Pillar Zero · Swiss FIRE
Is your capital enough for early retirement?
Pillar Zero works out the bridge between your exit and the moment you can draw on Säule 3a, Pensionskasse and AHV — including real ESTV taxes for your municipality. In four steps, free and entirely private.
Educational tool, not financial advice · no sign-up · your inputs never leave your browser
The problem
Your pension capital is locked away — exactly when you need it.
Retire early and you have to bridge the years until 58–65, before the three pillars kick in. This bridge phase decides whether early retirement holds up.
Bridge phase
Exit → 58/60
Only your freely available wealth is at hand. Säule 3a and the Pensionskasse are locked.
Pension withdrawal
from 58–60
Pensionskasse and Säule 3a become accessible — staggered carefully, that saves tax.
AHV
from 63–65
The AHV pension begins and reduces what you need to draw from your own wealth.
What Pillar Zero calculates
Everything that defines Swiss early retirement.
Bridge capital
How much liquid wealth you need to bridge the years until your first pension withdrawal.
Real taxes per municipality
Income, wealth and capital tax with real 2026 ESTV figures — for each of the 2,110 municipalities.
Säule 3a · PK · AHV
Staggered 3a withdrawals, Pensionskasse as capital or pension, early AHV draw and the AHV contributions on wealth.
Monte Carlo with real data
How robust is the plan? A simulation based on real Swiss equity and bond returns since 1900.
For couples too
Two profiles with their own exit age and pensions — worked out as a household, including the AHV ceiling.
Local & private
Every calculation runs in your browser. No inputs are ever sent to a server.
How it works
Four steps to your answer.
01
About you
Age, planned exit age, canton and municipality.
02
Wealth & income
Portfolio, Säule 3a, Pensionskasse, salary and savings rate.
03
Retirement
Spending, pensions, withdrawal age and how you draw your pension.
04
Result
Is the capital enough? With a timeline, taxes and a year-by-year view.
From the blog
Know-how for early retirement.
Pensionskasse
Pensionskasse: capital, pension or a mix?
When you draw your Pensionskasse you decide, once, between a lifelong pension, capital — or a mix. The choice shapes taxes, flexibility and security for the rest of your life.
7 min read
AHV
AHV contributions for the non-employed: the underestimated cost of early retirement
Stop working and you still pay AHV — based on wealth. For wealthy early retirees that can be up to CHF 26,500 per person per year.
6 min read
Taxes
Drawing Säule 3a in stages: how to break the tax progression
The lump-sum withdrawal tax is progressive and is calculated each year on the total withdrawal. Closing several 3a accounts in different years costs significantly less.
5 min read
Frequent questions
Good to know.
+ What does Pillar Zero cost?
Nothing. The calculator is free and needs no sign-up. There is no paid version.
+ Are my inputs stored?
No. All calculations run locally in your browser. No financial data is sent to a server.
+ How accurate are the taxes?
The capital, income and wealth taxes are based on real figures from the official ESTV tax calculator (2026), scaled per municipality. The federal direct tax is computed with the exact tariff. Some simplifications remain (e.g. deductions) — the figures are estimates without warranty.
+ Is this financial advice?
No. Pillar Zero is an educational tool. It does not replace personal financial, tax or pension advice.
Work out your own bridge.
Free, in a few minutes, without your inputs leaving your browser.