All amounts are in today's dollars — inflation is already accounted for, so the numbers stay meaningful.
Volatility only affects the Monte Carlo simulation.
Income target withdraws whatever tops you up to your desired income. The 4% rule withdraws 4% of your retirement-day balance each year, inflation-adjusted.
This retirement calculator projects your nest egg from current savings, ongoing contributions, expected return, and your target retirement age, then draws it down against your spending. Everything is shown in today's dollars, so inflation is already accounted for.
A common starting point is 25 times your annual spending, which supports a roughly 4% withdrawal rate. The calculator lets you test your own numbers.
Inflation-adjusting every figure keeps them intuitive: a projected balance in today's dollars tells you what it would actually buy now, not an inflated future number.
The classic guideline is about 4% of the starting balance per year, adjusted for inflation, though a lower rate adds safety for long retirements.