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The average American needs $1.26 million to comfortably retire, according to Northwestern Mutual’s 2025 Planning & Progress Study. A fiduciary financial assistant can help you create a path to that benchmark and help keep you on track. Money Pickle’s simple quiz connects you with a vetted fiduciary for a no-cost, 1-on-1 strategy session tailored to your goals.
Many Americans, however, are far from being retirement ready. Only about 26% of U.S. adults are extremely or very confident they’ll have enough assets to last through retirement, a November 2025 study by the Pew Research Center says. Four-in-ten adults say they’re not confident they’ll ever get to retire, or that they won’t have enough income to truly enjoy their golden years.
This fear is more acute among younger generations, as only 18% of people 30-39 are confident they’ll have enough for retirement, compared to 31% of people ages 60-69. A 2025 Gallup poll underscores this challenge, revealing 40% of all U.S. adults have no retirement-specific savings accounts. The poll also shows that only 39% of those 18-29 have a retirement account, compared to 70% of people ages 50-64.
The average household retirement savings by age group further highlights this issue:
- Under 35: $49,130 (median: $18,880)
- Ages 35 to 44: $141,520 (median: $45,000)
- Ages 45 to 54: $313,220 (median: $115,000)
- Ages 55 to 64: $537,560 (median: $185,000)
- Ages 65 to 74: $609,230 (median: $200,000)
Source: Federal Reserve: Survey of Consumer Finances
The same trend can be found when looking at the average 401(k) balance by age group:
- Ages 30-34: $45,700
- Ages 35-39: $73,200
- Ages 40-44: $109,100
- Ages 45-49: $152,100
- Ages 50-54: $199,900
- Ages 55-59: $244,900
- Ages 60-64: $246.500
- Ages 65-69: $251,400
- Ages 70 and up: $250,000
Source: Fidelity Investments
The good news is younger people have more opportunities and time to start saving for retirement. For example, a single 30-year-old only needs to have half of their annual salary in savings to be on track for a comfortable retirement, according to global investment company T. Rowe Price. A 55-year-old, on the other hand, needs 4.5 to 8 times their salary if they want to retire on time.
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