So many people eagerly anticipate their retirement, and yet so many of us don’t truly understand what it means to build a retirement plan. Whether you plan to work until a traditional retirement age or you’re aiming for early retirement, there are a lot of considerations to make. That’s where ProjectionLab comes in. Check out our full ProjectionLab review to see how this software can support your retirement goals!
What is ProjectionLab?
ProjectionLab is a sophisticated retirement calculator that captures a lot of detail other finance tools miss.
You can use ProjectionLab to:
- Input financial goals
- Identify significant milestones
- Evaluate the likelihood of your success
- Reconsider asset allocations, investing strategies, and more.
After inputting your data, ProjectionLab creates a living model of your life’s finances. You can toggle through each year, exploring the variety of possible outcomes. Along the way, you can also try out different financial strategies.
Are you looking to mix up your asset allocation? Do you want to see how your drawdown options impact your portfolio? You can do all this and more with ProjectionLab. By experimenting with portfolio blends and account types, you can see the short-term and long-term impact different strategies can have.
Ultimately, ProjectionLab should help you evaluate the likelihood of achieving your goals and reduce your financial anxiety.
ProjectionLab Cost
ProjectionLab is available at a variety of price points. Anyone can use the basic version at no cost. Then, there are two paid plans available. The premium plan targets individual users who want the ability to store their data, whereas the pro plan is aimed at financial coaches and advisors.
- Basic – $0
- Premium – $9/month
- Pro – $45/month
ProjectionLab Review: Best Features
What do I need to retire? Is $2 million enough to retire? What about $1 million? Though no one has a crystal ball to see the future, ProjectionLab offers some incredible features to help you test your financial plans.
Let’s explore some of the best parts of ProjectionLab!
Monte Carlo Simulation
Have you ever wondered if you are saving enough for retirement? It’s tough to know if you’re on track. A Monte Carlo simulation can help! This mathematical model takes an uncertain event (your retirement!) and forecasts a range of possible outcomes.
While you may start by using salary multiples or the 4% Rule as a guide, Monte Carlo simulations can give a much clearer picture in terms of how your portfolio may perform over the course of your retirement.
Monte Carlo simulations can be complicated to input and understand. That’s why we love when retirement planning tools like ProjectionLab feature them. You will get access to the simulation results in an easy-to-understand format.
Multiple Scenarios
One of the things we love most about ProjectionLab is how it allows you to see how multiple scenarios might impact your financial goals. Some of the scenarios that ProjectionLab lets you evaluate include becoming debt free, buying a first home, getting married, having one or more children, retiring, and having a spouse who retires.
ProjectionLab also understands the nuance involved in having a career. You can use ProjectionLab to evaluate options like sabbaticals and part-time work. It can even help you decide if you are ready to take your passion project and transform it into full-time entrepreneurship.
There are many other scenarios that ProjectionLab allows you to investigate as well. When you see how your plans withstand different situations, you should hopefully feel your confidence in those plans increase.
Get a Handle on HealthCare
As we continue to live longer (and maybe retire earlier!), you want to make sure that your portfolio lasts as long as you need it. For many people, though, healthcare is a wild card. Not with ProjectionLab!
Another feature that sets ProjectionLab apart from other finance tools is its ability to help you get answers to some of the most pressing healthcare questions.
Are you considering maternity or paternity leave? Perhaps you have a condition that requires medical leave, or you’re suffering from burnout and need time to recover. You can use ProjectionLab to evaluate the impact that time off from work would have on your financial plans.
Additionally, ProjectionLab can help you plan for medical expenses, including long-term care. If you’ve ever worried that you can’t properly factor healthcare into your retirement, you are in good hands with ProjectionLab.
Free Version
Sometimes when platforms offer free versions, users may find that the tools are sparse. That’s not the case with ProjectionLab. In fact, one thing that we wanted to emphasize in our ProjectionLab review is how robust the free version actually is. You can input your data and use their retirement planning tools for free.
More specifically, the free version of Projection Lab offers:
- Historical backtesting
- Monte Carlo simulations
- Cash-flow visualizations
- Flexible modeling
It is worth noting that your data is not saved between sessions when you utilize the free version.
No Sales Pitch
Some retirement planning tools come with a sales pitch. ProjectionLab isn’t one of them! In addition to the free version, there is a paid option to access more tools and insights. Regardless of which version you use, there is no sales pitch and no upsell.
ProjectionLab Review: Things to Consider
If you’re in the FIRE community, there’s a good chance you’re ready to jump into ProjectionLab with two feet. However, there are a few things that you should consider first.
Pay for Best Features
Are you looking to incorporate ProjectionLab in your money dates and planning? Then you might consider paying for the Premium version. For $9/month, you gain the ability to save your data. The multiple data saving options can streamline your planning and simplify your money conversations.
The premium version of ProjectionLab also offers:
- Tax estimation
- Tax analytics and customization
- Advanced visualizations
- Comparisons
- Premium support
Learning Curve
There’s a bit of a learning curve when it comes to using ProjectionLab. Oftentimes, people find the early retirement movement and are familiar with the 4% Rule. The type of projecting and modeling that ProjectionLab does is much more complex and situation-specific. As a result, you might find yourself having to play around with the tools a bit to truly understand the best way to use them.
Still, we really think that this five-star software is worth the initial effort!
ProjectionLab Competitors
There is a seemingly endless amount of finance tools online. You may already be familiar with our favorite budget apps for families. But getting ready for retirement isn’t just about budgeting and investing. Instead, you need a tool that can help you work through all the nuances of retirement planning. That’s where comprehensive software like ProjectionLab can be helpful.
Before you take ProjectionLab for a spin, there are two other ProjectionLab competitors that you may want to learn more about: Empower and Boldin.
Empower
One ProjectionLab competitor that is worth knowing is called Empower . Empower is an early retirement juggernaut that smashed onto the scene under the name Personal Capital. People fell in love with the software because of the different tools it offered users for free.
Many people still love Empower for those same reasons. Though it’s worth noting that Empower is a bit lacking in terms of its forecasting, as it doesn’t do Monte Carlo simulations or the more complicated number crunching that ProjectionLab offers. Still, Empower is worth considering if you are looking for a more comprehensive software that covers cash flow, retirement, savings, goals, and even education planning.
Do you have six-figures in your portfolio? Then, you should expect a phone call inviting you to explore Empower’s asset management services. There’s no obligation to say yes. However, we also know that many people are a bit phone-phobic. If that’s you, then you might want to explore other options. For more details, check out our detailed Empower Review.
Boldin
Boldin calls itself the #1 retirement tool online. They emphasize the importance of looking beyond saving and investing by offering a panoramic approach to retirement planning.
The sleek dashboard offers a lot of at-a-glance insight that users find helpful. For instance, when you log in, you can quickly see your retirement chance-of-success meter. To dig deeper, you simply click on the icons to get in-depth insight specific to your data and progress.
Boldin offers a free and paid version, with the paid version costing $120 per year. The paid version offers features similar to ProjectionLab. It also allows you to explore Roth conversion options, healthcare planning and challenges specific to retirement. To make sure you’re truly informed, Boldin hosts live classes and Q&A sessions.
Final Thoughts on ProjectionLab Review
There’s a lot to appreciate about ProjectionLab. The clean interface makes it easy to get the insight you need. Even though there is a bit of a learning curve, the clear visuals will appeal to any user. For investors looking for top-tier tools at a great price, it’s hard to beat ProjectionLab.
Overall, we rate ProjectionLab as a five-star finance and retirement planning tool. If you want to take the guesswork out of retirement planning, you likely want to consider ProjectionLab.
What surprised you in our ProjectionLab Review? What tools are you using to plan your retirement?
Please let us know in the comments below.
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