When it comes to retirement savings, how do you stack up?
According to a report from the Economic Policy Institute (EPI), the mean retirement savings of all working-age families, which the EPI defines as those between 32 and 61 years old, is $95,776.
But that number doesn't tell the whole story. Since so many families have zero savings and since super-savers can pull up the average, the median savings, or those at the 50th percentile, may be a better gauge. The median for all working-age families in the U.S. is just $5,000.
As the charts show, retirement preparedness varies by age. Not surprisingly, younger families have less stashed away. Here's a breakdown of the mean and median retirement savings of U.S. families at every age:
Mean retirement savings of families between 32 and 37: $31,644
Median retirement savings of families between 32 and 37: $480
Mean retirement savings of families between 38 and 43: $67,270
Median retirement savings of families between 38 and 43: $4,200
Mean retirement savings of families between 44 and 49: $81,347
Median retirement savings of families between 44 and 49: $6,200
Mean retirement savings of families between 50 and 55: $124,831
Median retirement savings of families between 50 and 55: $8,000
Mean retirement savings of families between 56 and 61: $163,577
Median retirement savings of families between 56 and 61: $17,000
How big should your nest egg be?
The answer is highly personal, and specific dollar amounts can be arbitrary, but according to retirement-plan provider Fidelity Investments, a good rule of thumb is to have 10 times your final salary in savings if you want to retire by age 67.
Fidelity also suggests a timeline to use in order to get to that magic number:
- By 30: Have the equivalent of your salary saved
- By 40: Have three times your salary saved
- By 50: Have six times your salary saved
- By 60: Have eight times your salary saved
- By 67: Have 10 times your salary saved
Need help reaching these savings goals? Check out: