Contribution Gap Calculator | Predictable Income

🚧

Contribution Gap

Life happens. See the long-term impact of pausing contributions for one, two, or five years during a job loss or sabbatical.

Your Setup

Current Portfolio ($)

Annual Contributions ($)

Years to Retirement 25 years

Expected Annual Return 7.0%

How Long Would You Pause?

1year

2years

3years

5years

When Does the Pause Start? Year 5

Lifetime Cost of the Pause

—

Without Pause

—

final portfolio value

With Pause

—

final portfolio value

Portfolio Trajectory — With vs Without Pause

Pausing contributions for — costs you — by retirement, far more than the — in missed contributions. That gap is the power of compound interest working against you.

Contribution Gap Calculator

A job loss, sabbatical, parental leave, or career pivot often forces you to pause investment contributions, but most people dramatically underestimate what that pause actually costs. Our Contribution Gap Calculator shows you the true long-term impact of pausing contributions for one, two, three, or five years at any point in your career. Enter your current portfolio, annual contributions, years to retirement, and expected return, pick your pause length, and set when the pause begins. The calculator returns the final portfolio value in both scenarios plus the exact dollar cost of the pause, separating the skipped contributions from the much larger compound growth you forfeit. Pauses that happen earlier in your career cost far more than later ones due to how compound interest works, which is why this tool is especially valuable for younger investors weighing a sabbatical or career break.