The FIRE page, explained
The FIRE page projects the date your invested assets could cover your spending for good. It fills itself in from your accounts and last year's spending, so most people only need to open Summary once and add their birthdate.
FIRE stands for Financial Independence, Retire Early. FIYR's FIRE page takes what you actually spent last year, works out how much you would need invested to live on it, and projects your accounts forward year by year until they get there. The result is your Freedom Date.
Before your first projection
The first time you open FIRE you may see one of these screens. Each one appears only until you deal with it.
- 'We'll need to visit the summary page...' FIRE uses last year's spending and income totals, and those are worked out on the Summary page. Click View Summary, let the page load, then come back to FIRE. This is the most common reason the page looks empty.
- Date of birth required. FIRE needs your birthdate to turn years into an age. Pick the date and click Save. It stays on your account and is only used for the projection. You can change it later in Settings, under your profile.
- No assets or liabilities tracked yet. With nothing to project, there is no date. Click Add Your First Account to link a bank or add an account by hand.
What is on the page
- Freedom Date
- The banner at the top: the projected date, your age then (to one decimal) and how many years away it is. If your plan never reaches the target, the age reads NA.
- Chart
- Your projected portfolio against the FIRE target. Switch between Line, Bar and Table views. Milestones such as Social Security starting, a loan being paid off, or a goal you chose to show on the chart appear as markers.
- FIRE Progress
- Your assets as a percentage of the target, with a short message that changes as you get closer.
- Stat cards
- Annual Available and Monthly Available (what a 4% yearly withdrawal from your current assets would pay), FIRE Target, Coast FIRE and Barista FIRE. Click Details on the last two for the working. See Coast FIRE and Barista FIRE.
- Your Annual Withdrawal Strategy
- Appears once you reach 100%. It shows the gross withdrawal, the tax taken out at your tax rate, and what is left for living expenses.
- Portfolio Assets
- Every asset, grouped by type, with an Include checkbox, its value, its return and a Manual switch. Only included assets count toward the projection.
- Settings sidebar
- Every assumption behind the projection, in collapsible sections. On a phone, tap Settings to open it.
Where the inputs come from
You don't have to type anything to get a first projection. FIYR fills these in for you:
| Input | Filled in from | Change it in |
|---|---|---|
| Annual spending | Last calendar year's total spending, from Summary | Spending & Target > Custom Annual Spend |
| Annual income | Last calendar year's total income, from Summary | Spending & Target > Custom Annual Income |
| Savings rate | (income − spending) ÷ income | Assumptions > Savings slider |
| Starting portfolio | Assets with Include ticked. A financed asset counts as its equity (value minus the linked loan). | Portfolio Assets |
| Return per asset | Each account's own historical return | Portfolio Assets > Manual |
| Age | Your birthdate | Settings in the app, under your profile |
The rest are defaults you can adjust: withdrawal multiplier 25x, tax rate in retirement 15%, income growth 5% a year, inflation 3%, retirement age 65, projection length 40 years.
The Settings sections
- Chart Display: line, bar or table, 20 to 50 years, years or ages along the bottom, and extra lines such as Show Additional Annual ROI and the what-if scenarios (Extra Monthly Savings, Extra Savings Rate).
- Spending & Target: last year's spending and income, custom overrides, Inflation-Adjusted Target, and Custom FI Target to type your own number.
- Withdrawal & Tax: the multiplier slider (23x to 35x) and Tax Planning, your expected tax rate in retirement.
- Assumptions: income growth, the Savings slider, inflation (shown while Inflation-Adjusted Target is on), and Include Retirement Age if you plan to stop working at a set age regardless. Turning that on reveals Your Retirement Age (50 to 80).
- Social Security: Include SS, your start age (62 to 70) and, if you are married, your spouse.
The Savings slider starts at your calculated savings rate on every visit. Use it to try what-ifs. To change the rate FIRE starts from, set Custom Annual Income or Custom Annual Spend instead.
Social Security
Social Security is off by default. When you turn on Include SS, FIYR uses a fixed estimate: the maximum monthly benefit at age 67 ($3,627), reduced if you start earlier and increased if you start later. There is no field for your own estimate yet, so treat a projection with Social Security on as optimistic. In the projection it only reduces what you withdraw after you stop working.
Keeping it accurate
- Recategorized last year's transactions? Open Summary again so FIRE picks up the new totals.
- Untick Include on things you would never sell to live on, like a car.
- If a return shows ⚠️, the account has too little history for a sensible number. Turn on Manual and type the return you expect.
Common questions
Why does FIRE ask me to visit the Summary page?
FIRE uses last year's spending and income totals, which the Summary page calculates and saves. Open Summary once, then return to FIRE. Visit it again any time you want those totals refreshed.
Which accounts count toward my FIRE projection?
Assets with Include ticked in the Portfolio Assets table. A financed asset such as a house counts as its equity. Each asset grows at its own historical return unless you turn on Manual and set one.
My changes disappeared when I came back. Why?
Most settings need the Save button at the bottom of the Settings sidebar. Custom spending, custom income, the custom target and per-asset choices save on their own.
Is the Social Security amount my real benefit?
No. FIYR uses the maximum benefit at 67 and adjusts it for your start age. There is no field for your personal estimate yet, so a projection with Social Security on is on the optimistic side.
Can I use the FIRE page on my phone?
Yes. FIRE works in your phone browser. The stat cards sit under the chart, and Settings opens when you tap it.
Still stuck?
Email us. A real person who builds FIYR reads every message.