How much will you earn over your whole working life? Enter when you start and retire, your starting salary and how fast it grows, plus any career breaks, to see your lifetime earnings, their value in today's money, your earnings per hour and what each break costs.
Last updated:
Career
years
years
$/ yr
Your pay in the first year
%
Raises and promotions on average
years
Pay often levels off late in a career; leave empty for none
% / yr
Career breaks
One per line, e.g. 31, 1 = a year off at 31 (parental leave, study, sabbatical). Leave empty for none.
Hours (for earnings per hour)
52 includes paid vacation
Enter your values to see the result.
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How to use the Lifetime Earnings Calculator
Enter your career span: the age you start working and the age you plan to retire.
Enter your starting salary and the average yearly growth you expect.
Set a plateau age if you expect raises to stop late in your career.
List any career breaks as age and years off, and choose whether pay keeps growing while you are away.
Press Calculate lifetime earnings to see the total, per-hour figure and earnings by age.
The lifetime earnings formula
For a career of n years starting at salary S with growth g per year and no breaks:
Lifetime earnings = S × ((1 + g)n − 1) ÷ g
With breaks, each year's pay is multiplied by the share of the year worked, and if pay does not grow while you are away, the raise for that year is reduced by the same share. A plateau age stops the growth from that age on.
Lifetime earnings for a 45-year career
Starting salary
2% growth
3% growth
4% growth
$35,000
$2,516,245
$3,245,195
$4,236,029
$50,000
$3,594,636
$4,635,993
$6,051,470
$75,000
$5,391,953
$6,953,990
$9,077,204
No breaks or plateau, gross pay, nominal dollars.
Ways to raise your lifetime earnings
Start higher: the first salary is the base every later raise builds on, so negotiating it pays for decades.
Grow skills early: a higher growth rate in the first 10 to 15 years has the biggest compounding effect.
Plan breaks: keeping skills current and negotiating your return salary limits the long-term cost of time off.
Look at hourly value: a slightly lower salary with far fewer hours can mean more per hour of your life.
Frequently asked questions
How are lifetime earnings calculated?
Add up the salary for every working year. Without breaks, that is a geometric series: starting salary × ((1 + g)^years − 1) ÷ g. For example, $50,000 growing 3.5% a year for 45 years totals about $5.3 million before tax.
What does 'in today's money' mean?
Salary growth usually includes inflation, so a dollar earned at 60 buys less than a dollar earned at 25. The calculator divides each year's pay by (1 + inflation)^years since you started, which shows lifetime earnings in the purchasing power of your first working year.
How much does a career break cost?
More than the salary you skip. Without raises during the break, every later year's pay is also lower, so a one-year break early in a career can cost noticeably more than one year of salary. The calculator compares your plan with the same career without breaks.
Why set an age when raises stop?
Real-world pay tends to rise fastest early in a career and flatten later. A plateau age keeps the projection from assuming the same growth rate right up to retirement.
How is earnings per hour worked out?
Lifetime earnings ÷ (working years × hours per week × paid weeks per year). It is a useful way to compare careers with very different hours, such as a high salary with long weeks versus a lower salary with standard hours.
Does this include benefits or investment growth?
No. It totals gross salary only. Employer retirement contributions, health benefits, bonuses and investment returns on savings would add to your lifetime wealth, while taxes reduce what you keep.
Are all the tools on FreeToolCabin tested for quality and accuracy?
Yes! Every tool on our site undergoes automated Q/A testing in real browser environments to ensure high precision, correct output, and zero errors. If you happen to spot a bug or have a suggestion, please contact us at [email protected] and our team will review it right away.