Feb 27, 2026
There’s a new number causing waves for Americans thinking about their financial future: $955
It’s the median amount workers have saved for retirement — those with no savings included — and it comes directly from a new report by the National Institute on Retirement Security (NIRS).
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When you look at workers with savings only, the median balance rises to $40,000. Breaking it down further, for those nearing retirement (ages 55 to 64), the median is about $30,000.
No matter which number you use, experts say it’s not nearly enough to support a retirement that could last 20 to 30 years, especially with rising health care and long-term care costs.
“Today, too many households are forced to choose between paying their bills and saving for tomorrow,” Dan Doonan, executive director of NIRS, said in a statement (1).
But there is still hope. Here’s what Americans can do to play catch-up.
Why retirement feels harder than ever
Doonan pointed to a major shift in how Americans prepare for retirement.
Decades ago, many workers had guaranteed pensions. Today, most are on their own with 401(k)s, IRAs or nothing at all.
At the same time, workers are being squeezed by financial pressures, including housing costs, child care expenses, student loan debt, supporting aging parents and trying to save for retirement. People are being asked to save more, earlier, while paying more for everything else.
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There’s another challenge with Social Security being under strain. The Old-Age and Survivors Insurance trust fund is projected to run short of funds by 2032, at which point benefits could be cut by about 20% unless Congress changes course.
While the data can seem alarming, some economists suggest the $955 headline number is misleading. Andrew Biggs, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, argues that not all Americans need to be saving for retirement.
In his view:
- Very low-income workers will rely on Social Security
- Young people often have low incomes and high debts
- Public-sector workers often have pensions
- Others save through businesses or real estate investments, and not formal accounts
“Whatever NIRS may say, retirement savings have never been higher,” Biggs said in an email to Marketwatch (2). “And since we indisputably don’t have a retirement crisis today, there’s very little reason to think we’ll have one in the future.”
Part of the confusion comes from the different data sources. Research from the Transamerica Institute shows that households earning under $50,000 have a median savings of $2,000, those with $50,000 to $99,000 have $33,000, those with $100,000 to $199,000 have $147,000, and those with $200,000 and above have $565,000.
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Meanwhile, Fidelity Investments reported the average 401(k) balance is $144,400 (4). In that case, the numbers only reflect people who have 401(k)s.
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What you can do to save more
Regardless, many Americans need to save more earlier. Here are some more practical strategies to boost your retirement outlook in 2026:
Max out your employer match
If your job offers a 401(k) match, contribute the full amount. Otherwise, you’re leaving free money on the table. It’s a return on your money that’s better than anything you’ll get in the stock market.
According to Fidelity, workers who consistently match their company’s cap can end up with tens of thousands more in retirement savings (5).
Know the 2026 contribution limits
For 2026, the 401(k) contribution limit is $24,500, with an additional $8,000 catch-up allowed for workers aged 50 and over, bringing the total annual contribution to $32,500. And for IRAs, the annual contribution limit is $7,500, with a $1,100 catch-up contribution for those aged 50 and over (6).
Open an IRA
If your employer doesn’t offer a retirement plan or if you want to save more on top of it, opening a traditional or Roth IRA is a good start. Brokerages allow you to open an IRA online, often with no minimums.
The differences in IRAs:
- Traditional IRA: Contributions may be tax-deductible now; you pay taxes in retirement.
- Roth IRA: Contributions are after-tax; withdrawals in retirement are tax-free.
Roths can be effective for younger workers and those expecting to be in a higher tax bracket later on (7).
Use an HSA as a retirement account
If you have a high-deductible health plan (HDHP), a Health Savings Account (HSA) can function as a stealthy retirement strategy. HSAs offer a triple tax advantage: contributions are pre-tax, investments grow tax-free and withdrawals for medical expenses are tax-free (7).
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After age 65, you can also withdraw HSA funds for non-medical expenses; just keep in mind you’ll pay regular income tax, similar to a traditional IRA.
Aim to replace 70%–90% of income
Trying to figure out how much you’ll need? A common rule of thumb is that between Social Security and savings, you should aim to replace 70% to 90% of your pre-retirement income.
That advice comes from the Department of Labor, which assumes you’ll no longer be saving for retirement, have lower work-related costs and have no housing payments (8). It also doesn’t factor in health care, long-term care and inflation.
Review your budget
You may not have to overhaul your lifestyle, but even the smallest tweaks can make a difference, including canceling any unused subscriptions, renegotiating your phone, insurance, and internet bills, investing raises, or bonuses directly into retirement and setting up automatic contribution increases each year (9).
Check your investments
If retirement is decades away, being too risk-averse could cost you. Younger investors typically benefit from heavier exposure to stocks. But those nearing retirement may want to shift toward stability.
At the end of the day, $955 might be an arbitrary number, but it does raise the alarm that Americans are struggling to balance today’s bills with tomorrow’s needs.
While the exact number may be debatable, Doonan pointed to realism in his final comment, “I don’t think there’s a disagreement about which way the wind is blowing … just saying a number’s not perfect, so we just ignore it, doesn’t make sense.”
Wherever you fall on the retirement savings spectrum, it's never too late to make choices today that can improve your retirement tomorrow.
Article sources
We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our editorial ethics and guidelines.
National Institute on Retirement Security (1); Marketwatch (2, 3); Fidelity (4, 5, 7); IRS (6); Department of Labor (8); Consumer Finance (9).
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Jessica is a freelance writer with a professional background in economic development and small business consulting. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Communications and Sociology and is completing her Publishing Certificate.
