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Starting Early: The Cost of Waiting

Four savers, one retirement age. Ava, Ben, and Cara put away the same monthly amount but start at 25, 35, and 45. Dana starts at 25 with just a fifth of that amount and steps it up each decade — contributing the same total dollars as Cara. We replay each plan through every real historical market window (1928–2021) and compare what they end up with at 65.

Historical backtests for education only — not investment advice; past performance does not guarantee future results.

Parameters
$
Dana steps up: 20% → 40% → 60% → 80% of this by decade.
%
The rest earns the bond blend (30% T-bills / 70% 10-year Treasuries).
Off = the same dollar figure every month. (Separate from the chart's nominal/real display toggle below.)
The four savers

Ava starts at 25 and contributes for 40 years.

Ben starts at 35 — same monthly amount, 30 years.

Cara starts at 45 — same monthly amount, 20 years.

Dana starts at 25 with a small amount and raises it each decade. Her total contributions exactly equal Cara's — only the timing differs.

How to read this

Contributions only add money, so no plan can "fail" — the comparison is how far the same dollars go depending on when they were invested.

Real (start-year $): deflates each balance by that window's actual inflation, so you see purchasing power in the dollars of the year the saver started.

New to this? Start with Retirement Planning 101.