular FIRE
$1.50M
Fat FIRE
$2.25M
Your FIRE number — Australian breakdown
Bridge (age 50 → 60)
from your investments outside super
$600,000
Super (age 60 onwards)
from your super at preservation age
$1,500,000
Total FIRE number
$2,100,000
Your super won't hit $1,500,000 by age 60 on current contributions. Salary sacrifice could help →
Save $500/month more? You'd hit FIRE 2 years sooner — at age 55.
That's the power of an extra $6,000/year compounding for 27 years.
Want to see this against your whole financial picture — super contributions tax, drawdown tax, expenses, life events?
Try the full planDisclaimer: This calculator provides estimates for general information purposes only. Results may not be 100% accurate and should not be relied upon for financial decisions. Tax rules, rates, and thresholds change — always verify with the ATO, official government sources, or a qualified financial adviser, tax professional, or accountant. This is not financial advice.
What is FIRE?
FIRE — Financial Independence, Retire Early — is the goal of accumulating enough invested wealth that you can live off the returns indefinitely. The standard rule of thumb is the 4% safe withdrawal rate: if your portfolio is 25× your annual spending, you can withdraw 4% each year (adjusted for inflation) with very high odds of never running out.
FIRE comes in flavours: Lean FIRE covers a minimal lifestyle, Regular FIRE sustains your current spending, and Fat FIRE funds a more comfortable retirement with travel and discretionary spending.
Why super matters in Australian FIRE
In Australia, super is your most tax-advantaged retirement vehicle — but you can't access it until age 60 (the preservation age). That creates the “bridge” problem: if you want to retire at 50, you need ten years of expenses funded entirely from non-super assets, on top of a super balance that's big enough to sustain you from 60 onwards.
Most online FIRE calculators ignore this and just give you a single FI number. Ours splits it into bridge + super so you can see what each phase actually needs.
How we calculate your FI number
We use your annual spending divided by your safe withdrawal rate (default 4%) to find the wealth needed to sustain spending indefinitely. For the bridge phase, we calculate years × annual spend (no growth assumed for the bridge — a conservative simplification). For the super phase, we use your full spending capitalised at the SWR.
We project your investments and super forward year-by-year using the real (after-inflation) return rate you set, and report the first age where total wealth exceeds your FI number.
What this calculator does not include
This is a simple FIRE estimator. It does not account for:
- Employer super contributions (your real super balance at 60 will likely be higher)
- 15% contributions tax on concessional super contributions
- Tax on retirement drawdowns (currently mostly tax-free after 60, but rules can change)
- Age Pension eligibility from 67
- Sequence-of-returns risk (real markets aren't a smooth line)
- Fees and brokerage
For a model that includes all of the above against your full financial picture, try the JettWorth play mode — no sign-up required — or see the compound interest calculator for how individual contributions grow over time.
Important: this is not financial advice
JettWorth is an insights platform, not a licensed financial adviser. Numbers shown here are projections based on the assumptions you enter and standard mathematical formulas. Real investments fluctuate, fees apply, and tax rules change. Always consult a qualified financial adviser, accountant, or tax professional before acting on what you see here.