Retirement Retirement Planning

How Much You Have Saved to Retire at 65 (Are You on Track?)

Many fall short of the suggested salary by age 65.

By Ashley Donohoe, MBA, CFLP®, CFEI®, FPWMP® , Edited by Laura Hohenstein

Updated May 19, 2026

Add Us On Google

If you want to retire at age 65, T.Rowe Price suggests saving 7.5 to 13.5 times your salary based on income level, while Fidelity recommends saving 10 times your salary for retirement a bit later at 67.

But many 65-year-olds come up short, with Vanguard reporting average savings of $272,588 and median savings of $88,488 in 2024. The Federal Reserve also found that half of 60-somethings weren't on track for retirement in 2022.

That's why it's so important to see how your retirement savings stack up at different ages.

Here's how much you should have saved by age to retire at 65, as well as tips for staying or getting back on track.

Editor's note: All savings benchmarks are based on T. Rowe Price and Fidelity recommendations, unless otherwise stated.

Steal this billionaire wealth-building technique

The ultra-rich have also been investing in art from big names like Picasso and Bansky for centuries. And it's for a good reason: Contemporary art prices have outpaced the S&P 500 by 136% over the last 27 years.

A new company called Masterworks allows everyday investors to buy a small slice of $1-$30 million paintings from iconic artists, all without needing any art expertise.

If you have at least $10k to invest, see what Masterworks has on offer. (Hurry, they often sell out!)

Calculate your needs first

Before comparing your savings progress to different benchmarks, figure out how much you'll actually need. While many variables affect this number, the key ones include:

Social Security timing: If you claim Social Security before age 67, you'll receive permanently reduced benefits (up to 30%) that often necessitate higher retirement savings. Waiting until age 67 balances things out, while waiting until age 70 leads to up to 24% higher benefits that might help you stretch your savings.
Health care costs: According to Fidelity, a 65-year-old retiree can expect around $172,500 in health care costs, and that's excluding high long-term care costs. Account for these expenses and any long-term care insurance benefits when determining your savings goal.
Planned withdrawal rate: Morningstar recommends a 3.9% withdrawal rate, suggesting you save about 25 times your planned annual retirement spending. This is close to the widely cited 4% rule, which suggests withdrawing 4% of your portfolio annually in retirement. But your withdrawal rate will also depend on your life expectancy, market performance, income sources, and other factors.
Desired lifestyle: A retirement full of travel and luxury will require a much larger savings target than a quieter lifestyle back at home. Also, consider that spending tends to decrease overall as you get older.

You can try a tool like Vanguard's retirement income calculator to estimate your target amount.

Shopping for cheaper auto insurance? Enter your zip code here to get started.

Start strong in your 20s

Experts recommend having 0.5 to 1 times your salary saved by 30. So, use your 20s to set a strong foundation for retiring at 65.

While investing consistently early in your career can be challenging, this decade is when each dollar benefits the most from compounding interest. Each dollar a 20-year-old invests at a 7% return could grow to $10 over 35 years. Automatically contributing at least up to your employer match is wise.

Accelerate your retirement savings in your 30s

You'd aim to have 1 to 1.5 times your salary saved by age 35, with the goal of 1.5 to 3 times your salary saved when you turn 40.

Investing at least the recommended 15% of pre-tax income can help boost your retirement savings over this decade. Setting up automatic increases each year, such as 1%, makes boosting your savings rate even easier. Also, budget carefully over this decade, as rising expenses and lifestyle creep are common.

If you’re over 50, take advantage of massive discounts and financial resources

Over 50? Join AARP today— because if you’re not a member you could be missing out on huge perks. When you start your membership today, you can get discounts on things like travel, meal deliveries, eyeglasses, prescriptions that aren’t covered by insurance and more.

Start your membership by creating an account here and filling in all of the information (Do not skip this step!) Doing so will allow you to take up 25% off your AARP membership, making it just $15 the first year with auto-renewal.

Continue steady progress through your 40s

Retirement savings benchmarks substantially increase here at 2.5 to 4 times your salary by age 45 and closing out with 3.5 to 6 times your salary saved by age 50.

Ideally, you'd be earning significantly more, making it easier to further increase your savings rate. If you hit the 401(k) annual contribution limit ($24,500 in 2026), you might contribute extra to a traditional or Roth IRA, which allows contributing up to $7,500 in 2026, or a taxable brokerage account without such limits.

Getting more aggressive with budgeting can also free up funds to catch up here. Also, consider checking your portfolio allocation to balance risk and return.

Catch up your savings in your 50s

During the final full decade before your retirement, you should have substantial savings close to your goal. That means around 4.5 to 8 times your salary by age 55 and 6 to 11 times your salary by 60.

While being off track at this point is common, you can benefit from higher catch-up contribution limits for tax-advantaged retirement plans. These add $1,100 to the maximum IRA contributions and $8,000 to 401(k) contributions in 2026. Exploring additional income streams can help you further boost your savings.

Additionally, you should now have a better picture of your expected retirement budget and changing expenses, including health care and taxes. This might require reevaluating how much you need to retire at 65 and changing your spending or savings rate accordingly.

Approach your target in your early 60s

While the last few years before you turn 65 are the home stretch, they still provide time to catch up on your retirement savings to reach your savings goal. Consider T.Rowe Price's target of 7.5 to 13.5 times your salary.

Continue taking advantage of retirement plan catch-up contributions, which increase to $11,250 for 401(k) accounts if you're 60 to 63 years old. Also, consider how delaying Social Security benefits and doing part-time work in retirement might help stretch your savings, as well as how investing even after retirement can still pay off. At the same time, revisit your portfolio allocation as you shift to preserving your funds.

Retirement News: Almost 80% of Americans fear a retirement age increase — here’s the real reason why

FAQs

Is $500,000 enough to retire at 65?

It depends on your lifestyle, location, and other income sources. Using a 3.9% withdrawal rate, $500,000 would generate about $19,500 a year from savings alone, roughly $1,625 a month. Adding the average Social Security benefit of about $2,076 a month brings that to around $3,700 a month total, or $44,400 a year.

For context, Americans 65 and older spend about $61,432 annually on average, according to BLS data. $500,000 may work in a lower cost-of-living area or with a reduced lifestyle, but it leaves little room for large health care expenses or market downturns.

What if I haven't saved enough to retire at 65?

Being behind is more common than you might think. If you're short, a few moves can help:

Maximize catch-up contributions (an extra $8,000 to your 401(k) in 2026 if you're 50 or older, or $11,250 if you're between 60 and 63, plus an extra $1,100 to your IRA)
Consider delaying Social Security to increase your monthly benefit by up to 24%
Explore part-time work in early retirement to reduce withdrawals

A financial advisor can help you assess the gap and build a realistic catch-up plan.

Bottom line

If your retirement savings are off track for your age, that doesn't mean your retirement plan is ruined. Determine your shortage, revisit your planned retirement budget, and take steps to reduce expenses and boost your contributions. The sooner you realize where you stand, the more time you have to act.

Use the SSA's benefit estimator to see how different Social Security claim ages affect your benefit amount, which factors into your savings needs. Also, consider a financial advisor who can offer personalized advice for your retirement plan, including catch-up strategies.

More from FinanceBuzz: