The FIRE Spectrum: One Number Isn't the Whole Story

Classic FIRE math gives you a single target: 25× your annual expenses (the 4% rule). But the community has evolved a whole spectrum of milestones, and each one unlocks real options long before "full" FIRE. Coast FIRE means compounding will finish the job without another dollar saved. Barista FIRE means part-time work covers the gap. Lean, regular, Chubby and Fat FIRE describe the lifestyle your portfolio can sustain forever. Tracking all of them turns one distant goal into a ladder of nearer wins.

Coast FIRE: The Most Underrated Milestone

Coast FIRE is the amount you need invested today so that growth alone reaches your FIRE number by your target age. A 30-year-old targeting $1.5M at 65 with a ~4.4% real return needs roughly $335,000 — after that, they only need to cover living costs, never save again. Many Canadians hit Coast FIRE in their 30s without realizing it. It changes career math completely: downshifting, sabbaticals, or starting a business stop being reckless.

Barista FIRE: Part-Time Work Changes the Target

If part-time work brings in $25,000/yr against $60,000/yr of spending, your portfolio only needs to cover the $35,000 gap — $875,000 at 4% instead of $1.5M. The name comes from working "a barista job" for income (and, in the US, health benefits). Canadians have an edge here: provincial health coverage means the job is purely about the income gap, so almost any flexible work qualifies.

Lean, Chubby and Fat FIRE: Pick Your Lifestyle First

The community's rough conventions: Lean FIRE supports about $40,000/yr of spending (~$1M at 4%), regular FIRE your actual spending, Chubby FIRE roughly $100,000/yr (~$2.5M), and Fat FIRE $200,000+/yr ($5M+). These are conventions, not rules — which is why this calculator lets you set every threshold yourself. A couple in Vancouver and a single person in Moncton should not use the same "lean" line.

Canadian FIRE Math Is Friendlier Than It Looks

CPP and OAS eventually cover a meaningful slice of retirement spending — often $15,000–$25,000/yr per person from 65 — which effectively lowers the portfolio you need for the post-65 years. Public healthcare removes the biggest pre-Medicare fear that dominates US FIRE planning. And the RRSP/TFSA combination gives early retirees an unusually good low-tax withdrawal window between retirement and CPP/OAS. This calculator works in today's dollars with a real (after-inflation) return, so your targets stay comparable over time.

Withdrawal Rate: The One Assumption That Moves Everything

At a 4% withdrawal rate you need 25× spending; at 3.5% it's ~28.6×; at 3% it's 33×. Longer retirements (40–50 years for early retirees) argue for the conservative end. Chubby/Fat FIRE planners often use 3.25–3.5% because their timelines are long and their spending has more room to flex. Try your plan at 4% and 3.5% and see whether your level changes — if it does, you're near a boundary and should keep saving margin.