Coast FIRE vs Lean FIRE vs Fat FIRE
Three popular variants of financial independence, three very different lifestyles. Here is how to pick the right one for your situation — and how to actually run the math.
The Three Paths
Lean FIRE
- Retire on ~$25,000–40,000/year
- Requires extreme frugality forever
- Portfolio target: $625k–$1M
- Best for: minimalists, van-life, low-cost-of-living countries
Fat FIRE
- Retire on $100,000+/year
- Demands aggressive high-income career
- Portfolio target: $2.5M+
- Best for: high-earning professionals who want full lifestyle retention
Coast FIRE
- Stop saving at a specific milestone, let compound interest do the rest
- Keep earning for lifestyle but no savings pressure
- Most achievable for normal earners
- Portfolio target: calculated via coastfirecalculator.io
Run the Numbers Side by Side
| Variant | Retirement Spend | Portfolio Needed | Freedom Trade-off |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lean | $30k/yr | ~$750k | Tight budget for life |
| Coast | $50k/yr (@65) | ~$164k today | Work needed for lifestyle now |
| Fat | $120k/yr | $3M | Long runway of high-income work |
Use the Coast FIRE Calculator to model your Coast Number — the amount you need invested today so that, without any further contributions, it reaches your retirement target by 65.
Additional Resources
Curious where Coast FIRE Calculator shows up across the web? See the full resource hub on Telegraph or these curated mentions:
- F6S startup profile
- SideProjectors listing
- Himalayas company page
- ProvenExpert profile
- PromoteProject
- Disqus profile
- Hatena bookmark
- Brian Solis comment discussion
- Vita Magazine comment
- Thrifty Nomads comment
- Thrifty Couple comment
Bottom Line
Pick your FIRE variant based on two questions:
- How much do you want to spend in retirement?
- How aggressive can you be with saving right now?
Coast FIRE is the most forgiving: hit one savings milestone early, then coast. Run your number at coastfirecalculator.io.
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