Sat Oct 25 2025, by Tyler Gardner

How to Invest $2 Million in Retirement Without Running Out of Money

I’m Tyler, a former financial advisor and portfolio manager. Now I create financial content for free so you don’t have to pay for it.

1. Invest in a Low-Cost ETF

Start by investing $1.8 million in a low-cost ETF like Vanguard's VOO. This is the money I expect to grow at an average of 7% per year. It’s a low-cost option to own the most stable and profitable companies in the world.

2. Low-Cost Money Market Fund

Invest the remaining $200,000 in a low-cost money market fund like Fidelity's FPAXX. This invests in short-term, relatively safe government securities like T-bills, providing me with liquidity and stability.

3. Draw from the ETF

Next, I’d sell 5% of the VOO per year, providing me with about $90,000 to start. Pro tip: I wouldn’t do it all at once; I’d sell about 0.4% per month since 75% of the time, markets are higher in a year than they are today.

4. Earnings from the Money Market Fund

I’d earn an additional $8,000 a year from the money market fund.

5. Dividend Income

I’d earn another $25,000 a year from the current dividend yield on VOO.

6. Social Security Benefits

I’d complement that with my national average Social Security of $24,000 a year.

7. Total Annual Income

With this setup, I’d be confident that $147,000 per year would be just enough to fund my daily walks in the woods with my dogs and enjoy coffee on the porch with my friends and family.

8. Regular Rebalancing

Each year, I’d take the 10 minutes necessary to rebalance the portfolio, so it always reflects the same growth to stability ratio that works for me.

Conclusion

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