How do retirees define a ‘comfortable retirement’ and should that matter to you?

A comfortable retirement is typically defined as having sufficient income to cover basic expenses, including food, utilities, and health care costs. But it's also important to factor in non-financial aspects of retirement, such as the need for social interaction and purpose in life.

Ultimately, the definition of a comfortable retirement is subjective and depends on each individual's unique needs and wants. However, you should give some thought to what you consider to be a comfortable retirement lifestyle so that you can plan accordingly. For example, if you want to retire earlier than traditional retirement age, you'll need to save more money in order to cover your costs. Conversely, if you're content with working part-time during retirement, you may not need quite as much.

As someone who is getting dangerously close to 40 and hasn't made it big with a product yet, I worry about retirement. Being an indie hacker means you don't automatically have a 401k to lean on. It's up to us to figure it out on our own, set aside money, and invest.

My advice to new indie hackers is to start setting aside money for retirement as early as possible. Speak with a financial planner. Have an eye toward the future.

I think I remember Pieter Levels saying that his 'retirement' will be him working on products, just like he is now. But we all know how good older folks are with technology, and tech advances faster and faster every year, so I think that might be a smidge unrealistic.

No kidding. This is tough. It's hard to imagine ever being able to retire in the U.S. The cost of elder care is instance and everything is more expensive. Corporations and lobbyists would rather milk everyone to death than create a country full of happy, healthy people.

It's becoming pretty hars to reach the "comfortable" point considering the current economic situation. I guess all we can do as individuals is keep investing in index funds and also allocate a small number of our portfolio to crypto (for the more adventurous).