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Head-to-head · Retirement Planning Software

The Complete Retirement Planner vs driftcurve

  • Updated Oct 2026
  • Both researched from official sources
  • 6 checks side by side
Higher score The Complete Retirement Planner #5 in Retirement Planning Software 8.9/10 Paid ✓ 5 of 5 features Visit The Planner
driftcurve #9 in Retirement Planning Software 8.5/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 5 of 5 features Visit driftcurve

The Complete Retirement Planner leads on 0 checks, driftcurve on 1, and 5 are even. Who comes out ahead on the 6 yes/no, price and count checks where we have data for both products. The editor score weighs everything else too.

Our verdict

  • Highest scoreThe Complete Retirement Planner · 8.9/10
  • Free planonly driftcurve

The Complete Retirement Planner scores higher on our rubric for retirement planning software: 8.9 against 8.5 out of 10; our editors rank them #5 and #9.

driftcurve offers free plan; The Complete Retirement Planner doesn't. On tax modeling, The Complete Retirement Planner gives you Detailed where driftcurve offers Basic.

The Complete Retirement Planner is the better fit for U.S. households wanting a low-cost one-time purchase. driftcurve is the better fit for open-source users needing broad household modeling.

  • The Complete Retirement Planner fits best

    U.S. households wanting a low-cost one-time purchase

  • driftcurve fits best

    Open-source users needing broad household modeling

Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. Vendors can pay for top positions in our rankings and for a place on other products' pages, and we may earn a commission when you click some links. Bought places stand at the number bought; this page and our disclosure say so. Paying vendors may get a fuller, more detailed review from our editors, and that review can change their score. How we rank.

Side by side

Feature The Complete Retirement Planner 8.9/10 Visit ↗ driftcurve 8.5/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score 8.9 8.5
Ranking #5 in Retirement Planning Software #9 in Retirement Planning Software
Best for U.S. households wanting a low-cost one-time purchase Open-source users needing broad household modeling
Pricing model Paid Free
Starting price $89.99 one-time Free
Free plan — ✓ (best)
Free trial — —
Deployment Desktop Cloud, Self-hosted
Platforms Windows, macOS Web
Features The Complete Retirement Planner 5/5 · driftcurve 5/5
Income projection ✓ ✓
Savings growth projection ✓ ✓
Withdrawal planning ✓ ✓
Social Security modeling ✓ ✓
Scenario analysis ✓ ✓
Specs
Tax modeling Detailed Basic
Account synchronization None None
Our review
Pros
  • Projects income, expenses, savings, taxes, and distributions year by year
  • Models Social Security, RMDs, Roth conversions, Medicare, and healthcare costs
  • Supports what-if scenarios and sequence-of-returns testing
  • Models household assets, debt, pensions, and Social Security.
  • Includes Monte Carlo forecasts, spending guardrails, and scenario comparison.
  • Free under Apache License 2.0, with web, API, and self-hosted options.
Cons
  • Requires paid Microsoft Excel 2016 or later
  • Uses user-entered financial information rather than account syncing
  • Available as a downloadable Excel tool, not a cloud-based planner
  • No account synchronization; household data is user-entered.
  • Local mode stores household data in the browser and runs forecasting locally.
  • Tax modeling is basic.
Our verdict

The Complete Retirement Planner is downloadable Microsoft Excel software for households planning before or during retirement. It builds year-by-year projections from user-entered financial information, covering income, expenses, savings,…

Read the review →

Retirement planning often spans more than investment balances: households may need to account for debt, property, pensions, income, and different retirement dates. driftcurve is an open-source retirement planning engine for individuals and…

Read the review →
  1. The Complete Retirement PlannerRetirement Planning Software 8.9Paid
  2. driftcurveRetirement Planning Software 8.5Free plan

Strengths and trade-offs

  • The Complete Retirement Planner — where it wins

    • Projects income, expenses, savings, taxes, and distributions year by year
    • Models Social Security, RMDs, Roth conversions, Medicare, and healthcare costs
    • Supports what-if scenarios and sequence-of-returns testing

    Where it doesn't

    • Requires paid Microsoft Excel 2016 or later
    • Uses user-entered financial information rather than account syncing
    • Available as a downloadable Excel tool, not a cloud-based planner

  • driftcurve — where it wins

    • Models household assets, debt, pensions, and Social Security.
    • Includes Monte Carlo forecasts, spending guardrails, and scenario comparison.
    • Free under Apache License 2.0, with web, API, and self-hosted options.

    Where it doesn't

    • No account synchronization; household data is user-entered.
    • Local mode stores household data in the browser and runs forecasting locally.
    • Tax modeling is basic.

More comparisons

All retirement planning software comparisons → · Full ranking →

Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026

Last updated · How we research and update