What actually drives monthly income at retirement?

See how changes to Employee Deferral, Employer Contribution, Investment Returns,
and Recordkeeper Fees impact monthly income at retirement for a hypothetical employee.

Model a change

See how each decision shapes the outcome

Shift each lever from base by

20%

Shift each lever from base by

Employee Deferral +20%

Employer Contribution +20%

Investment Returns +20%

Recordkeeper Fees −20%

Assumptions

Lever	Base Case Default plan Your values	Scenario
Employee Deferral	%	% 7.2 %
Employer Contribution	%	% 3.6 %
Investment Returns	%	% 8.4 %
Recordkeeper Fees	$	% $ 132

Hypothetical employee profile

Age: 44
Salary: $70,784 $
Beginning Balance: $80,000 $
Retire at: 67
Inflation: 2% %
Annuitization Rate: Current Rates

What has the largest impact on Retirement Income?

Base Case

Base monthly income

Increase over base case

Bottom line

Base Case Monthly Income

Balance at Age 67: $0

Recordkeeper Fee Impact

+$0

0.2% of base case income

Savings Behavior + Plan Design: working together
+$0
Deferral + Contribution combined

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© Fiduciary Decisions & Insights. All rights reserved. For educational use only. The information presented is believed to be accurate as of the date of publication and is subject to change without notice.

Methodology & Disclosures

A short reference to the methodology, assumptions, and limits of this tool. Results are illustrative and educational — not a guarantee of future outcomes.

01 · Methodology

For each year between the participant's current age and retirement age, the calculator runs the same set of steps:

Salary grows by the inflation rate each year. Employee and employer contributions are calculated as their respective percentages of that year's salary. Investment earnings are computed on the beginning balance for a full year, plus a half year of return on contributions made during the year. The recordkeeping fee is then subtracted. The result becomes next year's beginning balance.

At retirement, the final balance is converted to a monthly income figure using a current immediate-annuity rate. This represents one possible drawdown approach — actual retirees may use a 4% safe withdrawal strategy, bucketing, or other methods that produce different monthly figures.

02 · Key assumptions

Returns are constant year-over-year (no volatility or sequence-of-returns risk).
Salary grows by the entered inflation rate each year.
Contributions are made evenly throughout the year; mid-year earnings credit at half the annual rate.
Recordkeeping fee is applied as a percentage of beginning balance, deducted at year end.
Annuitization uses a current immediate-annuity rate to convert the final balance to monthly income.
Inflation adjustment on the monthly income figure restates the result in today's dollars.

03 · What this tool does not model

To keep the calculator accessible, several real-world factors are intentionally simplified or omitted:

Investment volatility and sequence-of-returns risk.
Taxes on contributions and distributions.
Required minimum distributions and IRS contribution limits.
Plan loans, hardship withdrawals, leakage, vesting forfeitures.
Healthcare costs in retirement and longevity risk.
Other drawdown strategies (4% rule, RMDs, bucketing).

04 · Important disclosures

Results are illustrative and educational. They are not a guarantee of future outcomes and do not constitute investment advice, a recommendation, or fiduciary advice under ERISA.

Plan sponsors and participants should consult their own qualified advisors before making decisions about plan design, contribution levels, investment selection, or fees.

The hypothetical participant shown is for illustration only and does not represent any specific individual. Actual outcomes will vary based on market performance, individual circumstances, and the plan's specific design.

01Methodology

For each year between the participant's current age and retirement age, the calculator runs the same set of steps:

Salary grows by the inflation rate each year. Employee and employer contributions are calculated as their respective percentages of that year's salary. Investment earnings are computed on the beginning balance for a full year, plus a half year of return on the contributions made during the year (since contributions are spread across the year, not paid in one lump). The recordkeeping fee is then subtracted. The result becomes next year's beginning balance.

02Year-by-year projection

Choose a scenario to see how each year's numbers flow into the next. The table updates live with the inputs from the calculator above — including any changes you make in Customize mode.

Age	Salary	Beg. Balance	Employee Contrib.	Employer Contrib.	Earnings (net of fee)	RK Fee	End Balance

03Assumptions & sources

04What this tool does not model

To keep the calculator accessible, several real-world factors are intentionally simplified or omitted: investment volatility and sequence-of-returns risk (returns are assumed constant), taxes on contributions and distributions, required minimum distributions, plan loans or hardship withdrawals, leakage at job changes, vesting forfeitures, IRS contribution limits, healthcare costs in retirement, and longevity risk.

The tool also assumes the participant converts their balance to lifetime income via an annuity at retirement. Other approaches (4% rule, RMDs, bucketing) yield different monthly figures and are not modeled here.

Results are illustrative and educational. They are not a guarantee of future outcomes and do not constitute investment advice, a recommendation, or fiduciary advice under ERISA. Plan sponsors and participants should consult their own qualified advisors before making decisions about plan design, contribution levels, investment selection, or fees.