Some retirement tools have AI features that can help you craft the right plan for you.
Planning for retirement can be tough, especially when you leave your cushy corporate job, like I did.
Three years ago, I pivoted from being a software engineer to being a writer and exploring my creative projects. That change affected my income and retirement plan, including saying goodbye to my shiny 10% employer 401(k) match.
I knew that leaving the corporate world meant I wouldn’t be able to put as much money toward savings and retirement during my first few years freelancing. I still saved, but I needed to figure out how my career change would affect my retirement plans.
Little did I know, artificial intelligence tools would play a big role.
The right AI tools and features can take your financial data and forecast retirement trends — like job losses and market fluctuations. And the right prompts and queries can determine how much money you need to retire by a certain age, and even calculate your spending power at the time of retirement.
But I found that AI has its hurdles and headaches.
Here’s how you can use AI to prepare for retirement and what I recommend if you’re leaning on robots to help you plan for your financial future.
How to use AI for retirement planning
Different AI tools use different machine-learning models, and it’s important to know which one to use and when.
ChatGPT is a large language model useful for answering financial questions and performing dynamic planning through prompts and queries. For example, I like that ChatGPT can help project retirement timelines, especially when expenses, income or taxes change. It may not be a financial adviser, but it’s a great starting point when you can’t afford one.
However, ChatGPT is a general-purpose chatbot with limited capabilities compared to the AI tools used within banking and retirement software. The AI models that banks use in retirement apps are ideal for automated portfolio optimization and other financial tasks.
So which one is best? It depends on how you want AI to help you plan for retirement.
To get the most out of ChatGPT, use specific queries and include all of the important factors the model needs to analyze and answer your questions correctly.
For example, I used the following query in ChatGPT: “If I currently have $200,000 saved for retirement at age 35 and want to retire at age 55, how much will I have at that time? Forecast with a monthly contribution of $500 and 10% interest rate.”
ChatGPT’s response: “If you’re 35 years old with $200,000 saved for retirement, contribute $500 a month, and earn an average 10% annual return (compounded monthly), by the time you reach age 55, you would have approximately $1,845,299.”
Then from there, I can ask clarifying questions to dig deeper, like:
- “How will that change if I can only save $200 a month?”
- “If my projected monthly expenses for my retirement age are $5,000 a month, what will that increase to in 20 years due to inflation?”
- “What would $1,845,299 be worth in 2045?”
- “If I have $1,845,299 at retirement and want it to last 20 years, how much should I spend per month? How would that change if I add $3,000 a month from Social Security?”
An expert’s take
Jannese Torres, a fellow CNET Money Expert Review Board member and author of Financially Lit!, recommends using AI tools for financial guidance, too. Mainly, because of the transparency.
“The truth is, AI is pulling from massive amounts of financial data and research to give you clear, actionable insights,” Torres says. “It’s not emotional, it doesn’t have sales quotas, and it’s not trying to upsell you on some shady investment like some unscrupulous ‘advisers’ do. That’s a big win in my book.”
Torres pointed out that most of us didn’t grow up learning how to plan for retirement. And figuring it out on our own can be overwhelming. That’s where large language models can help, including ChatGPT and some of the tools I recommend.
“It’s like having a 24/7 money nerd who can break things down in plain English, no jargon included. You can ask anything, from ‘What’s a Roth IRA?’ to ‘How much do I need to retire by 55? and get an answer that makes sense,” Torres says.
The AI tools I trust to help plan my retirement
Even though AI can help me plan for retirement, I still keep my money and data protected with my two trusted financial tools. My IRA and Roth IRA are with Fidelity, and I also have a brokerage account with M1 Finance.
That being said, here are a few AI-featured tools that I use alongside the apps and tools I trust.
AI tools and features I use for retirement planning
| Tool | What it’s used for |
|---|---|
| My local credit union | Monthly budget forecasting, spending analysis, and I’m able to securely connect my financial data to other apps, such as M1 Finance and Fidelity. |
| Fidelity Retirement Planning | Forecasts retirement readiness based on income, age, goals and assets. It can also estimate your future savings growth and recommend contribution strategies. Fidelity Go is a robo-adviser that automates investing and retirement portfolio management. |
| M1 Finance | Uses rule-based automation to rebalance portfolios and manage IRAs. |
| Capitalize | Helps users roll over old 401(k)s into IRAs using an AI-assisted platform that automates paperwork and finds forgotten retirement accounts. |
| Empower | Tracks your net worth and automates your savings. It also gives personalized retirement and investment advice in a dashboard. |
| ChatGPT | Acts as a personal financial brainstorming assistant. It can simulate retirement plans and understand complex financial topics through conversational AI. |
The risks of relying on AI for retirement planning
Just because AI can help you personalize your plan for retirement doesn’t mean it should be your only source of truth. There are two points worth noting before you use any AI tool to help you with your money goals, especially your retirement.
AI isn’t a safe place to store your data
It’s important to be cautious about how you’re exposing your data when using any financial AI tool. This doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t use tools like ChatGPT. Even I use it. The trick is to avoid giving ChatGPT or similar AI tools any personal financial data, like account numbers or login information. One upside to using AI tools for retirement planning is that you’re getting objective advice about your financial situation, and not from someone trying to sell to you or scam you.
However, these tools aren’t designed to securely store information, which risks your data falling into the wrong hands. So it’s best to be cautious of any information you share and double-check any advice you receive with another trusted source.
It lacks the personal, second opinion you need for your finances
Relying on AI alone to plan your retirement can be dangerous. Between the lack of human understanding, accuracy (AI chatbots do sometimes “hallucinate” wrong information) and changes in retirement, it’s best to have a second opinion.
Using AI can make retirement planning more accessible, but it can’t understand your emotions, values or life circumstances that shape your financial decisions. These tools cannot weigh the emotional trade-offs of retiring early to care for a loved one or the peace of mind you get from having extra savings — even if the AI tool’s algorithm says you don’t need it.
Satayan Mahajan, CEO of Datalign Advisory, an AI company that connects Americans with advisers, recommends a hybrid approach.
“It’s like having a tireless analyst who can crunch numbers all day. But it needs a human check. If you’re trying to figure out how much you need to retire, AI should be your starting point. But it shouldn’t be your only point,” Mahajan says.
It’s best to pair AI with a professional, such as one through your bank, employer-sponsored retirement plan or similar, to make sure you’re proceeding with your financial plans correctly. There’s no one-size-fits-all in any financial plan. Above all, do what works best for you.
