"Retirement success" is a term that is often used to describe the results of computer simulations called Monte Carlo analyses that predict people's risk of outliving their retirement savings. "Success" refers to the ability to accumulate sufficient funds to maintain your standard of living throughout your lifetime (generally estimated to be a retirement period of 30 years or longer). The higher the probability of being able to do this, the more "successful" a retiree will be, financially speaking.
Five key factors contribute to the success (or failure) rate of a Monte Carlo retirement savings analysis: the current savings balance, the amount of time before and/or during retirement (life expectancy), a worker's saving rate, the rate of return on investments, and a retiree's withdrawal rate (i.e., the percentage of invested assets that are withdrawn annually for living expenses during retirement).
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