How the numbers are calculated
No black box. Here's exactly what the engine does. It's deliberately conservative and rounds for clarity — it's a planning aid, not a guarantee.
The inputs
Exit type, take-home income, liquid savings, destination cost of living, health-coverage choice, savings rate, burnout, and (optionally) dependents, debt, one-time costs, seniority, job-market condition, sabbatical length and expected return.
Survival burn
- Lean essentials ≈ 72% of a city's comfortable cost of living (bare-survival mode).
- Healthcare premium is estimated from your plan choice and household, and is much higher for US coverage. COBRA > ACA > spouse plan > none.
- Effective burn = lean essentials + healthcare + debt − any side/partner income.
Buffer duration (this is the big one)
Instead of a fixed "6 months", the number of months of runway you need is derived from your exit type:
- Job-hunt: re-employment time by seniority (junior 3 → exec 9 months) × job-market multiplier (hot 0.75, normal 1.0, cold 1.5).
- Freelance: 6 months income ramp + 3 months variability cushion = 9.
- Sabbatical: your chosen length + 3 months re-entry.
- Relocate & keep remote income: 3 months (income continues; cost is mostly one-time).
- Full FIRE: a different model — 25× annual spend (the 4% rule).
The three numbers
- Recommended = effective burn × buffer months × dependents factor (1 + 0.15 per dependent) + one-time costs.
- Minimum Viable Escape = a harder-cut lean burn × the shortest defensible buffer (3–4 months) + critical one-time costs, minus side income.
- Safe = Recommended × 1.25.
Runway, gap and escape date
- Current runway = liquid savings ÷ effective monthly burn.
- Gap = Recommended − liquid savings.
- Escape date = today + the months needed to close the gap at your savings rate (compounded if you set an expected return).
Readiness score (0–100)
A weighted blend: 55% savings coverage vs the recommended number, 20% income resilience (side income vs burn), 15% raw runway depth, 10% debt health. Bands: 0–39 Building, 40–69 Approaching, 70–89 Escape-Ready, 90–100 Walk Whenever.
How burnout is used
Burnout never reduces the money you need to survive — that would be dangerous. Instead it shapes emphasis (high burnout highlights the Minimum Viable Escape and a Barista bridge; low burnout nudges toward the Safe number) and surfaces support resources. The survival math stays honest.
Scenarios
Conservative / Expected / Optimistic flex the buffer length, how much side income you'll actually realize, and your return assumption — so you see a range, not false precision.
Data & limits
Cost-of-living and insurance figures are rounded 2026 estimates for planning. They will not match your exact situation. Cross-check with Numbeo, real insurance quotes, and ideally a fee-only professional. The full engine lives in /assets/js/engine.js.