What does 'sustainable indefinitely' mean?

If your monthly withdrawal is less than or equal to what the corpus earns in an average month, the balance never trends toward zero — withdrawing less than the corpus earns means it can, in principle, keep paying out forever at that rate. Markets don't return a smooth rate every month in reality, so treat this as a best-case read, not a guarantee.

SWP or just leaving the money invested and selling as needed?

They're mathematically similar — SWP just automates a fixed, regular sale instead of ad-hoc ones. SWP's main advantage is discipline and predictable monthly income; its main risk is the same as any withdrawal plan: a poor sequence of returns early on depletes the corpus faster than the average return would suggest.

Does this account for tax on the withdrawals?

No — withdrawals from mutual funds via SWP are taxed as capital gains (short or long-term depending on how long each unit was held), not as income, which is often more tax-efficient than an equivalent fixed-income payout. This calculator shows the pre-tax corpus mechanics only; your actual take-home from each withdrawal will be lower after tax.

What return rate should I use for retirement withdrawals?

A more conservative rate than your accumulation-phase assumption is common practice, since a retirement corpus is often shifted toward a more conservative mix to protect against a bad sequence of returns early in retirement. Try the calculator at a couple of rates to see how sensitive the result is.

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SWP Calculator

See how long a lump sum lasts with a fixed monthly withdrawal — or whether it can keep paying out indefinitely.

Starting corpus$500,000

Monthly withdrawal$2,500

Expected return (p.a.) %4.5%

Sample value. Enter your own.

How long it lasts

30 yrs 11 mo

Total withdrawn over that time$927,500

Of which, starting corpus$500,000

Of which, interest earned$427,500

Illustrative only — assumes a smooth, constant return every month and a withdrawal that doesn't increase with inflation. Real markets don't return the same rate every month; a bad sequence of returns early on can deplete the corpus faster than this shows.

What is an SWP calculator?

A Systematic Withdrawal Plan takes a lump sum — often a retirement corpus — and pays out a fixed amount every month, while the remaining balance stays invested and keeps earning returns. It's the mirror image of a SIP: instead of building up a corpus with regular contributions, you're drawing one down with regular withdrawals.

This calculator answers the question an SWP plan actually needs answered before you commit to one: given a starting amount, a withdrawal size, and an expected return, does the money run out — and if so, when?

How is SWP lifespan calculated?

Each month, two things happen to the balance at once:

Balance = Balance × (1 + monthly rate) − Withdrawal

On a $52,000 corpus with a $364 monthly withdrawal at 8%, the balance lasts about 38 years and 3 months — over that time $167,076 is withdrawn in total, of which $115,076 comes from interest and only the original $52,000 from the corpus itself. Drop the withdrawal to $312 a month on the same corpus and rate, and it becomes sustainable indefinitely — $312 is below what the corpus earns in an average month, so the balance never trends toward zero.

That gap — between a withdrawal the corpus can sustain forever and one that slowly depletes it — is usually narrower than people expect, which is exactly why it's worth calculating rather than guessing.

Benefits of planning an SWP

A real retirement-income check

Turns a lump-sum corpus into a concrete monthly number, and tells you honestly whether that number is sustainable.

Tax efficiency

SWP withdrawals are typically taxed as capital gains, not income, which is often more favourable than an equivalent fixed-income payout.

Keeps the rest invested

Unlike withdrawing a lump sum and holding cash, the untouched balance keeps compounding, which is what makes a long payout period possible at all.

Flexible and reversible

Unlike an annuity, the withdrawal amount and the underlying investment can usually be changed or stopped, rather than being locked in for life.

LessonRetirement Planning — Turn a distant, abstract goal into a practical, numbers-based savings system.
CalculatorAnnual Retirement Income Calculator — The yearly income a retirement corpus can pay out over the retirement period.

Common questions

Each month, the withdrawal comes out and the remaining balance earns a month of returns — the same balance compounds and shrinks at once. The calculator simulates this month by month until the balance reaches zero, rather than using a single formula, because the balance itself changes every month.