FIRE Abroad Calculator

Why FIRE-abroad targets are so much lower

Two compounding effects combine to halve a typical FIRE target:

1. Lifestyle expenses scale with COL. $70K of US expenses become $38K in Lisbon (COL 55), $28K in Mexico City (COL 40), $24K in Bangkok (COL 35). The lifestyle is roughly the same — apartment, food, transport, occasional travel — just at local prices.
2. Healthcare costs drop dramatically. US pre-Medicare coverage is $8-12K/year for marketplace plans. Portugal/Spain private health is $1,500-3,000. Mexico is $1,200-2,500. Thailand is $800-2,000. Many countries have universal systems that expats can buy into for nominal fees.

At 4% SWR, $78K US expenses requires $1.95M. $40K Lisbon expenses requires $1.0M. The 50% reduction in target translates to roughly 7-10 fewer years of accumulation depending on contribution rate. For someone saving $4K/month with $200K already saved, the difference is FIRE at age 47 (Lisbon) vs age 56 (US-only).

Math runs locally. Inputs never leave your browser. Source on github.

Real-world scenarios

• Digital Nomad Tax — US persons retiring abroad still owe US tax on worldwide income. FEIE doesn’t apply to investment income. Critical pairing.
• Geo-Arbitrage Calculator — if you’ll keep working remotely while abroad before retirement, this tool models the working-years savings boost that accelerates the FIRE target.
• FIRE Calculator — US-only FIRE math for comparison. Run both to see the acceleration.