Retirement Savings by Age: Are You Actually on Track? (2026 Data)
Table of Contents
- The Number That's Probably Making You Feel Better Than You Should
- The Data Sources Worth Trusting
- Retirement Savings by Age: Median vs Average (2024–2025 Data)
- Why the Gap Between Average and Median Is So Large
- What Should People Actually Have Saved: The Benchmarks
- How the Numbers Break Down By Generation
- The Participation Problem Nobody Talks About Enough
- What Benchmark Is Actually Right
The Number That's Probably Making You Feel Better Than You Should
If you've ever Googled "average retirement savings by age," you've likely seen a chart that made you feel either surprisingly good or quietly panicked. The problem with that chart is the word "average."
Averages in wealth data are distorted by the very rich. A room with 99 people who have $10,000 saved and one person who has $10 million has an average savings of just over $109,000 per person. Nobody in that room actually has $109,000. The average is technically correct and practically useless.
Median is the number that splits the population in half, half of people have more, half have less. For retirement savings data, the median tells you where a typical American actually stands. The gap between the two numbers is alarming, and understanding it is the first step to an honest assessment of where you sit.
The Data Sources Worth Trusting
Two sources produce the most reliable retirement savings data in the United States:
Vanguard's "How America Saves" is published annually and draws on actual account data from roughly 5 million Vanguard retirement plan participants. Because it uses real account balances rather than self-reported survey data, it tends to be more accurate than research based on what people say they have saved.
The Federal Reserve's Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF) is published every three years and covers all retirement savings, not just 401k accounts. It includes IRAs, pensions, and other retirement assets, making it the most comprehensive picture of total retirement wealth by age. The most recent edition covers 2022 data.
Fidelity's retirement data covers roughly 45 million account holders and produces quarterly snapshots of average balances across age groups.
Where these sources agree, the picture is clear. Where they diverge, it's usually because they're measuring different things — and that context matters.
Retirement Savings by Age: Median vs Average (2024–2025 Data)
Here is what the data actually shows, drawing on the Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances and Vanguard's most recent How America Saves report.
401k Balances Only (Vanguard Data, 2024) Source
| Age Group | Average 401k Balance | Median 401k Balance |
|---|---|---|
| Under 25 | $7,351 | $2,816 |
| 25 to 34 | $37,557 | $14,933 |
| 35 to 44 | $91,281 | $35,537 |
| 45 to 54 | $168,646 | $60,763 |
| 55 to 64 | $244,750 | $87,571 |
| 65 and over | $272,588 | $88,488 |
Look at the gap for people aged 55 to 64. The average is $244,750 but the median is $87,571. That means more than half of Americans approaching retirement have less than $88,000 in their 401k. The average is nearly three times that figure, pulled upward by a smaller group of high savers.
Total Retirement Savings Including IRAs (Federal Reserve SCF, 2022) Source
| Age Group | Average Total Retirement Savings | Median Total Retirement Savings |
|---|---|---|
| Under 35 | $49,130 | $18,880 |
| 35 to 44 | $141,520 | $45,000 |
| 45 to 54 | $313,220 | $115,000 |
| 55 to 64 | $537,560 | $185,000 |
| 65 to 74 | $609,230 | $200,000 |
| 75 and over | $462,410 | $130,000 |
The Federal Reserve figures are higher than the Vanguard 401k-only data because they capture total retirement wealth including IRAs and other vehicles. Even so, the median for Americans aged 55 to 64, the group closest to retirement, is $185,000. At a 4% withdrawal rate, that generates $7,400 per year in retirement income from savings.
That number is not a typo. Most Americans approaching retirement are heavily reliant on Social Security, not savings.
Why the Gap Between Average and Median Is So Large
The distortion comes from wealth concentration at the top. The top 10% of savers hold a disproportionate share of retirement assets, pulling averages upward while leaving medians far below.
To put it concretely, Vanguard's data shows that a meaningful portion of 401k participants in their 50s and 60s have balances exceeding $500,000. Those balances have an outsized effect on the average while the majority of participants, who have far less, cluster around the median.
This is why financial media headlines like "Americans have $X saved for retirement on average" are almost always misleading. The average includes people who will retire very comfortably. The median reflects the person sitting across from you at the grocery store.
What Should People Actually Have Saved: The Benchmarks
With the raw data established, the next question is whether those numbers are sufficient. Two widely cited benchmarks help answer this.
Fidelity's savings milestones are among the most commonly cited targets:
| Age | Fidelity Recommended Savings (Multiple of Salary) |
|---|---|
| 30 | 1x your annual salary |
| 40 | 3x your annual salary |
| 50 | 6x your annual salary |
| 60 | 8x your annual salary |
| 67 | 10x your annual salary |
So a 45-year-old earning $80,000 should have roughly $320,000 to $480,000 saved (4 to 6x salary). The median American in that age group has roughly $115,000 in total retirement savings. The gap is significant.
The 4% rule target produces a different but related benchmark. If you know what annual income you want in retirement, multiply by 25 to get your portfolio target. Someone wanting $60,000 per year from savings needs $1,500,000. Someone whose Social Security will cover $24,000 of that only needs their savings to generate $36,000, meaning the required portfolio drops to $900,000.
Neither benchmark is a precise prescription. They are rough guides. But they give people an honest frame of reference for whether your current trajectory is likely to produce the retirement you're planning for.
How the Numbers Break Down By Generation
It helps to see these figures in generational context, since different age cohorts face meaningfully different retirement landscapes.
Gen Z (Born 1997 to 2012, Ages Roughly 13 to 28 in 2025)
Those in the workforce have time overwhelmingly on their side. A 25-year-old who saves $200 per month in a diversified index fund portfolio earning a 7% average annual return could have approximately $525,000 by age 65. The challenge for this generation is student debt and the high cost of early adulthood delaying the start of saving.
The median 401k balance for workers under 25 is $2,816. For this group the question is not how much they have but whether they are building the habit now, because compounding does most of its work in the final years of a long investment horizon.
Millennials (Born 1981 to 1996, Ages 29 to 44)
This generation entered the workforce during the 2008 financial crisis, faced historically high housing costs, carries substantial student debt, and was hit economically by the pandemic. Despite this, Vanguard data shows improving participation rates and contribution levels compared to prior generations at the same age.
The median for the 35 to 44 age group is approximately $45,000 in total retirement savings. Fidelity's benchmark suggests someone at age 40 should have 3x their salary. For a median US household income of roughly $83,730, that implies a target of around $251,190. Most millennials in their late 30s and early 40s are behind that benchmark.
The good news is that the 35 to 45 age window is the highest-leverage decade for catching up. Income is typically rising, major expenses like childcare may be diminishing, and there are still 20 to 30 years of compounding ahead. A millennial who increases their savings rate meaningfully between 35 and 45 can close a significant portion of the gap.
Gen X (Born 1965 to 1980, Ages 45 to 60)
This generation is often called the forgotten middle — too young for traditional pensions that defined their parents' retirement, and early enough in the 401k era that they navigated it without the financial literacy resources available today. Many Gen Xers also absorbed significant losses in both the 2000 dot-com crash and the 2008 financial crisis during their peak saving years.
The median for 45 to 54 year olds is $115,000 in total retirement savings. For a 50-year-old targeting retirement at 67, this is a concerning number. At 7% annual growth with no additional contributions, $115,000 becomes approximately $363,000 by age 67. At a 4% withdrawal rate, that generates $14,530 per year. Combined with an average Social Security benefit of around $24,000, total retirement income would be roughly $38,000 annually — a tight budget in most of the country.
The catch-up contribution provision exists specifically for this situation. Americans aged 50 and over can contribute an additional $7,500 on top of the standard $23,500 401k limit in 2026, for a total of $31,000 per year. Someone who maximises contributions from age 50 to 67 adds over $840,000 to their retirement savings at 7% average annual growth, before accounting for employer matching. The window is narrower but it is not closed.
Baby Boomers (Born 1946 to 1964, Ages 61 to 79)
The lead edge of this generation is well into retirement. The median for the 65 to 74 age group is $200,000 in total retirement savings, generating approximately $8,000 per year at a 4% withdrawal rate. This is why Social Security is not optional for most Boomers — it provides the bulk of retirement income for the majority of this generation.
One important nuance for Boomers still working: the claiming age decision for Social Security is the single most impactful financial decision available. Delaying from 62 to 70 can increase monthly benefits by roughly 77%. For someone with modest savings, maximising Social Security by working a few extra years and delaying claiming often produces a better retirement outcome than aggressive late-stage saving.
The Participation Problem Nobody Talks About Enough
All of the above data only covers people who have retirement savings. A substantial portion of Americans have nothing saved at all.
The Federal Reserve's data shows that roughly 28% of working-age Americans have zero retirement savings. Among lower-income households the figure is much higher. This group does not appear in average or median calculations based on account holders — they are simply absent from the data.
When you see a headline saying "the average American has $X saved for retirement," that average can typically exclude the people with nothing. The true picture of American retirement preparedness can be interpreted as worse than the data suggests, because the denominator is often only the people who have accounts.
What Benchmark Is Actually Right
The tables above gives a useful reference point but they cannot give a true number. Everyone's required savings depends on factors that vary enormously from person to person.
Factors that reduce how much someone needs to save:
- A higher Social Security benefit (from higher lifetime earnings or delayed claiming)
- A pension, if they have one
- Income-producing investments outside a 401k (dividends, REITs, rental income)
- Lower retirement spending than your current income
- A paid-off home by retirement
- A willingness to work part-time in early retirement
- Retiring in a low cost-of-living state or region
Factors that increase how much someone needs:
- Retiring before 65 (the healthcare gap before Medicare)
- Retiring before 62 (no Social Security income for years or decades)
- A longer anticipated retirement (family longevity, good health)
- High retirement spending targets — travel, supporting family, healthcare
- Living in a high cost-of-living state
- No Social Security entitlement (some government workers, non-US citizens)
The median American at 55 with $185,000 saved is behind most conventional benchmarks. But a 55-year-old with $185,000 saved, a pension from 20 years of government service, a paid-off home, a spouse with their own Social Security entitlement, and plans to retire at 67 in a low cost-of-living state is in a completely different position to a 55-year-old with $185,000 saved, no pension, a mortgage, and plans to retire at 60 in San Francisco.
The benchmark tells you where the typical person stands. Your situation is not typical.
This article is for educational purposes and does not constitute financial advice. Data sources include the Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances (2022), Vanguard How America Saves (2024), and Fidelity Investments retirement benchmarks. Figures reflect the most recently available data at time of publication. Consult a fee-only financial advisor at napfa.org for advice specific to your situation.