Financial Independence Timeline
Projects when invested assets will generate enough passive income to cover annual expenses, achieving financial independence. Calculates the FI number, years to reach it, and milestone markers along the way.
Personal - Financial Independence Timeline.xlsx
Excel (.xlsx) — No macros — Works in Excel, Google Sheets, LibreOffice
What This Spreadsheet Solves
- No concrete target number for financial independence
- Unclear how many years of saving and investing are needed
- Difficulty modeling the impact of savings rate changes on timeline
- No milestone tracking to measure progress toward FI
- Uncertainty about required portfolio size at different withdrawal rates
Who This Is For
- Individuals pursuing early retirement or financial independence
- Financial planners modeling long-term client projections
- High-income earners evaluating accelerated savings strategies
- Couples aligning on a shared financial independence target
Inputs
- $Annual Expenses
- $Current Invested Assets
- $Annual Savings (Investment Contributions)
- %Expected Annual Return
- %Safe Withdrawal Rate
Outputs
- FI number (target portfolio value)
- Years to financial independence
- 25% / 50% / 75% / 100% milestone dates
- Portfolio value projection by year
- Impact of 1% savings rate increase on timeline
How Calculations Work
The FI number is calculated as annual expenses divided by the safe withdrawal rate (e.g., $40,000 / 4% = $1,000,000). Starting from current invested assets, the model compounds annual returns and adds annual contributions each year until the portfolio reaches the FI number. Milestones are marked at 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100% of the target. A sensitivity table shows how adjusting the savings rate shifts the timeline.
Example Use Case
Scenario: Annual expenses: $48,000. Current investments: $185,000. Annual contributions: $30,000. Expected return: 7%. Withdrawal rate: 4%.
Result: FI number: $1,200,000. At current pace, FI is reached in approximately 13.4 years. 50% milestone ($600,000) is hit in year 7. Increasing annual contributions by $5,000 shortens the timeline to 11.8 years.
What You Get — 5 Sheets
Technical Details
Frequently Asked Questions
What safe withdrawal rate should I use?
4% is the traditional guideline based on the Trinity Study. Use 3.5% for a more conservative estimate or if planning for a 40+ year retirement horizon.
Does this account for inflation?
By default, the model uses nominal returns. Enable the inflation adjustment in CONFIG to use real (inflation-adjusted) returns, which gives a more conservative timeline.
What counts as invested assets?
Include retirement accounts, brokerage accounts, and any assets generating investment returns. Exclude primary residence, emergency fund, and illiquid assets.
How does the expected return affect accuracy?
Small changes in return assumptions significantly shift the timeline. Use historical averages for your asset allocation (e.g., 7% for a stock-heavy portfolio, 5% for balanced). Run multiple scenarios.
Should I include Social Security or pension income?
If you expect these benefits, subtract their annual value from your expenses before entering. This reduces your FI number proportionally.
Download Financial Independence Timeline
Ready to use immediately. Enter your data in the INPUT sheet, see results in OUTPUT.