{"id":16868,"date":"2025-06-26T17:39:12","date_gmt":"2025-06-26T17:39:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/16868\/"},"modified":"2025-06-26T17:39:12","modified_gmt":"2025-06-26T17:39:12","slug":"how-much-money-americans-in-their-50s-have-in-their-401ks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/16868\/","title":{"rendered":"How much money Americans in their 50s have in their 401(k)s"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Workers in their 50s are consistently contributing to their 401(k)s, but many still have balances that fall short of recommended retirement savings goals, according to a recent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fidelity.com\/about-fidelity\/Q1-2025-retirement-analysis\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Fidelity report<\/a>, which analyzed data from more than 24 million of its 401(k) accounts through March 31.<\/p>\n<p>Here&#8217;s how much workers in their 50s have in their accounts, on average:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Ages 50 to 54<\/strong>: $193,100<\/li>\n<li><strong>Ages 55 to 59<\/strong>: $236,200<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Fidelity <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fidelity.com\/viewpoints\/retirement\/how-much-do-i-need-to-retire\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">recommends<\/a> workers aim to save six times their salary by age 50 and eight times by age 60. For someone earning the median income for that age group \u2014 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bls.gov\/news.release\/pdf\/wkyeng.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">roughly $67,000<\/a> \u2014 that translates to a target between $402,000 and $536,000.<\/p>\n<p>Based on those targets, many 50-somethings are well behind. But that shortfall doesn&#8217;t necessarily reflect a lack of effort. Gen Xers \u2014 who make up most of this age group \u2014 have an average savings rate of 15.4%, according to the study, slightly above Fidelity&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fidelity.com\/viewpoints\/retirement\/how-much-money-should-I-save\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">recommended 15% rate<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>And 401(k) balances only tell part of the story. Fidelity&#8217;s benchmarks are based on total retirement savings, which can also include individual retirement accounts, brokerage accounts, pensions or inheritances, so total retirement savings for people in their 50s could be a lot higher.<\/p>\n<p>Even so, for workers who got a late start or faced setbacks along the way, it can be difficult to close the gap \u2014 especially if retirement is just around the corner.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"headline0\"\/>How to catch up on retirement savings in your 50s<\/p>\n<p>If you&#8217;re behind on retirement savings, &#8220;the worst thing you can do is nothing,&#8221; says Melissa Caro, a <a href=\"https:\/\/myretirementnetwork.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">certified financial planner<\/a> in New York City.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Start with a full financial assessment: List your savings, income, debt and what you actually spend,&#8221; she recommends. From there, you can identify where to cut back or earn more, and redirect the extra cash into retirement accounts.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Every dollar you free up from subscriptions, lower cell plans or side gigs needs to be redirected into your retirement accounts \u2014 especially <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/05\/02\/higher-401k-catch-up-contribution-2025.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">catch-up contributions<\/a>,&#8221; Caro says. Workers 50 and older can contribute an additional $7,500 on top of the $23,500 401(k) limit in 2025. They can also contribute an extra $1,000 to an IRA beyond the $7,000 standard limit.<\/p>\n<p>Even small increases in your contributions can make a big difference. For example, if you start with the average 401(k) balance of $193,100 at age 50 and contribute $200 a month with a 7% annual return, your savings could <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/03\/11\/calculator-401k-millionaire.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">grow to about $711,000<\/a> by age 67.<\/p>\n<p>However, whether those savings are enough will depend on your personal goals. Some savers may need to rethink their retirement plans, perhaps with the help of a financial planner. That could mean delaying retirement, reducing living expenses to allow for higher contributions or easing into retirement with part-time work.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Are you ready to buy a house?<\/strong> Take Smarter by CNBC Make It&#8217;s new online course <a href=\"https:\/\/smarter.cnbcmakeit.com\/p\/how-to-buy-your-first-home?utm_source=cnbc&amp;utm_medium=makeitarticle&amp;utm_campaign=bottom\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">How to Buy Your First Home<\/a>. Expert instructors will help you weigh the cost of renting vs. buying, financially prepare, and confidently navigate every step of the process\u2014from mortgage basics to closing the deal. <a href=\"https:\/\/smarter.cnbcmakeit.com\/p\/how-to-buy-your-first-home?utm_source=cnbc&amp;utm_medium=makeitarticle&amp;utm_campaign=bottom\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Sign up today<\/a> and use coupon code EARLYBIRD for an introductory discount of 30% off $97 (+taxes and fees) through July 15, 2025.<\/p>\n<p>Plus, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/make-it-newsletters\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">sign up for CNBC Make It&#8217;s newsletter<\/a> to get tips and tricks for success at work, with money and in life, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/groups\/13194471\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">request to join our exclusive community on LinkedIn<\/a> to connect with experts and peers.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"InlineVideo-styles-makeit-videoThumbnail--koCZV\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/108134851-MM_Nathanael_Farrelly_thumb.jpg\" alt=\"I sold my nursing company for $12.5 million and retired at 28\"\/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Workers in their 50s are consistently contributing to their 401(k)s, but many still have balances that fall short&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":16869,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[64,16527,403,255,2578,9159,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-16868","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-personal-finance","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-fidelity-national-financial-inc","10":"tag-new-york-city","11":"tag-personal-finance","12":"tag-personnel","13":"tag-social-issues","14":"tag-united-states","15":"tag-unitedstates","16":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114750892480528184","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16868","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16868"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16868\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16869"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16868"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16868"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16868"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}