At a Glance
| Tool | Price | Account Linking | Monte Carlo | Saves Data | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Evernest | Free (paid: $48/yr) | None | 500 free, 50K paid | Yes | Full projection, no linking, upgrade path |
| Empower | Free | Required (Plaid) | Yes | Yes | Account-linked auto-tracking |
| Fidelity | Free | Optional | No | With account | Quick gut check (6 questions) |
| FIRECalc | Free | None | Historical backtest | No | FIRE community, historical analysis |
| Vanguard | Free | Optional | No | With account | Vanguard customers, nest egg check |
Evernest
Free tier + paid plan at $47.88/year
Evernest's free tier is a full projection engine — not a simplified calculator. You get year-by-year cash flow projections, your data is saved, and simple scenarios are free forever. The paid plan ($3.99/mo annual) adds Monte Carlo with 50,000 scenarios, multiple portfolios, and advanced features.
Strengths
- • Full projection engine in free tier
- • No account linking — your credentials stay private
- • Data saved, revisit anytime
- • Guided wizard — 5-minute setup
- • Cheapest paid upgrade in the market ($48/yr)
- • 50K Monte Carlo scenarios with histograms
- • Multiple portfolio types with draw strategies
Limitations
- • Free Monte Carlo capped at 500 iterations (50,000 on paid plan)
- • No account aggregation (by design)
- • No tax calculations
Best for: People who want a real projection without linking accounts, with a clear upgrade path when they want 50,000-scenario Monte Carlo and multiple portfolios.
Empower (formerly Personal Capital)
Free
Empower is the most full-featured free retirement planning tool available — Monte Carlo simulation, automatic account aggregation, spending tracking, and net worth monitoring. The catch? It requires linking your financial accounts via Plaid, and the business model is connecting high-net-worth users with Empower's advisory services.
Strengths
- • Completely free with Monte Carlo
- • Automatic account aggregation
- • Net worth and spending tracking
- • Well-designed interface
Limitations
- • Requires Plaid account linking
- • Advisory sales calls for larger portfolios
- • Limited FIRE-specific features
- • Your data feeds their advisory business
Best for: People who want automatic account tracking and don't mind linking their financial accounts. Be prepared for advisory service outreach if your portfolio is above ~$200K.
Fidelity Retirement Score
Free
Fidelity's retirement calculator asks six questions and gives you a “Retirement Score” — a probability that your savings will last. It's fast and simple, but that's also its limitation: no year-by-year breakdown, no scenario testing, no financial event modeling. It tells you if you're roughly on track, not why or how to fix it.
Strengths
- • 2-minute setup — just 6 questions
- • Clear on-track / off-track answer
- • Trusted brand
Limitations
- • No year-by-year cash flow
- • No Monte Carlo simulation
- • No scenario comparison
- • No financial event modeling
- • Funnels into Fidelity products
Best for: A quick gut check when you're first wondering “am I on track?” Use it as a starting point, then move to a dedicated planner for actual planning.
FIRECalc
Free
FIRECalc is one of the original FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early) calculators. It runs historical backtests — testing your plan against every starting year in market history — to show how often your money would have lasted. The interface is dated (plain HTML, no mobile optimization), but the analysis is respected in the FIRE community.
Strengths
- • Completely free, no account required
- • Historical backtesting with real market data
- • Respected in FIRE community
- • No account linking
Limitations
- • Dated interface (plain HTML)
- • Doesn't save your data
- • No year-by-year cash flow chart
- • Limited scenario modeling
- • Not mobile-friendly
Best for: FIRE enthusiasts who want historical backtesting and are comfortable with a no-frills interface.
Vanguard Retirement Nest Egg Calculator
Free
Vanguard's calculator is straightforward: enter your portfolio balance, annual spending, and time horizon. It runs a basic simulation and tells you the probability your money lasts. Like Fidelity, it's a gut check — useful for a quick answer, but no depth for actual planning.
Strengths
- • Simple, fast, trusted brand
- • Basic probability estimate
- • No account required (public tool)
Limitations
- • Very basic — 3 inputs
- • No year-by-year breakdown
- • No Social Security modeling
- • No financial events
- • No data saved
The Upgrade Path: When Free Isn't Enough
Free calculators answer “am I roughly on track?” But retirement planning requires more: What happens if the market drops 30% in year two? What if I take Social Security at 62 vs. 70? What if I sell the house in 2035? What if I spend less after 80?
Those questions need a real projection engine — and the free versions of most tools don't get you there. Here's what the upgrade costs:
| Tool | Paid Price | What the Upgrade Adds |
|---|---|---|
| Evernest | $47.88/yr | 50K Monte Carlo, multiple portfolios, multiple scenarios, spend tapering |
| ProjectionLab | $129/yr | Tax analytics, saved plans, Roth conversion, Compare Mode |
| Boldin | $144/yr | Monte Carlo, advanced tax, AI assistant, 250+ inputs |
| MaxiFi | $149/yr | Monte Carlo, consumption smoothing, Roth optimizer |
Competitor prices as of October 2026 — check each provider's site for current pricing.
Evernest is the most affordable upgrade from free — and the free tier itself already includes the full projection engine. You only pay when you want Monte Carlo simulation, multiple portfolios, and advanced scenario modeling.
A Note on Data Safety
Not all free tools are free in the same way. Empower is free because it uses your linked financial data to identify high-net-worth users for its advisory services. Fidelity and Vanguard are free because they want you in their ecosystem.
Evernest and FIRECalc are free because they're built by people who believe you shouldn't have to pay a lot — or link your accounts — to answer the basic retirement question. Evernest's business model is simple: the free tier gets you started, and you pay $48/year if you want advanced features. No account linking. No AI on your data. No advisory upsell.
Our Recommendation
- 1.Start with a gut check: Use Fidelity or Vanguard for a 2-minute “am I on track?” answer.
- 2.Build a real projection: Use Evernest's free tier for a year-by-year cash flow chart — no account linking, data saved, 5-minute setup.
- 3.Stress-test when ready: Upgrade to Evernest's paid plan ($48/yr) for 50,000-scenario Monte Carlo, multiple portfolios, and advanced features.
Try Evernest's Free Standalone Calculators
Quick answers to specific questions — no account required:
Start With the Full Engine — Free
No account linking. No credit card. No AI. Just your numbers, a visual projection, and answers to the questions that matter most.