PopaDex FIRE Report · 2026

Net Worth Across Borders:
What FIRE Looks Like in 10 Countries

From €630k in Lisbon to CHF 1.18M in Zurich: PPP-adjusted FIRE targets and monthly budgets across 10 countries.

April 2026 · 10 countries · 4% rule applied · OECD PPP-adjusted

The FIRE Number in 10 Countries

25× annual living expenses. How much net worth you need to retire early at a 4% withdrawal rate.

United States

FIRE Number

$1,200,000 $48,000/yr · $4,000/mo

Cost vs US (PPP) 100%

FIRE Difficulty

Hard: private healthcare costs

United Kingdom

FIRE Number

£780,000 £31,200/yr · £2,600/mo

Cost vs US (PPP) 86%

FIRE Difficulty

Hard: high regional variation

Germany

FIRE Number

€835,000 €33,400/yr · €2,780/mo

Cost vs US (PPP) 81%

FIRE Difficulty

Medium: strong wages, moderate costs

Lowest FIRE #

Portugal

FIRE Number

€630,000 €25,200/yr · €2,100/mo

Cost vs US (PPP) 61%

FIRE Difficulty

Accessible: lowest cost in study

Highest FIRE #

Switzerland

FIRE Number

CHF 1,175,000 CHF 47,000/yr · CHF 3,920/mo

Cost vs US (PPP) 123%

FIRE Difficulty

Medium: high salaries and lower tax offset costs

France

FIRE Number

€810,000 €32,400/yr · €2,700/mo

Cost vs US (PPP) 78%

FIRE Difficulty

Medium: strong social safety net

Canada

FIRE Number

C$1,400,000 C$56,000/yr · C$4,665/mo

Cost vs US (PPP) 83%

FIRE Difficulty

Hard: housing costs rising fast

Australia

FIRE Number

A$1,645,000 A$65,800/yr · A$5,485/mo

Cost vs US (PPP) 89%

FIRE Difficulty

Medium: superannuation head start

Netherlands

FIRE Number

€870,000 €34,800/yr · €2,900/mo

Cost vs US (PPP) 84%

FIRE Difficulty

Accessible: high wages, moderate costs

Spain

FIRE Number

€695,000 €27,800/yr · €2,315/mo

Cost vs US (PPP) 67%

FIRE Difficulty

Medium: low costs, moderate wages

FIRE Numbers Side-by-Side

USD-equivalent comparison (ECB exchange rates: Nov 2025) · Sorted high to low

FIRE Number (USD Equivalent)

How much you need to accumulate at 4% withdrawal rate · PPP-adjusted · Single person

Switzerland

≈ $1,477,000

USA

$1,200,000

Australia

≈ $1,072,000

≈ $1,028,000

Netherlands

≈ $1,009,000

Canada

≈ $998,000

Germany

≈ $968,000

France

≈ $939,000

Spain

≈ $806,000

Portugal

≈ $730,000

ECB exchange rates (Nov 2025): 1 EUR = $1.16 · 1 GBP = $1.32 · 1 CHF = $1.26 · 1 CAD = $0.71 · 1 AUD = $0.65

6 Key Insights

What the data reveals about FIRE across borders

2.0×

Switzerland vs Portugal gap

Switzerland's FIRE number (CHF 1.18M / ≈$1.48M) is 2× larger than Portugal's (€630k / ≈$730k) when both are derived from OECD purchasing power data. Earn Swiss salaries, retire in Lisbon, and the gap works in your favour.

123%

Switzerland's cost-of-living vs the US

OECD PPP data shows Switzerland is 23% more expensive than the US in purchasing-power terms. But Swiss salaries are proportionally higher, which keeps the country at "medium" FIRE difficulty despite the highest absolute target.

17 yrs

Universal years-to-FIRE at 50% savings

The 4% Rule is currency-agnostic. If you save 50% of your income and invest at 7% real returns, you reach FIRE in about 17 years regardless of country. The country only matters for lifestyle, taxes, and whether 50% is achievable.

61%

Portugal: the lowest PPP-adjusted cost

Portugal's OECD purchasing power factor (0.52) gives it the lowest PPP-adjusted living cost of any country in this study, at 61% of the US baseline. Spain follows at 67%, making southern Europe the most accessible FIRE region.

PPP 1.0

The US is the PPP baseline

All OECD PPP comparisons use the US dollar as the base (PPP = 1.0). Every other country in this study has a lower purchasing-power cost (except Switzerland at 0.98, which becomes more expensive in USD because of the strong franc).

3 routes

Three global FIRE strategies

Low-cost retire-in-place: Portugal or Spain, low FIRE target, retire locally. Earn high, retire elsewhere: Switzerland or UK income, Iberian retirement. Super-powered: Australia's mandatory 11% superannuation gives a head start no other country matches.

Purchasing Power vs the United States

How far your money stretches in each country, relative to the US baseline (OECD PPP, 2022)

Cost of Living — PPP-Adjusted, US = 100%

Green = cheaper than the US · Amber = close to parity · Red = more expensive

Switzerland

123%

United States

100%

Australia

89%

United Kingdom

86%

Netherlands

84%

Canada

83%

Germany

81%

France

78%

Spain

67%

Portugal

61%

What this means for FIRE: A dollar of spending buys 39% more in Portugal than in the US, and 64% more than in Switzerland. The FIRE numbers above reflect these differences — your target shrinks or grows with your purchasing power.

Methodology & Sources

FIRE Number calculation: Based on the 4% Safe Withdrawal Rate (Bengen, 1994; Trinity Study), which suggests you need 25× your annual expenses to retire safely from a 60/40 portfolio indefinitely. Annual expenses are derived from OECD Purchasing Power Parity data, using a US $48,000/yr baseline that represents a comfortable single-person median lifestyle in a major urban centre.

Data sources: Cost-of-living relativities from the OECD PPP dataset (2022 reference period, retrieved via SDMX API, last updated February 2025). Exchange rates from the European Central Bank reference rates (November 2025), accessed via the EuCentralBank gem. The PPP factor for each country converts the US baseline into local-currency annual spending, which is then multiplied by 25.

Exchange rates: EUR/USD 1.1593, GBP/USD 1.3181, CHF/USD 1.2567, CAD/USD 0.7125, AUD/USD 0.6514 — all ECB reference rates from November 2025. USD equivalents are illustrative; the actual FIRE number should always be calculated in your spending currency.

Important limitations: PPP factors measure average purchasing power, not individual spending. Your personal FIRE number depends on your actual spending, family size, healthcare needs, tax situation, and chosen retirement location. Use the PopaDex FIRE Calculator for a personalised number.

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Net Worth Across Borders:What FIRE Looks Like in 10 Countries

Where does your net worth stand?Track it across all your accounts.

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Net Worth Across Borders:
What FIRE Looks Like in 10 Countries

Where does your net worth stand?
Track it across all your accounts.