4% Rule Retirement Calculator

If that number made you nervous, good. That's the point. The calculator is showing you what the 4% rule actually is — a statistical bet that you won't outlive your money. Most people win that bet. Some don't. And you won't know which one you are until it's too late to change anything.

There are two ways to take that bet off the table entirely. One is for people who still have time. One is for people who have the money right now.

Using an IUL as a 4% rule

Most people think of the 4% rule in the context of a 401(k) or IRA. But the same concept can be applied to an indexed universal life (IUL) policy designed for retirement income.

Take a 46-year-old who is already maxing their 401(k) match and wants somewhere to put the rest — tax-free, with no RMDs and no downside market risk.

They fund an IUL with:

• $30,000 per year for 15 years
• $450,000 total contributions
• A death benefit protecting their family from day one

Now apply the 4% rule.

At age 65, the projected cash value is $962,195. A 4% withdrawal produces approximately $38,500 per year in tax-free income.

Here's what makes it different from a traditional retirement account:

• No income tax on retirement distributions when structured properly
• No required minimum distributions
• No market loss years reducing the account value
• Cash value continues growing while income is being taken

Projected cash values:

• Age 65: $962,195
• Age 85: $2,740,145
• Age 94: $4,898,643

And importantly:

• The account never depleted in this illustration
• Cash value grew to nearly $5 million while paying income every year
• Beneficiaries still receive a tax-free death benefit

These numbers come from a real carrier illustration using current rates. They are projections, not guarantees. Guaranteed values are lower, which is why we show both.

If you're still working and have time to build, this is a conversation worth having.

Want to see the 4% rule inside an IUL?

We'll run the illustration for your age and premium — no obligation, just your actual numbers.

Show Me the IUL Numbers

Replacing the 4% rule with a personal pension

Not everyone has 15 years to build.

If you're 60, 62, or 64 and sitting on a 401(k), the question isn't necessarily whether 4% will last. The question is: what if you could create a paycheck you literally could not outlive?

Take a 64-year-old with $650,000 in a 401(k). They roll it into a fixed indexed annuity with an income rider and start income immediately.

They put in:

• $650,000 lump-sum rollover
• No ongoing contributions
• No market management required

Unlike the 4% rule, this strategy is not designed to preserve principal. It's designed to maximize guaranteed lifetime income.

It tracks an index — like the S&P 500. Every year the index is positive, the income base locks in higher permanently and the paycheck goes up. Negative year: nothing changes, no loss, no step backwards. Positive year: raise. That's it.

Year 1 income at age 65: $34,938 — guaranteed by the carrier.

Projected income growth:

• Age 74: $59,139
• Age 84: $103,289
• Age 94: $180,401

And importantly:

• Around year 16, the account value reaches zero
• The income never stops
• The insurance company continues sending checks for life
• Positive index years can increase future income
• Negative years never reduce the paycheck

That's not a withdrawal strategy. That's a personal pension built from your own retirement savings. Read more about rolling a 401(k) into a fixed index annuity.

Want to see what a personal pension could pay you?

We'll show you what your balance generates as guaranteed lifetime income — no obligation.

Show Me the Personal Pension Numbers

FAQ

You ran the math. Now decide who holds the risk.

The calculator showed you what happens when you hold it yourself. The balance shrinks, the market determines your fate, and somewhere around year 25 you're hoping the math still works in your favor.

The two options above move that risk somewhere else. One builds income over time that grows while you collect it. One turns a lump sum into a paycheck that can't stop. Neither is complicated. The question is just which problem you're actually trying to solve.

We'll show you the real numbers for your situation — the illustrated scenario and the guaranteed scenario — and tell you honestly which one fits and which one doesn't.

Get a hold of us.