Help

Quick start guides, input reference, and tips for interpreting your results — for both calculators.

Quick start — projection in 5 steps

The fastest path: open the calculator at /accumulate, expand cards one at a time using the left panel, and results update live in the right panel.

Step 1 — Your profile

Enter your name, current age, planned retirement age, and sex. Toggle to Couple mode if you want to project both partners — each gets their own super inputs, salary, and contribution settings. Sex is used for life expectancy estimates when you hand off to the Retirement Readiness Calculator.

Step 2 — Superannuation

Enter your current super balance, salary, and employer SG rate (minimum 11.5% in 2024–25, rising to 12% from 1 July 2025). The engine projects your employer contributions forward automatically using wage growth.

If you make personal contributions, enter them under Contributions. Tick Maximise concessional to have the engine automatically top up your salary sacrifice to the $30,000 annual cap each year. Each career phase also has its own maximise toggle — use this to limit catch-up contributions to a specific period (e.g. ages 55–60 only) rather than the entire projection.

Add career phases if your salary or SG rate changes at a known future age — a promotion, a move to part-time, or a role change.

Step 3 — Assumptions

Set your expected annual return and CPI rate. Use a preset or enter a custom rate. Enable the glide path if you plan to de-risk — return rate and MC volatility interpolate from your current settings to a lower-risk rate at retirement.

Enter any unused concessional carry-forward from ATO MyGov (Super → Unused concessional contributions cap) as a per-year breakdown. The engine applies FIFO expiry — oldest year's space depletes first. Important: carry-forward space is only consumed when Maximise concessional is active — either the global toggle in the Superannuation card, or a per-phase toggle in Career Phases. A warning appears in the Carry-Forward card if amounts are entered but maximise is not enabled.

Step 4 — Additional contributions

Add lump sum contributions at specific ages (count toward the $120k NCC cap). Enable the downsizer contribution if you plan to sell a principal residence after age 55 (up to $300k per person, exempt from the NCC cap). Enable the bring-forward rule to contribute up to 3 years' NCC cap ($360k) in a single year — the engine calculates your allowable limit from your TSB at the trigger age.

Step 5 — Review and hand off

Switch on Monte Carlo in Assumptions to see a fan chart (P10–P90) of projected balances. Use the On-Track analysis card for gap analysis. When ready, click Take to Retirement Calculator — your projected balance, return assumptions, and couple details transfer automatically.

Projection Calculator — input reference

Profile

Current age
Your age this calendar year. Used as the simulation start age.
Retirement age
The age at which you stop contributing and start drawing down.
Sex
Used to set default life expectancy estimates in the handoff to the Retirement Readiness Calculator.

Superannuation

Current super balance
Your balance today — not at retirement. The engine projects it forward.
Salary
Your current annual gross salary. Used to calculate employer SG and wage growth.
Employer SG rate
Your employer's Superannuation Guarantee rate. 11.5% in 2024–25, 12% from 1 July 2025.
Personal concessional
Your salary sacrifice or personal deductible contributions per year, counted against the $30,000 annual cap.
Maximise concessional
When ticked, automatically tops up personal concessional contributions to the $30,000 cap (plus any carry-forward space) minus employer SG each year. Each career phase has its own toggle that overrides this global setting for that phase only — useful for limiting catch-up contributions to a specific period.
Personal non-concessional (NCC)
After-tax contributions per year, counted against the $120,000 annual NCC cap.
Career phases
Salary, SG rate, and contribution amounts can change at future ages. Add a phase for each transition. Each phase has its own Maximise concessional toggle that overrides the global setting for that phase only.
Div 293 — deduct from super
If income exceeds $250,000, an additional 15% tax applies to concessional contributions. Tick to model deduction from super.
Div 296 — deduct from super
Additional tax on super earnings above $3M: extra 15% on the $3M–$10M slice (combined 30%) and extra 25% above $10M (combined 40%). Effective 1 July 2026. Tick to model deduction from super.
Fund costs
Investment fee (% of balance p.a.), flat admin fee ($), and insurance premium ($). Deducted each year after return.

Assumptions

Expected return
Pre-fee annual return on your super investments. The glide path, if enabled, treats this as the start rate.
CPI rate
Annual inflation rate. Used to deflate real-terms display and index the Div 296 threshold.
Wage growth
Annual salary growth applied within each career phase.
Carry-forward
Unused concessional cap from prior years, entered per financial year from ATO MyGov. Available if TSB < $500,000. FIFO expiry — oldest year depletes first.
Glide path
Linearly interpolates return rate and MC volatility from current setting to a lower end rate at retirement.
Monte Carlo
Produces P10/P25/P50/P75/P90 percentile bands in the fan chart. Correlated returns for super and non-super.

Additional contributions

Lump sums
One-off NCC at a specific age. Counted against the $120k annual NCC cap in that year.
Downsizer contribution
Age 55+, one-time, up to $300,000 per person. Exempt from the NCC cap. Property must have been owned 10+ years.
Bring-forward rule
Contribute up to 3 years' NCC cap in a single year. Maximum $360,000 if TSB < $1,760,000; $240,000 if TSB < $1,880,000; $120,000 if TSB < $2,000,000. NCC cap locked to $0 for 1–2 years after.
Government co-contribution
Automatic. If income ≤ $47,488 and you make NCCs, the ATO contributes 50c per $1 up to $500/year. Phases out to zero at $62,488 (2025–26 thresholds, indexed annually).

On-track / gap analysis

Target mode
Set a target balance at retirement or a target annual income (converted via your withdrawal rate).
Use Monte Carlo P50
When ticked, uses the MC median projection as the current trajectory.
Real terms
When ticked, targets are in today's dollars. The engine inflates them to retirement-year nominal for comparison.
Bridge analysis
Shows whether your non-super balance at age 60 covers spending from early retirement to preservation age.

Quick start — your first simulation in 5 steps

The fastest way is to use the guided setup — it asks a few questions and pre-fills the calculator. You'll have a result in under 60 seconds. If you've just come from the Projection Calculator, your super balance and assumptions are already filled in.

Step 1 — Your profile

Select Single or Couple. If couple, tick "Track partners individually" to enter each partner's super, pension, and ages separately. Enter current age, planned retirement age, and sex.

Step 2 — Super & assets

Enter your projected super balance at retirement. If you've come from the Projection Calculator this is pre-filled. Leave the Sequencing Buffer at $0 initially — a typical allocation is one to two years of spending.

Step 3 — Income streams

Enter your defined benefit pension (PSS, CSS, MSBS, DFRDB, or annuity) as the annual after-tax amount at retirement. Add other retirement income under Other Net Income. Enable Age Pension and enter your homeowner status and assessable assets outside super.

Step 4 — Spending

Enter your expected annual spending. Include groceries, utilities, transport, insurance, entertainment, and regular travel. Exclude mortgage payments, aged care, and large one-offs. The "Find sustainable spending" tool solves for the maximum your portfolio can sustain.

Step 5 — Run and review

Select a test scenario in the right column. Start with Constant Return at 5% to understand the basics. For probabilistic analysis, switch to Historical Monte Carlo (recommended) or Parametric Monte Carlo, then click Run.

Retirement Readiness Calculator — input reference

Your profile

Household type
Single or Couple. Controls Age Pension means test thresholds and rates.
Age turning this year
Used to calculate years to retirement and Age Pension eligibility.
Retirement age
When you plan to retire. Age Pension eligibility begins at 67 regardless.
Sex
Sets the default modelled death age from ABS 2020–2022 life tables.
Modelled death age
The age the simulation runs to. Defaults to ABS life expectancy for your sex and current age.
Variable death age in MC
Each Monte Carlo run samples a different death age (normal distribution, SD = 10 years around ABS expectancy).

Super & assets

Super balance at retirement
Your projected total superannuation balance at retirement. Use the Projection Calculator or your fund's tool.
Sequencing buffer
A separate cash/defensive account to fund spending during downturns. Typical: one to two years of spending.
Non-super investments
Investment portfolio outside super. Enter balance at retirement and post-tax return rate. Configure drawdown order.
CPI / inflation rate
Applied to spending and pension indexation. Australian long-term average: 2.5%.
Cash / buffer return rate
Annual return on the sequencing buffer and cash account. Default 3%.

Income streams

Defined benefit pension (after tax)
Annual pension from PSS, CSS, MSBS, DFRDB, or annuities — after tax, from retirement. CPI-indexed automatically.
Other net income
After-tax income from part-time work, rental, dividends, interest. Counted in the Age Pension income test.
Work Bonus eligible
Tick for employment/self-employment income. Exempts up to $7,800/year per partner aged 67+ from the income test.

Age Pension

Include Age Pension
Models Centrelink payments from age 67 with full means testing.
Own home
Homeowners have lower asset test thresholds. The family home is not counted as an asset.
Assessable assets outside super
Illiquid assets affecting the means test but not drawn down: investment property equity, vehicles, collectibles.

Spending

Base annual spending
Groceries, utilities, transport, entertainment, travel, insurance, rates. Excludes mortgage, aged care, and one-off expenses.
Spending pattern
Constant Real keeps spending flat in real terms. J.P. Morgan Curve applies gradually declining real spend (1% p.a. years 1–10, 1.5% years 11–20, 0.5% years 21+).
Splurge spending
Additional spending for a defined period — travel, renovation, lifestyle upgrades.

Withdrawal strategy

Forgo inflation adjustment
Nominal spending stays flat in years following a negative portfolio return. (Morningstar 2025: lifts safe withdrawal rate from 3.9% to 4.3%.)
Guardrails (Guyton-Klinger)
Adjusts spending when withdrawal rate drifts from initial rate. (Morningstar 2025: supports 5.2% starting safe withdrawal rate.)

Understanding your results

Display modes

Nominal $ shows values in future dollars. Real (Retirement year $) removes inflation — a flat line means flat purchasing power. Real (Today $) converts to current purchasing power. All three are presentation layers only — success rates are unaffected.

Display modeBalance at retirementBalance 20 yrs later
Nominal $$1,000,000$900,000
Real (Retirement year $)$1,000,000$553,000
Real (Today $)$878,000$486,000

Monte Carlo success rate

  • 90%+ — Excellent. Well-buffered.
  • 85–90% — Very good. Most planners consider this acceptable.
  • 75–85% — Moderate. Small spending adjustments can shift this significantly.
  • Below 75% — Needs work. Material changes required.

Portfolio Balance chart

In Monte Carlo mode, P10 is the worst 10% of scenarios, P50 is the median, P90 is the best 10%. Plan against P10, not P50.

Annual Spending Breakdown chart

Stacked bars showing how spending is funded each year. A healthy plan shows pension and Age Pension covering a growing share as super depletes.

Warnings and alerts

Early portfolio depletion
If your portfolio depletes within the first 5 years, a red banner appears. Spending is fundamentally unsustainable.
MC results stale
When you change inputs after running Monte Carlo, the Run button turns orange. Re-run to update.
Transfer Balance Cap
A warning appears if super exceeds $2.0M (Transfer Balance Cap 2025-26, rising to $2.1M July 2026).
Insufficient accessible funds
In couple mode, appears when accessible super is insufficient before the second partner retires.
NCC cap lockout (Projection)
When a bring-forward contribution is active, the NCC cap is locked to $0 for 1–2 following years. A confirmation banner shows the lockout.

Quick reference — what am I looking at?

I see…What it means / what to do
Success rate < 75%Material risk. Adjust spending, retirement age, or income before finalising your plan.
Success rate 75–85%Moderate. Small adjustments can move this to the green zone. Try reducing spending by 5–10%.
Success rate > 90%Comfortable. Check whether P10 is also positive — if yes, consider whether you could spend more.
P10 runs out before 85Sequence-of-returns risk is real. Add a buffer, enable guardrails, or reduce spending.
A1 stress test failsBase spending too high. Highest-priority problem to fix.
A1 passes but B1/B2 failSequence-of-returns vulnerability. Add buffer or guardrails.
Projection on-track gap shows extra NCC neededYou need after-tax contributions to hit your target. Check carry-forward cap availability first.
Bring-forward lockout years shownExpected — NCC cap is $0 in the 1–2 years after a bring-forward contribution.
Age Pension grows strongly mid-retirementWorking as designed — income floor rising as super depletes. Healthy pattern.
Very large ending balanceYou may be under-spending. Try 10–15% higher spending and check the results.
Wide fan (P90 vs P10 very far apart)High sensitivity to return sequence. Focus on P10. Consider defensive strategies.
Cliff edge patternPortfolio holds steady then drops sharply. Check that Age Pension is enabled.

Frequently asked questions

Does RetireConfident store any of my data?
No. All calculations happen in your browser. Nothing is sent to any server. Scenarios saved are stored in your browser's localStorage only.
How does the handoff from the Projection Calculator work?
Click "Take to Retirement Calculator" in the Projection Calculator's right panel. Your projected super balance, return assumptions, couple details, and non-super balance transfer automatically. You'll still need to enter income streams, spending, and Age Pension settings.
How do I model a PSS or MSBS pension?
Enter your annual pension (after tax) under "Defined benefit pension (after tax)" in the Income Streams card. The model treats it as a guaranteed, CPI-indexed income stream for life.
What's the difference between carry-forward and bring-forward?
Carry-forward lets you use unused concessional cap space from the prior 5 years — extra pre-tax contributions above the $30k annual cap (if your TSB is below $500k). Bring-forward lets you front-load up to 3 years of non-concessional cap ($360k) in a single year, locking the NCC cap to $0 for the following 1–2 years.
I've entered carry-forward amounts but the projection isn't using them — why?
Carry-forward space is only consumed when Maximise concessional is active. Enable it in the Superannuation card (applies every year) or on a specific Career Phase (applies to that period only). A warning appears in the Carry-Forward card if amounts are entered but maximise is not enabled anywhere. Also note: if you hold a defined benefit pension (PSS, CSS, MSBS), your ATO total super balance includes the notional value of that pension — typically annual pension × 16 — which may push your TSB above the $500k carry-forward threshold even if your accumulation account is small.
Monte Carlo shows different results each time — is that a bug?
No — expected. Each run uses a new set of randomly generated return sequences. Small variation is normal. For reproducible results, use a Historical period or Formal Stress Test.
Can I save my scenario and come back later?
Yes. Use the Save/Load button in the toolbar. Auto-save also preserves your inputs automatically. For permanent backup, use the JSON export feature.

Something missing or incorrect? Found a bug? Email us.