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And what it means for your plan
Most FIRE planning focuses on one thing: save enough to cover all your expenses forever. Coast FIRE flips the script. Instead of saving until you can quit entirely, you save until you have enough that compounding alone finishes the job by your target retirement age.
Think of it like pushing a snowball to the top of a hill. Once it's big enough and you give it a nudge, gravity does the work. Your job shifts from “save aggressively” to “just cover your living expenses.” No more mandatory savings. The investments you already have grow on their own.
This is especially powerful for younger savers. Time is the multiplier. The earlier you reach your coast target, the less you need because there are more years for compounding to work.
The Coast FIRE target answers one question: how much do you need invested today so that, even if you never save another dollar, your portfolio grows to your full FIRE number by retirement?
The formula
Coast Target = FIRE Number / (1 + real return)years to retirement
Coast target at these settings
$751.7K
12 years of compounding at 5% real return
Example based on $50K saved, $20K/yr contributions, and 7% real returns.
Your Coast FI age is when your portfolio crosses the coast target. From that point on, you can stop saving and just cover your day-to-day expenses from income. Compounding takes care of the rest.
Each FIRE variant trades off differently between savings intensity, timeline, and lifestyle flexibility. Here's how they compare.
$1.4M
Save until your portfolio covers all expenses. Then stop working entirely.
Strategy: Save aggressively until $1.4M, then retire completely.
$751.7K
Save until compounding can finish the job, then just cover expenses from income.
Strategy: Save to $751.7K, then earn enough/yr to cover expenses. No more saving.
$975K
Portfolio covers most spending while part-time income handles the rest.
Strategy: Save to $975K, then earn $15K/yr part-time.
Learn about Barista FIRE →
You value flexibility over speed
Coast FIRE works best if you are willing to keep working in some capacity but want to drop the pressure of aggressive saving. You could switch to a lower-paying job you love, go freelance, or just slow down.
You're young with time on your side
The earlier you reach your coast target, the more years compounding has to work. A 28-year-old who hits coast needs far less than a 48-year-old because of the exponential growth curve.
You want total independence? Traditional FIRE may be a better fit
If you never want to trade hours for dollars again, Coast FIRE still requires income to cover expenses until retirement age. Full financial independence means not needing any earned income at all.
Take the quiz and Calcifer will tell you which FIRE path fits your situation best.
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