Skip to content
FireFolioMake room for your future.

The Paycheck Workspace is a retirement income planning tool for people approaching retirement or already living from their portfolio. Explore monthly spending, account withdrawals, pensions, benefits, and changing life circumstances in one household plan.

How it works & common questions
THE PAYCHECK ENGINE Illustrative example

Your portfolio.
Your everyday life.

A clearer picture of what comes in, what goes out, and what makes room for the life you want.

Oct 2026

A little more freedom

Alex & Sam · 35 years of possibilities

Three stories. Find your starting point.

Meet Alex & Sam. Work is becoming optional.

Alex is retiring now while Sam works part-time for two more years. Their starting plan combines $2,000 a month from work with savings to cover $5,000 in monthly spending and estimated taxes.

You’re exploring an illustrative household. Try the inputs and scenarios; changes stay in this session. Switching examples replaces your example edits. Sign in to save your own plan

Monthly life + tax$5,000First month of your plan
Outside income$2,000Work, pensions & benefits
Portfolio funding need$3,000Before cash & bond payments

THE FIRST MONTH

Give your money a rhythm.

$0 in account withdrawals is modeled this month, including any cash-buffer refill.

  • Bond interest & maturities$0
  • Closing available cash$27,000

A LONGER VIEW

Room for the years ahead.

Projected ending assets: $0. This illustration uses constant returns and the spending policy you entered.

Your funding calendar.

Monthly income, spending, account withdrawals, and funding gaps in nominal dollars
MonthIncomeSpending + taxBond receiptsAccount drawsClosing cashUnfunded
Oct 2026$2,000$5,000$0$0$27,000$0
Nov 2026$2,000$5,010$0$0$23,990$0
Dec 2026$2,000$5,021$0$0$20,969$0
Jan 2027$2,000$5,031$0$0$17,938$0
Feb 2027$2,000$5,041$0$103$15,000$0
Mar 2027$2,000$5,052$400$2,652$15,000$0
Apr 2027$2,000$5,062$0$3,062$15,000$0
May 2027$2,000$5,073$0$3,073$15,000$0
Jun 2027$2,000$5,083$0$3,083$15,000$0
Jul 2027$2,000$5,093$0$3,093$15,000$0
Aug 2027$2,000$5,104$0$3,104$15,000$0
Sep 2027$2,000$5,114$20,400$0$32,286$0
Year-end assets and calculation assumptions
MonthProjected assetsCash
Sep 2027$1,157,849$32,286
Sep 2028$1,164,411$15,000
Sep 2029$1,145,263$15,000
Sep 2030$1,123,720$15,000
Sep 2031$1,099,648$15,000
Sep 2032$1,072,902$15,000
Sep 2033$1,043,333$15,000
Sep 2034$1,033,049$15,000
Sep 2035$1,020,957$15,000
Sep 2036$1,006,948$15,000
Sep 2037$990,906$15,000
Sep 2038$972,711$15,000
Sep 2039$952,237$15,000
Sep 2040$929,352$15,000
Sep 2041$903,917$15,000
Sep 2042$875,786$15,000
Sep 2043$844,808$15,000
Sep 2044$810,822$15,000
Sep 2045$773,661$15,000
Sep 2046$733,150$15,000
Sep 2047$689,107$15,000
Sep 2048$641,339$15,000
Sep 2049$589,644$15,000
Sep 2050$533,814$15,000
Sep 2051$473,627$15,000
Sep 2052$408,853$15,000
Sep 2053$339,251$15,000
Sep 2054$264,569$15,000
Sep 2055$184,543$15,000
Sep 2056$98,897$15,000
Sep 2057$7,367$7,367
Sep 2058$0$0
Sep 2059$0$0
Sep 2060$0$0
Sep 2061$0$0

Nominal dollars. Income and events arrive in their entered month, spending and tax are paid, then remaining investments earn the assumed return. A late-month payment is not a guarantee that an earlier bill can be paid. No tax brackets, benefit eligibility, trading costs, or automatic withdrawal rules are calculated. Account access is user-confirmed. Investment returns include dividends; separately entered bonds receive their scheduled coupons and principal.

Session only

Planning beta · USD · Monthly estimates, not payment instructions. No money is moved.

RETIREMENT INCOME PLANNING, EXPLAINED

A little clarity before your next chapter.

What is decumulation?

Decumulation is the shift from building savings to using them to support everyday life. A retirement spending plan considers how income, cash, and investment withdrawals could work together over time. Paycheck models those sources month by month.

Who is the Paycheck Workspace for?

Paycheck is designed for people preparing to retire and those in retirement, including the first few years of living from a portfolio. Retirement readiness explores account access, funding gaps, and difficult years. The monthly paycheck view helps people who are already retired map income and spending. If you are still building savings, start with the FIRE calculator or Life scenarios.

Can I plan for a spouse, pensions, and future life events?

Yes. A plan can include two people with separate retirement dates, account owners, work income, pension payments, and benefit schedules. You can also enter a windfall, the net proceeds of downsizing, or an expense. You supply the amounts and dates; the tool does not calculate benefit eligibility or property sale proceeds.

How do scenarios and spending guardrails work?

Scenarios compare your baseline with changes such as an investment decline, higher inflation, delayed income, or different flexible spending. Optional annual guardrails model cuts to flexible spending within your chosen limit and recovery toward the target. They do not change your actual spending. These deterministic illustrations are not probabilities of retirement success.

What does the bond bridge view show?

A bond bridge maps scheduled bond interest and repayments against a period of spending, such as the gap before pension income begins. You enter fixed nominal bonds, six-month interest payments, and maturity dates. Principal moves from the bond into cash when it matures; it is not new wealth. The tool does not select bonds, price purchases, or model TIPS.

Does Paycheck calculate taxes or move money?

No. This planning beta uses your estimated tax payments and user-confirmed account access dates. It follows the withdrawal order and monthly limits you enter. It does not optimize taxes, determine required distributions or statutory eligibility, transfer money, or execute trades.

Do I need an account or a broker connection to try it?

No. Explore three fictional starting points without an account or broker connection: Jordan preparing to retire in three years, Alex and Sam transitioning out of work, and Maya already living from her portfolio. Example edits last only for that page session; switching examples replaces them. Signed-in members can switch between Learn with examples and My plan. Example changes stay separate from personal plans. Sign in to create and save your own plan and monthly reviews. The examples do not expose any member’s saved financial information.