We always say, “If only I can save enough, one day I’ll be a millionaire.”
But have you ever actually sat down to check if it’s even possible?
That’s exactly what happened when a 28-year-old Malaysian anonymously DM’ed his situation to finance content creator Ammar Faris. He asked:
I’m 28. Salary RM3.5k. Targeting RM1 million before 40. Possible or not?
Instead of just brushing it off, Ammar decided to crunch the numbers and the results were an eye-opener.
Why just saving won’t work
The first thing Ammar pointed out was simple: saving money alone won’t get you very far.
If you only keep money in the bank:
- Saving RM500 a month for 12 years = around RM72,000 (maybe RM90k with bonuses).
- Saving RM1,000 a month = RM144,000 (maybe RM200k with bonuses).
In short, even if you’re super disciplined, you’ll only hit 10–20% of the RM1 million target.
So what’s missing?
That’s when Ammar highlighted the two things most of us overlook:
- Income growth — your salary needs to go up over the years.
- Investments — your money has to grow instead of sitting idle.
Without these, RM1 million will always remain a dream.
What if you try harder?
To show how investing changes the game, Ammar tested a more “aggressive but realistic” scenario:
- Save & invest RM1,500/month
- Get an average 10% return annually
- Do this for 12 years
Here’s where it gets interesting. Ammar used the compound interest formula to show how money grows over time:
Future Value (FV) = Yearly Savings × [(1 + r)^n – 1] ÷ r
where r = interest rate, n = years
So for RM18,000 saved per year (that’s RM1,500 × 12 months), at 10% growth for 12 years, the math looks like this:
- RM18,000 × [(1.10^12 – 1) ÷ 0.10]
- RM18,000 × 20.48
- ≈ RM368,700
That means even with consistent saving and investing, you’d still only reach about RM368k, far short of the RM1 million goal.
A smarter roadmap
So how do you actually get closer to RM1 million? Ammar suggested a gradual timeline tied to salary growth:
- Age 28–30: Salary RM3.5k, save RM1.5k
- Age 31–35: Salary RM5k–6k, save RM2.5k
- Age 36–40: Salary RM7k–8k, save RM4k
The key, he said, is to resist the urge to spend more every time your income increases. Instead, channel that extra money into savings and investments.
With this strategy, you could realistically grow your wealth to RM950k–RM1.1 million by 40.
But where should you invest?
This is where many people get stuck. Ammar suggested:
- Long-term investing in stocks (not short-term trading)
- Safer options like ASB
- A mix of assets to balance out risks and returns
The idea isn’t to gamble, but to let your money grow steadily over time.
The takeaway
So, can you really hit RM1 million by 40? According to Ammar’s breakdown, yes but only if you:
- Save consistently at higher amounts
- Keep growing your income every few years
- Invest in options that average around 10% returns yearly
- Control lifestyle inflation
- Consider side hustles to boost earnings
It’s not easy, but it’s possible. And if there’s one lesson to take away, it’s this: don’t just depend on saving, because without growth, the numbers will never add up.
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