If you dont have any money saved up for retirement, it can seem like a daunting task to plan for it. Every year that goes by, you have less time to save, which could mean that you have to put off your plans to retire.
While ideally, you would start investing in your 20s, you can still do so later in life without adversely affecting your goals. It may sound good to start saving early, but the money you make may not be as big as it will be later on. That’s why investing in your 30s might not put you too far behind.
You can still start investing at age 35 if you haven’t saved anything and have no money to start with. By the time you retire, you’ll have $1 million thanks to your investments. Heres how that can be possible.
So you’ve managed to save up a cool million by your mid-thirties, or maybe you’re dreaming of reaching this milestone The big question on your mind “Can I retire at 35 with $1 million?” As someone who’s spent years researching financial independence, I can tell you this isn’t a simple yes or no answer.
The Short Answer: Maybe, But It’s Complicated
Having $1 million at 35 is impressive—no doubt about it. But whether it’s enough to cover up to 50 years of retirement depends on your lifestyle, where you live, your health, and a few other things we’ll talk about later.
Understanding the 4% Rule (And Why It Might Not Work for You)
The traditional retirement wisdom suggests you can withdraw about 4% of your nest egg annually with minimal risk of running out of money, But this rule was designed for a 30-year retirement—not the 50+ years you might face retiring at 35,
For early retirees, financial experts often recommend a more conservative withdrawal rate:
- 3% withdrawal rate: $30,000 per year
- 3.5% withdrawal rate: $35,000 per year
- 4% withdrawal rate: $40,000 per year
Can you live on $30,000-$40,000 a year? That’s the first question you need to answer honestly.
The Time Factor: 50+ Years is a Long Time
When you retire at 65, your money needs to last maybe 20-30 years. But retiring at 35? You’re looking at funding potentially 50+ years of life. That creates some unique challenges:
- Inflation becomes your enemy: What costs $40,000 today might cost $108,000 in 30 years at just 3% annual inflation.
- Market volatility: You’ll experience multiple market cycles, recessions, and potentially major economic shifts.
- Healthcare uncertainty: You’ll need to fund 30 years of private health insurance before Medicare eligibility.
Where You Live Matters—A Lot
Where you live is a big part of whether $1 million is enough. Let’s look at how far your money might stretch:
| Location | Years $1M Could Last (at $40k/year) |
|---|---|
| New York City | 15-20 years |
| Rural Midwest | 25-30 years |
| Southeast Asia | 40+ years |
Many early retirees use “geographic arbitrage”—living in lower-cost areas to stretch their dollars. This might mean relocating to a cheaper state or even living abroad for periods of time.
The Healthcare Wild Card
Healthcare is probably the biggest unknown expense for early retirees. Without employer coverage, you’re looking at paying for private insurance until Medicare kicks in at 65—that’s 30 years of premiums and potential out-of-pocket costs.
Currently, a decent health insurance plan might cost $500-$1,000 per month for a healthy 35-year-old. That’s potentially $6,000-$12,000 per year just for premiums, not including deductibles or copays.
Better Than Pure Retirement: “Coast FIRE” or Semi-Retirement
Many financially savvy 35-year-olds with $1 million don’t fully retire. Instead, they:
- Work part-time on passion projects
- Start small businesses with low stress
- Do consulting or freelance work
- Create passive income streams
Even earning just $20,000-$30,000 per year dramatically reduces the pressure on your portfolio and increases your chances of long-term success.
Real Numbers: What $1 Million Looks Like Over Time
Let’s look at some plans for a $1 million account with various rates of withdrawal and returns on investments:
Conservative Scenario (3% withdrawal, 5% average returns)
- Year 1: $1,000,000 (Withdraw $30,000)
- Year 10: $1,081,671
- Year 20: $1,169,573
- Year 30: $1,264,304
- Year 40: $1,366,598
- Year 50: $1,476,934
Moderate Scenario (3.5% withdrawal, 5% average returns)
- Year 1: $1,000,000 (Withdraw $35,000)
- Year 10: $1,039,663
- Year 20: $1,080,964
- Year 30: $1,123,989
- Year 40: $1,168,830
- Year 50: $1,215,582
Risky Scenario (4% withdrawal, 5% average returns)
- Year 1: $1,000,000 (Withdraw $40,000)
- Year 10: $997,655
- Year 20: $995,311
- Year 30: $992,968
- Year 40: $990,627
- Year 50: $988,286
These are simple projections that don’t take into account changes in the market, inflation, or costs. But they illustrate how different withdrawal rates affect long-term sustainability.
Getting to $1 Million: It’s Not Too Late to Start
If you’re not at $1 million yet, don’t worry! According to data from USA Today, even if you have $0 in savings at age 35, you can still reach $1 million by retirement age.
Here’s how:
- Invest about $350 per month into a growth-oriented fund
- Average around 9-10% returns (the historical average for funds tracking indexes like the Nasdaq-100)
- Stay consistent for 35 years (retiring around age 70)
This approach could get you to $1 million even if you’re starting from zero at 35.
Alternative Strategy: The “Barista FIRE” Approach
If $1 million feels tight, consider what some call “Barista FIRE” – where you:
- Quit your high-stress career
- Work part-time (15-20 hours/week) doing something enjoyable
- Let your $1 million grow largely untouched for 10-15 years
- Transition to full retirement with a much larger nest egg
This approach gives you immediate lifestyle benefits while addressing the financial concerns of a very long retirement horizon.
My Take: Flexibility is Key
From my research and conversations with actual early retirees, the most successful ones share one trait: flexibility. They:
- Adjust spending during market downturns
- Find ways to earn some income when needed
- Relocate to control costs
- Stay engaged with their finances rather than setting and forgetting
The Bottom Line
Can you retire at 35 with $1 million? Yes, with some important caveats:
- You’ll need to live modestly (think $30,000-$40,000 annually)
- Geographic flexibility helps tremendously
- Healthcare costs require careful planning
- Some supplemental income makes success much more likely
- You must be prepared to adjust your plan as needed
Would I personally retire completely at 35 with $1 million? Probably not. But I might use that financial cushion to pursue more meaningful work, spend more time with family, or create a more balanced lifestyle. The choice is yours!
FAQ: Common Questions About Retiring at 35 With $1 Million
Will Social Security help me if I retire at 35?
If you stop working at 35, your Social Security benefits will be minimal since they’re based on your 35 highest-earning years. You’ll likely have many zeros in your calculation.
Should I use a Roth conversion ladder for early retirement?
Many early retirees use Roth conversion ladders to access retirement funds before age 59½ without penalties. This takes planning but can be an effective strategy.
What about my kids’ college expenses?
If you have children or plan to, their education costs could significantly impact your retirement plans. Consider setting aside separate funds for education expenses.
How do I handle sequence of returns risk?
Having 2-3 years of expenses in cash or short-term bonds can help you avoid selling investments during market downturns—a critical strategy for early retirees.
What if I change my mind?
The good news: returning to work after early retirement is always an option. However, explaining a long gap in your resume might require creativity, and your earning potential might be reduced.
Remember, retiring at 35 with $1 million is possible, but it requires careful planning, realistic expectations, and ongoing management. The more flexible you can be, the better your chances of success!
How you can end up with $1 million
If you start investing when you’re 35, you may have another 35 years to do so if you intend to retire around age 70. Over the next few decades, as people live longer, 70 may become the more common age to retire. Those extra years, between 65 and 70, can be valuable in terms of the additional gains you may be able to accumulate during that time frame.
Heres how much a $350-per-month investment in the QQQ ETF might grow over the years at varying average annual returns.
| Growth Rate | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age | Year | 9% | 10% | 11% | 12% |
| 40 | 5 | $26,596 | $27,329 | $28,086 | $28,870 |
| 45 | 10 | $68,238 | $72,293 | $76,646 | $81,319 |
| 50 | 15 | $133,435 | $146,273 | $160,600 | $176,602 |
| 55 | 20 | $235,514 | $267,994 | $305,751 | $349,702 |
| 60 | 25 | $395,336 | $468,262 | $556,703 | $664,172 |
| 65 | 30 | $645,566 | $797,764 | $990,580 | $1,235,470 |
| 70 | 35 | $1,037,347 | $1,339,897 | $1,740,715 | $2,273,344 |
The above table shows why you might have to wait about 35 years to reach $1 million. If you invest for 30 years, you might not even come close to that amount unless your investment consistently beats the market. And since stocks have been so hot lately, the market returns may slow down in the future. But after 35 years, even with a more modest annual return of 9%, you can still end up with $1 million.
Start putting money regularly into a top growth fund
In order to put yourself on track to get to $1 million, youll need to be able to invest money into the stock market each month.
An ideal target can be around $350 per month. With that amount, you can be in a good position to grow your savings at a reasonably high rate. If youre not able to do that, you may first want to look at ways to either increase your income or reduce your expenses to ensure you can afford to save that much. Investing less than that may not be enough to generate the returns you need to get to $1 million by retirement.
Assuming you can invest at least $350 each month, then picking an exchange-traded fund (ETF) to put those funds into is the next step. There are many growth-oriented ETFs that can be ideal options for the long haul. A top choice to consider is the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ 0.41%). The fund tracks the Nasdaq-100 index, which includes the largest non-financial stocks on the exchange.
With that ETF, youll get exposure to top tech stocks and also big names from other sectors, including Costco Wholesale and T-Mobile. Its a good fund to invest money into, and over the past decade, it has easily outperformed the S&P 500, which has historically averaged an annual return of around 10%.