Savings Rate
The share of your income you save or invest rather than spend — the strongest predictor of how fast you reach financial independence.
Your savings rate is the percentage of your income you don't spend — the portion that goes to investing and building wealth. In FIRE planning it's the single most powerful lever, because a higher savings rate both grows your portfolio faster and lowers the spending you need to fund, pulling your financial-independence date dramatically closer.
The math is striking: at a 50% savings rate, you're saving as much as you spend, and financial independence can arrive in well under two decades rather than the traditional four-plus. There are different ways to define it (gross versus net of taxes, whether to count employer match), so what matters most is picking a consistent definition and tracking it over time.
This definition is general information to help you understand a term, not financial, tax, or legal advice. Figures that change year to year (limits, thresholds, rates) should be confirmed against current official sources. For guidance on your situation, a licensed fee-only fiduciary is the right next step.