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Tools · Floor and Enjoy
UPDATED APRIL 2026

Floor and Enjoy.
Build your retirement income plan.

The Floor and Enjoy strategy separates guaranteed income (the floor) from invested assets (the enjoy). Calculate your floor gap, how much portfolio it takes to fill, and what remains for growth.

US-only. Annuity rates and Social Security are US references. Other countries use different mechanisms.

Worked example: Essential expenses $4,500/mo. Social Security $2,200/mo. Floor gap $2,300/mo ($27,600/yr). At a 6% SPIASingle Premium Immediate Annuity (SPIA)A one-time lump-sum purchase that converts to a fixed monthly income for life (or for a fixed period). Strips out longevity risk on the converted portion of a portfolio in exchange for giving up control of the principal. payout: $460,000 to fund the floor. Portfolio $800,000. After floor funding: $340,000 for the "enjoy" portion. This $340,000 can ride out market downturns because essentials are already covered.

ESSENTIAL MONTHLY EXPENSES
GUARANTEED INCOME
PORTFOLIO & ANNUITY
Single Premium Immediate Annuity payout rates vary by age, insurer, and interest rates. Get a quote at immediateannuities.com before relying on this estimate.
RESULTS
ESSENTIAL EXPENSES
$0/mo
GUARANTEED INCOME
$0/mo
FLOOR GAP
$0/mo
$0/year
PORTFOLIO TO FILL FLOOR
$0
ENJOY PORTFOLIO
$0
ANALYSIS
Enter your numbers above.
How this tool works
  • Floor gap = essential expenses - guaranteed income. If guaranteed income exceeds essential expenses, your floor is already covered.
  • Portfolio to fill floor = (annual gap) / (SPIA payout rate). At a 6% SPIA payout, $1,000/year of guaranteed income costs roughly $16,667 in lump sum.
  • Enjoy portfolio = total portfolio - portfolio needed for floor. This is the discretionary growth allocation.
  • SPIA payouts vary by purchase age, gender, current interest rates, and insurer. The default 6% is a rough average for someone in their late 60s or early 70s. Get an actual quote before committing.
  • The Floor and Enjoy framework comes from retirement researcher David Blanchett ×DON'T TRUST, VERIFYClaim: The Floor and Enjoy / floor-and-upside framework is documented in retirement-finance research, including work by David Blanchett.Verify at: Boston College Center for Retirement Research ↗ · Blanchett (2014) "Exploring the Retirement Consumption Puzzle" ↗The two-bucket / floor-upside framework has academic precedents in lifecycle finance..
  • This calculation does not adjust for inflationinflationA general increase in prices over time, meaning each dollar buys less than it did before.Full definition. SPIAs typically pay a fixed nominal amount unless you buy an inflation-adjustedinflation-adjustedA dollar number redrawn after stripping out the effect of rising prices, so you can compare what the money actually bought across years. A $30,000 salary in 1985 was worth more in real life than a $50,000 salary today. variant (which has lower starting payouts).
  • You do not have to actually buy a SPIA to use this framework. The "portfolio needed for floor" is a planning anchor; you can fund the floor with a TIPS ladderTIPS ladderA portfolio of Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities maturing in successive years, structured to produce a real-dollar income stream year by year. Used as part of a retirement income floor with US-government default risk only., a bond ladder, or a more conservative withdrawal rate from the equity portfolio.

Related

→ Sequence of Returns Risk · the full framework → FIRE → Near Retirement → Annuity Guide

Not financial advice. Annuity rates change frequently. Get current quotes before relying on the floor calculation.