Retirement planning apps compared: United States
There is no single best app: it depends on what you need. Each app here plans for this country; the facts about it come from its own public pages, Family Office's from its own code. We make Family Office, so read our rows knowing that.
What Family Office covers in this country
| US tax | Federal and state income tax (51 regimes, one per state and DC), capital gains and dividends with the net investment income tax, 85 percent of Social Security taxed (the statutory maximum) and IRMAA on Medicare premiums, year by year in the plan, and federal estate tax on the estate it leaves |
|---|---|
| Pensions | 401(k), Roth 401(k), IRA, Roth IRA, 529 and Social Security; other pension income as an annuity |
| Bank links | Through Plaid (United States): 2 on Premium, 10 on Gold and Platinum |
| Other countries | 122 tax regimes in 34 countries; a move from one to another in the plan on Premium and up |
| Where data is kept | Amazon Web Services in London (eu-west-2); bank links (Plaid), payments (Stripe) and maps (Google) through US providers; e-mail through Google Workspace; see the privacy policy for the full list |
Side by side
| App | Bank links | Free plan | Price | Monte Carlo |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Family Office (ours) | Through Plaid (United States): 2 on Premium, 10 on Gold and Platinum | Yes, with no card and no time limit: up to 8 items, one taxpayer and a projection of 5 periods. The paid plans start with 14 days free, card needed. The calculators are free, with no account. | $15 to $59 a month (£12 to £49, CA$20 to CA$79); a year costs the price of 10 months | The chance of success on every plan, the Free plan included; the paths and the fan chart on Gold and Platinum |
| Family Office vs Fidelity | Not stated | UK calculator: an anonymous short quiz | No fee to generate a plan | US planner: yes |
| Family Office vs ProjectionLab | None: no link to your accounts | Yes: forecasting, Monte Carlo and historical backtesting | Premium $129 a year; Pro $549 a year for advisers | Yes, on every plan, with historical backtesting |
| Family Office vs Monarch | Yes, through Plaid, Finicity, MX and Spinwheel | None listed; the first week is free | $14.99 a month or $99.99 a year; Monarch Plus $199 a year | Not stated |
| Family Office vs Boldin | Connected accounts on PlannerPlus, through Plaid, MX and Finicity | Yes: Basic is free | PlannerPlus $14 a month or $168 a year, 14-day free trial; Boldin Advisors $3,200 flat fee | On PlannerPlus |
| Family Office vs Empower | Yes: connecting accounts is encouraged, not required | Yes: the dashboard and the financial tools are free | Free; Personal Strategy advice for more than $250,000 invested, for a fee | 5,000 simulations |
| Family Office vs MaxiFi | Not stated | None; a 14-day trial, card needed | MaxiFi Unlocked $149 a year | Living Standard Monte Carlo on MaxiFi Unlocked |
| Family Office vs Pralana | Not stated | Bronze is a free download, to be replaced by a free trial of Pralana Online | Online: Platinum $30 sign-up and $99 a year, Family $40 and $159, Pro $50 and $349, Pro 50 $100 and $499; Gold (Excel) $99 a year | 1,000 simulations |
| Family Office vs a spreadsheet | You type or paste the figures | Yes: LibreOffice Calc is free | Free with LibreOffice | Possible if you build it |
Fidelity
Fidelity offers free retirement tools: in the UK, a short anonymous retirement calculator powered by Wealth Wizards; in the US, a Retirement Planner for persons in the US.
ProjectionLab
ProjectionLab is a planning tool with forecasting, Monte Carlo and historical backtesting on its free plan, presets for several countries including the UK, and a Pro plan for advisers.
Monarch
Monarch is a budgeting and net worth app for households in the US and Canada, made to share with a partner or a professional; Monarch Plus adds forecasting and business tracking.
Boldin
Boldin (formerly NewRetirement) is a retirement planner for people in the US, with tools for Social Security, Roth conversions and federal and state tax, and flat-fee advisers.
Empower
Empower's dashboard and Retirement Planner are free tools: the more accounts you connect, the more they show; its advisers manage portfolios of more than $250,000 for a fee.
MaxiFi
MaxiFi Planner is for people in the US: it works out the living standard you can sustain, with federal and state tax, Social Security and a Roth Conversion Optimizer.
Pralana
Pralana is a detailed US retirement planner, online or as an Excel workbook (Gold), for people who want US tax and accounts modelled in depth; Pro plans are for advisers.
A spreadsheet
A spreadsheet suits someone who wants to see and change every formula, and is happy to build and update them.
Other comparisons
Facts about other apps checked on 2026-11-10. Prices and features change: each app's own page is the reference.