Your coast FIRE number, with the state pension counted
Your coast FIRE number is the sum that lets you stop saving for retirement and carry on working. Count the state pension, work until it starts, and the sum shrinks.
Pensions
State, workplace, and private pots, and no two countries run the same scheme.
Latest
What to do with spare money in Europe, and in what order
Where an employer or the State tops up what you pay into a pension, the free money can be worth years of overdraft interest. Collect it before clearing expensive debt only if you keep up every minimum payment, your income looks steady, and that debt will be gone within its time limit, counted in months and shorter on a card than on an overdraft. Under Ireland's auto-enrolment, a drop in pay lowers your contribution by itself, so that alone is no reason to pause.
The cost of doing nothing with your money, and what to fix first
Four money lines go stale at once: savings, tariffs, an uninvested surplus, and a pension rate you never set. Here's the ten-year bill, and what to fix first.
Employer pension contributions mean five different things across Europe
Cross a border and employer pension contributions become five different things. Ireland and Britain force a minimum in; Spain requires nothing at all.
What is financial independence? Not a permanent holiday
Financial independence is a coverage test, not a wealth level: non-work income covers your costs, so work turns optional. Europe changes the maths.
Staying the course: how to handle market panic and volatility
A falling market is a paper loss until you sell. How to sit through the panic, tell when selling is actually rational, and how long crashes really last.
What is your 'enough' number? How to define your financial finish line
Your enough number is the pot that replaces a wage. Europe's version beats America's 25x rule, and even hitting it will not feel like enough.
Inflation-proofing retirement: which European pensions keep up
Your pension rose this year; prices rose faster. Which European pensions keep pace with inflation, and how to defend the slices that quietly erode.
The 4% rule for European retirees: does it still hold up in 2026?
3% to 3.5%, not 4%: that's the realistic safe withdrawal rate for a European retiree living off a portfolio. Here's what moves it, and why.
Why retirement planning matters: the real cost of waiting
About 41% of Europeans surveyed pay into no private or workplace pension, and each year you wait costs more than the payments you skip. Here's that cost, in euros.
Tax·
Tax-efficient investing in Europe: the fee you can cut
A 0.5% annual tax drag can cost a European investor tens of thousands over a working life. Cut it with the right wrapper, fund and filling order.
Liquidity in personal finance: which of your own money can you reach?
Liquidity is which of your own money you can actually reach. Map it onto European wrappers, then size the cash buffer none of the locked stuff can rescue.