Does anyone here use the retirement planning tool Boldin?

I've played around with it. It has some interesting features, but the issue with that type of software are the assumptions that you have to make to get the projections. People casually put in a rate of return that may be unrealistic and throw off all of the numbers.

The one software that looks really interesting is called Income Lab. It was designed by some mathmaticians and financial planners. It does an amazing job of projecting spend levels and allows for you to include life events like traveling, weddings, new cars, etc. The problem is that it is supposed to be used by only folks who use specific financial advisors. However, they let folks try it for a few months for a minimal fee.

I think it’s a good tool to understand impact of an action with all other assumed variables staying the same (from a relative perspective). I think we understand that no tool can predict the future.

I like it. I’m using it to help calculate Roth conversions, especially performing what if scenarios. It’s not perfect, but it provides a good direction of travel. I also use my own Excel spreadsheet to double check things.