Jun 29, 2026
For years, Americans have been told they’ll need millions of dollars to retire comfortably. But before you panic over the flashy “magic number” estimates, new data from Fidelity offers a more realistic perspective: How much have people your age actually managed to save?
The investment company analyzed more than 25 million workplace retirement accounts, revealing how 401(k) balances grow over the course of a career.
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Everyone’s retirement journey is unique, and the key is to remember these figures aren’t pass-or-fail benchmarks.
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Income, career changes, years in the workforce and retirement goals all shape how much someone saves. The Fidelity data offers some grounded yardsticks for seeing how your nest egg stacks up.
The typical age that average American hit six figures
Fidelity’s latest data shows that retirement balances build gradually, not overnight. Workers in their early 20s have an average of just $7,700 saved in a 401(k), while the average doesn’t cross the $100,000 mark until their early 40s.
Here’s how average 401(k) balances break down by age:
- Ages 20–24: $7,700
- Ages 25–29: $26,600
- Ages 30–34: $51,700
- Ages 35–39: $81,600
- Ages 40–44: $120,100
- Ages 45–49: $163,200
- Ages 50–54: $215,700
- Ages 55–59: $260,800
- Ages 60–64: $257,400
- Ages 65–69: $258,800
- Age 70 and older: $264,500
When viewed by generation, the pattern is similar. Baby boomers have accumulated an average 401(k) balance of $260,300, while Gen X averages $215,600. Millennials have built average balances of $82,600, and Gen Z workers, many of whom are still early in their careers, average $18,000.
The report also found workers are contributing an average of 14.4% of their income toward retirement when employee and employer contributions are combined, putting them within striking distance of Fidelity’s long-standing recommendation to save 15% of pre-tax income annually.
Many Americans still aren’t confident they’ll have enough. According to the Employee Benefit Research Institute’s 2025 Retirement Confidence Survey, roughly two-thirds of workers say they feel confident they’ll have enough money to live comfortably in their retirement, while many continue to worry about inflation, healthcare costs and outliving their savings.
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The biggest retirement advantage
The most eye-opening numbers may not be the age averages at all.
Workers who stayed invested in the same employer-sponsored retirement plan for years saw dramatically larger balances than their peers. Millennials who remained in the same plan for at least five years had average balances of $180,200 which was more than twice the overall millennial average. After 15 years of continuous participation, Gen X workers averaged nearly $649,000, while baby boomers topped $576,000.
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The findings reinforce one of investing’s key lessons: building wealth is often less about picking the perfect investment or the next hot stock than it is about giving your money years, or decades, to compound.
The U.S. Department of Labor also encourages workers to begin saving as early as possible, reinforcing that compound earnings allow investment returns to generate additional returns over time. Even small increases in contributions early in a career can translate into larger retirement balances decades later.
For workers who are worried they’re falling behind, Fidelity recommends focusing on habits that can steadily grow retirement savings over time:
- Save at least 15% of your pre-tax income each year, including any employer match.
- Invest for long-term growth through a diversified portfolio instead of holding retirement savings in cash.
- Increase your savings rate whenever you receive a raise or change jobs and receive higher pay.
- Leverage every dollar of available employer matching contributions before investing elsewhere.
- Aim to accumulate roughly 10 times your annual income by age 67, recognizing that retiring earlier may require saving more.
The results show that retirement savings typically accelerate through workers’ peak earning years before flattening as retirement approaches. They also show that consistently contributing over decades can be more meaningful than having a few big investment wins.
The numbers aren’t a scorecard, and they won’t predict whether your retirement will be comfortable. But they do show that even if you feel behind, most retirement wealth isn’t built all at once. You can still accumulate gradually through years of consistent saving, regular investing and letting time do much of the heavy lifting.
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Freelance writer with an economic development and consulting background.
