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I regularly meet people in Switzerland who want to retire early but have no idea whether they can actually afford it.
They’ve Googled “FIRE calculator,” plugged in some numbers, and gotten a result that ignores everything Swiss about their situation. No AHV. No Pillar 2. No cantonal taxes. No health insurance costs.
That’s a problem. Because those things change your number by hundreds of thousands of francs.
The only calculator integrating Switzerland's 3-pillar pension system with FIRE methodology. Built by a CFA Charterholder.
Three phases. Two minutes. Your complete Swiss retirement picture.
Five inputs: age, salary, expenses, savings, target age. Uses 3.5% withdrawal rate (more conservative than the US 4% rule).
Add canton, Pillar 2, 3a, fees. Typically reduces your number by CHF 300K to 700K vs generic calculators.
Current path vs fee-optimized vs pillar maximizer. Typical difference: 2 to 5 years earlier retirement.
WHAT MOST CALCULATORS MISS
When you stop working in Switzerland, three costs show up that you probably haven’t budgeted for.
Health insurance. CHF 467/month average. For a couple, over CHF 11,200/year.
AHV contributions. CHF 2,000 to CHF 8,000/year for most early retirees.
Wealth tax. 0.10% in Nidwalden, 0.60% in Geneva. Same country, wildly different cost.
LOCATION MATTERS
With a CHF 2M portfolio and CHF 80K annual withdrawals, moving from Geneva to Schwyz saves over CHF 15,000 per year.
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Most expats I work with end up in Zürich, Zug, or Luzern as a middle ground.
| Canton | Annual Tax Saving vs Geneva |
|---|---|
| 1Zug | CHF 18'000+ |
| 2Schwyz | CHF 15'000+ |
| 3Nidwalden | CHF 14'000+ |
| 4Luzern | CHF 8'000+ |
| 5Zürich | CHF 5'000+ |
| –Geneva | baseline |
Based on CHF 2M portfolio, CHF 80K/year withdrawal. Estimates only — actual taxes depend on municipality, deductions, and personal situation.
CHF 1.5M to CHF 3M depending on lifestyle and canton. This drops significantly once you factor in AHV, Pillar 2, and Pillar 3a.
3.0 to 3.5% rather than the US 4% rule. Accounts for CHF appreciation against global currencies. I use 3.5% here.
AHV from age 65, Pillar 2 from 58, Pillar 3a from 60. You just bridge the gap between FIRE date and pension start.
Schwyz, Zug, Nidwalden, Obwalden. Income tax from 10% (Zug) to 25%+ (Geneva).
No. Educational purposes only. I'm a CFA charterholder but this is not regulated financial advice under FINMA.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
I quit my corporate job after building a 7-figure investment portfolio. I started with $500 and hit financial independence at 32.
Before that: six years at Asian Private Banker, then JPMorgan Asset Management and Avaloq in Zürich.
Today I run FinFit GmbH and teach non-finance professionals across 15+ countries. CFA charterholder, Swiss Capital Market Forum board member.
The calculator gives you the numbers. My free 90-minute masterclass shows you the system behind them.
