Withdrawal rate

Withdrawal rate turns spending into a target portfolio.

A withdrawal rate is the percentage assumption used to translate annual spending into a target portfolio number for the Financial Independence Year.

Question this answersHow does a withdrawal rate change the target portfolio?
Simple termsEstimate, not adviceUses your entered inputs
  1. 01
    What it means

    Start with the plain meaning.

  2. 02
    How it affects the year

    See why the estimate can move.

  3. 03
    What to check

    See what the estimate leaves out.

Why this matters

What this means.

Withdrawal rate connects spending to the portfolio number being tested. In Undefeated, changing this assumption can move the Financial Independence Year because it changes the size of the pot being tested.

Year impact

How this can move the year.

A lower withdrawal rate raises the target portfolio and can move the Financial Independence Year later. A higher withdrawal rate lowers the target and can move the year earlier.

How it is used

How the calculation uses it.

The calculation uses the entered withdrawal rate as a stable planning assumption. Undefeated does not choose a withdrawal rate, model changing withdrawal patterns, or include tax treatment, sequence risk, or spending changes after the Financial Independence Year.

Estimate limits

What can make the estimate change.

The estimate may change if actual spending, tax position, investment returns, inflation, pension access, cash needs, or withdrawal behaviour differ from the assumption entered.

Checks

Checks before you use the number.

Use these prompts to read the estimate carefully. They are not recommendations.

  • Check whether the rate has been entered as intended; 4 and 0.04 both represent 4%.
  • Check how sensitive the Financial Independence Year is to small changes in the withdrawal-rate input.
  • Check whether the rate is being used consistently with the spending input.

Read next

Read one assumption at a time, then use the calculator when you want to test the inputs.

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