Ledgerly
Ad slot

Home / Retirement savings / Starting at 60

Retirement Savings Starting at Age 60

How much could you have by 65 if you begin at 60? The page assumes $500 a month and a return of 6.5 percent a year. You can change both.

On the starting figures the balance at 65 is $35,337. Growth accounts for 15 percent of it.

years
years
$
$
%
Balance at retirement
$35,337
Total you put in
$30,000
Growth
$5,337
Years of saving
5
Year by year
YearTotal put inBalance
61$6,000$6,182
62$12,000$12,778
63$18,000$19,816
64$24,000$27,325
65$30,000$35,337
Ad slot

How the balance is worked out

The calculation runs month by month. The yearly return of 6.5 percent becomes a monthly rate of 0.5417 percent. Each month the balance grows by that rate and then the deposit of $500 is added. Every deposit keeps growing for the rest of the 5 years.

Ad slot

Worked example

A saver aged 60 who puts $500 a month into a retirement account until 65 makes 60 deposits of $500. At 6.5 percent the balance reaches $35,337.

Each dollar you deposit becomes about 1.18 dollars by 65. For $500 a month that turns $30,000 into $35,337.

Questions about this calculator

How much does waiting 4 years cost when saving $500 a month from age 60 to 65 at 6.5 percent?

Starting at 64 with the same $500 ends at $6,182 instead of $35,337. That is $29,155 less.

How much a month would it take to reach $1,000,000 by 65 from age 60 at 6.5 percent, compared with $500?

About $14,149 a month at 6.5 percent. That is $13,649 more than the $500 in the example.

What if you saved double, $1,000 a month, from age 60 to 65 at 6.5 percent?

The balance at 65 would be about $70,674 instead of $35,337. That is 2 times as much.

What if returns averaged 5 percent instead of 6.5 percent for $500 a month from age 60 to 65?

The $500 a month would reach $34,003 by age 65. That is $1,334 less than the $35,337 shown at 6.5 percent.

Related calculators

This page is for education only and is not financial or tax advice.