What is Coast FIRE in the UK?
Coast FIRE in the UK means having enough in your pensions and ISAs that, without paying in another penny, it can grow into what you'll need by the time you want to stop work, with the State Pension filling part of the gap later on. From then on your salary only has to cover your bills.
How the calculator works
This page runs our Coast FIRE calculator with UK settings: everything in pounds, and a State Pension row starting at 68. Put in what you have across your workplace pension, SIPP and ISAs, what you pay in each year, and when you'd like to stop working.
The calculator first works out the pot you'd need on your last day of work. If you stop before your State Pension age, the pot pays for everything until then, and only the shortfall afterwards. It adds up each year's shortfall instead of just multiplying your spending by 25, which is how a State Pension that starts eight years after you retire still brings the target down.
Coast FIRE number = FIRE number ÷ (1 + r) ^ (R − A)r is the yearly growth you expect after inflation and charges, R is the age you want to retire, and A is your age now. The result is the pot that reaches your FIRE number with no more contributions.
It also takes your current contributions into account and tells you the first age you could stop paying in. The methodology page walks through the maths step by step.
Getting your State Pension forecast
The full new State Pension is £241.30 a week, which is about £12,548 a year. What you'll actually get depends on your National Insurance record: you usually need 35 qualifying years for the full amount and at least 10 to get anything. The quickest way to find out is the free State Pension forecast on GOV.UK. It shows your forecast in today's money and any gaps in your record.
Enter the forecast as a yearly figure. The calculator wants amounts after tax, so if you'll have other taxable income alongside the State Pension, use a slightly lower number.
Three worked examples
Each one assumes 5% a year of growth after inflation, a 4% withdrawal rate, a plan that runs to 95, and a State Pension age of 68. To keep them simple they leave out tax on withdrawals, which makes the targets a bit low if most of the money is in pensions. Amounts are in pounds.
Example 1: retiring at 60 with a full State Pension
A 35-year-old has £150,000 between a workplace pension and a stocks and shares ISA, and pays in £10,000 a year. They want to stop at 60 and live on £35,000 a year. Their forecast says they're on track for the full State Pension of £12,548 a year at 68.
| Age today | 35 |
|---|---|
| Pensions and ISAs today | £150,000 |
| Paying in per year | £10,000 |
| Retire at | 60 |
| Spending per year | £35,000 |
| State Pension | £12,548 a year from 68 |
| FIRE number at 60 | £654,246 |
|---|---|
| Coast FIRE number today | £193,201 |
| Progress toward it | 77.6% |
| Can stop paying in at | 40 |
| Calendar year | 2031 |
| Pot at that point | £246,699 |
The pot covers the whole £35,000 from 60 to 67, then only what's left after the State Pension. That makes the target £654,246. Five more years of contributions take them to £246,699 at 40, which is enough to grow into it without another payment.
Example 2: retiring at 57, the earliest pension age
From April 2028 you can't take money from a private pension until 57. A 45-year-old with £250,000 saved and £12,000 a year going in wants to stop at exactly that age and spend £30,000 a year.
| Age today | 45 |
|---|---|
| Pensions and ISAs today | £250,000 |
| Paying in per year | £12,000 |
| Retire at | 57 |
| Spending per year | £30,000 |
| State Pension | £12,548 a year from 68 |
| FIRE number at 57 | £558,163 |
|---|---|
| Coast FIRE number today | £310,806 |
| Can stop paying in at | 51 |
| Calendar year | 2032 |
Eleven years without the State Pension is a long stretch to fund, but the lower budget keeps the target at £558,163. Paying in until 51 gets them there. Because they retire at 57, every pound can sit in a pension. Most of what they take out would then be taxed, so setting a tax rate in the calculator gives a more honest target and a later age. Anyone planning to stop earlier needs an ISA or other savings to get them to 57.
Example 3: gaps in the National Insurance record
A 40-year-old spent several years abroad, and their forecast shows £9,000 a year instead of the full amount. They have £120,000 saved, pay in £8,000 a year and want to stop at 60 on £28,000.
| Age today | 40 |
|---|---|
| Pensions and ISAs today | £120,000 |
| Paying in per year | £8,000 |
| Retire at | 60 |
| Spending per year | £28,000 |
| State Pension | £9,000 a year from 68 |
| FIRE number at 60 | £541,665 |
|---|---|
| Coast FIRE number today | £204,148 |
| Can stop paying in at | 56 |
| Calendar year | 2042 |
With a smaller State Pension the pot has more to do, so they'd keep contributing until 56, close to retirement. Their forecast may also show whether paying voluntary National Insurance contributions to fill some of the gaps is an option. Even a few extra qualifying years would raise the £9,000.
State Pension age: 66, 67 or 68
The State Pension age is moving from 66 to 67 between 2026 and 2028, so people reaching it now get it at 66 plus a few months, depending on their birthday. Under the current timetable it goes up again to 68 between 2044 and 2046, for people born on or after 6 April 1977. If you were born after early April 1978, your age is 68. That's why the calculator starts the State Pension at 68. If you're older, look up your exact date and change the start age.
The timetable can change. The government reviews it regularly, and a later age would make your savings cover more years. If you want some margin, try your plan with a start age a year later and see how much the result moves.
Pensions, ISAs and when you can use them
Workplace pensions and SIPPs come with tax relief on the way in but are locked until the normal minimum pension age. That's 55 now and rises to 57 on 6 April 2028. When you start drawing, you can usually take 25% tax-free, up to a lump sum allowance of £268,275 across all your pensions. The rest is taxed as income.
ISAs work the other way round: you pay in from taxed income, but you can take money out whenever you like without losing the tax benefits. The allowance is £20,000 a year. For Coast FIRE that makes ISAs the bridge if you want to stop work before 57. The ISA covers the early years, and the pension takes over once you can reach it. A Lifetime ISA is the exception: take money out before 60 for anything other than a first home and you pay a 25% charge, so it can't be the bridge.
The calculator adds everything together and applies one tax rate to withdrawals. If most of your money is in pensions, a rate of around 10% to 15% reflects the tax-free quarter plus basic-rate tax on the rest. If it's mostly in ISAs, you can leave the rate at zero.
Why UK calculators give different answers
- State Pension age. Some tools still use 66 or 67 for everyone. A year or two makes a real difference when your pot has to fund the whole gap.
- Growth rate. Pension providers often show projections before inflation. This calculator asks for growth after inflation by default, so a figure of 5% here is roughly 7% to 8% in nominal terms.
- Charges. Platform and fund fees of 0.5% to 1% a year come straight off growth. You can enter them separately under More assumptions.
- Tax. Some tools tax every pension withdrawal in full and forget the tax-free quarter. Others leave tax out altogether. For most people the real figure is somewhere in between.
What this calculator doesn't do
- It doesn't work out your State Pension from your National Insurance record. Use your GOV.UK forecast.
- It doesn't check that you can actually reach the money: it won't warn you if you plan to live on a pension before 57.
- It doesn't separate pensions from ISAs, or model the tax-free lump sum, the personal allowance or higher-rate tax.
- The market history check uses US stock and bond returns and US inflation, so treat it as a rough guide rather than what UK investors saw.
Common questions
What is Coast FIRE in simple terms?
You've saved enough early on that you could stop paying into your pension and ISAs, and the money would still grow into a full retirement pot by the age you want. You keep working, but only to pay the bills. What is Coast FIRE? goes into more detail.
Should I count my workplace pension?
Yes, include its current value. Your contributions and your employer's both go in the yearly figure. A defined benefit pension is different: enter it as a separate income from the age it pays out.
Can couples use this calculator?
Yes. Add a partner, then give each of you your own State Pension row, since each person gets their own based on their own record. Put your combined pots and spending in the main fields.
What if my State Pension age isn't 68?
Change the start age in the State Pension row. People born before April 1978 will reach it earlier, and the GOV.UK forecast tells you your exact date.
Is the State Pension after tax?
It's taxable, but no tax is taken off before it's paid. If it's your only income, you'll likely pay little or nothing on it. With other income from pensions, you'll pay tax on some of it, so enter a slightly lower amount.
Does it work for Canada too?
Yes. There's a Canadian version with CPP and OAS in place of the State Pension.
Sources
- GOV.UK. The new State Pension: what you'll get. www.gov.uk/new-state-pension/what-youll-get
- GOV.UK. The new State Pension: eligibility. www.gov.uk/new-state-pension/eligibility
- GOV.UK. State Pension age timetable. www.gov.uk/government/publications/state-pension-age-timetable/state-pension-age-timetable
- GOV.UK. Check your State Pension forecast. www.gov.uk/check-state-pension
- GOV.UK. Increasing normal minimum pension age. www.gov.uk/government/publications/increasing-normal-minimum-pension-age/increasing-normal-minimum-pension-age
- GOV.UK. Tax on your private pension: lump sum allowance. www.gov.uk/tax-on-your-private-pension/lump-sum-allowance
- GOV.UK. Individual Savings Accounts: withdrawing your money. www.gov.uk/individual-savings-accounts/withdrawing-your-money
- GOV.UK. Lifetime ISA: withdrawing money. www.gov.uk/lifetime-isa/withdrawing-money-from-your-lifetime-isa
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