Below my age group, but still an okay amount thanks to my employer matching contributions. I would have been putting in more if I didn't have student loans bleeding me dry for the last decade.
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Here’s how much Americans have saved in their 401(k)s by age group
- Thread starter Forerunner
- Start date
My husband just started last year and I just moved here and will start this year. So.. very behind.
I didn't think of that. I was planning to just wait until my kid was 12/13 and start having him do stuff like yardwork, etc. I'm not a min/maxer to the point where I need to have my kid put away 6k a year in an IRA from when he's born. If anything, we'll just stick $2k to $3k a year in a targeted index fund (like retirement date 2080) a year for them.
Going through more trouble than that isn't worth it me for me, personally.
There are a lot of differences between Japan and the US.
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I didn't start saving for retirement at all (because I couldn't) until I was 30. I'm 41 now and well above the average for my age group according to the OP. The company I've been working for for nearly a decade has been a big boost to my retirement plans because they contribute 15% of my gross to my retirement every year, and I am currently doing 15% myself.
Like a lot of you, I would be a lot further ahead if not for student loans, but I finally got those paid off last spring.
Like a lot of you, I would be a lot further ahead if not for student loans, but I finally got those paid off last spring.
This is a good piece. I'm starting to see the effects of compounding and the snowballing is crazy. Especially with the returns of the past year
State employees can contribute to to $19,500 annually into a 403b or 457 plan. Even more when you get older (catch-up years).
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Been contributing for almost 25 years at a low 6% with a company match of the same. Started at a bad time right before the dot com collapse but have almost reached the point where my 401k is making as much as my annual salary. Start early, that's the most important thing I've learned. As they say, time in the market beats timing the market.
well... thanks to 2020, I'm flying way under average now because I had to dip in to it to survive because my state's (kentucky) unemployment offices are closed, except the main office near Frankfort. You can't go in, you can't reach a human on the phone, the automated system tells you your place in line is saved but they NEVER call back, they don't respond to emails and they've recently set up an phone call appointment system which reads "no appointments available" ever day I check it. I was out of work for months and filed and claimed like I was supposed to, but they flagged my claim as "under investigation" but still, since Sept. 2020, haven't got back to me or fixed the issue. Thanks to the CARES act, I had to get into my 401k just to pay the bills :(
I was contributing around 12% but recently lowered it to 6% as I'm trying to save for a new home (maybe). I'm above the amount which is nice but I was lucky starting off really young with one at my first job.
Contributing just to the company match and then saving/investing via other mechanisms -- IRA's, ROTH IRA's, HSA's, etc -- can be fine depending on your situation.
haha same although keep in mind a bunch of those older folk have pensions so not as much need for a 401k.
Median 401k is just sad.
Most people have $0 saved and the millionaires and billionaires drag the averages up. If you have literally anything saved then consider yourself ahead of the curve.
I definitely feel behind the 8 ball for 401(k). Early on, I either didn't have a company match or only got a company match after a full year after employment, and I left two of those jobs right around that one year mark - either contributed nothing or next to nothing at those times. I also got paid relatively poorly compared to what I know I could have made during my 20s and really had to take whatever I could get - mainly thanks to the Financial Crisis.
After getting my second salaried position, my salary stayed flat for several years, as I job hopped trying to find a tenable situation for work/life balance; I had some interviews with great paying companies but only wound up getting offers at lower paying ones time and time again. Finally caught a break in my early 30s and made a couple of huge jumps in salary.
I'm about to enter my mid 30s and am right around the figure cited for the 30-39 age group. However, the last couple of years, I've made much more of a concerted effort - am now socking away 11%. I hope to hit the full $19,500/year in three of four years (will also be raising my % contributed each year, as well).
However, in my main brokerage account (non-retirement), I've been investing for about 15 years. If I can quadruple what I currently have invested right now in the next 20-25 years and rebalance my portfolio to have a slightly higher dividend yield, I could use that income stream to cover my normal living expenses. I'd then likely mainly use my 401(k) for unexpected medical emergencies.
After getting my second salaried position, my salary stayed flat for several years, as I job hopped trying to find a tenable situation for work/life balance; I had some interviews with great paying companies but only wound up getting offers at lower paying ones time and time again. Finally caught a break in my early 30s and made a couple of huge jumps in salary.
I'm about to enter my mid 30s and am right around the figure cited for the 30-39 age group. However, the last couple of years, I've made much more of a concerted effort - am now socking away 11%. I hope to hit the full $19,500/year in three of four years (will also be raising my % contributed each year, as well).
However, in my main brokerage account (non-retirement), I've been investing for about 15 years. If I can quadruple what I currently have invested right now in the next 20-25 years and rebalance my portfolio to have a slightly higher dividend yield, I could use that income stream to cover my normal living expenses. I'd then likely mainly use my 401(k) for unexpected medical emergencies.
I thought this was actually what's recommended isn't it?
Step 1: 401k to company match
Step 2: Max Roth IRA
Step 3: ...I can't remember after that because I've yet to fully max my Roth in a year :/
Too high.
If you are in your 30s, you dealt with the economic depression from 2008 which means 401k contributions were either next to nothing or really low. Unless you had a job that was not impacted during that Era and had the ability to keep savings around.
Imagine being in the workforce during 2008 or so and then also dealing with losing your job due to covid. Our generation has been screwed one way or another outside our control.
Double my age group, but still not nearly enough. I should've maxed it out at an early age and stuck to it. Alas, live and learn.
Well it worked out abundantly wonderful for me. :)
That's amazing for your age, keep up the good work!
The thing with all of this stuff is that the sooner you start, the better off you are. Even if you only start with small amounts. I started my 401k after college, and then didn't move it when my job blew up in the dotcom crash. The company eventually closed, and they liquidated my 401k (which incurred a tax hit). I started maxing out my 401k after that, even though it made finances tighter.
I got married during the housing crisis, and then got divorced a few years later after the market rebounded. I lost a bunch (~20%) of my 401k in the divorce. Despite that, I was fortunate to have a stable job throughout and was able to keep putting money into retirement accounts. Now I'm at a pretty respectable multiplier of the average for my age bracket.
It's frustrating to look back at the mistakes I made, and realize that I could be in even better shape, but I'm thankful for all the small things I did, since they've compounded dramatically.
35 and have about 70k in mine contributing 11% with a 4% company match. Starting a new job in a week that will contribute 10% up front invested immediately which I'm pretty excited for. I've been helping my wife with her IRA since she's never had a retirement account, so this will allow me to help her out even more.
If we're just counting 401k's, I'm technically way behind. When I add my IRAs, I'm way ahead for my age group. I worked a 1099 job for several years, so most of my retirement is in an IRA.
After the market crash in 2008 a few people I worked with were just retiring and got completely hosed. Some lost up to 60% of what they had the year before. One of them committed suicide weeks later. I remember at the wake one of the other guys that retired told me to learn from their mistakes and not take 401k for granted.
Yup. Fin Services continues to push the 401k but basically depending on how yours works you may never recover after a downturn.
I'm putting in about 5% of my paycheck. I know I should give more but it works out as I have an employer match, so technically I'm putting in 10%.
BTW, if your employer offers a match, FUCKING DO IT. It's essentially free money.
BTW, if your employer offers a match, FUCKING DO IT. It's essentially free money.
That's what really sucks in that we're at the mercy of the market with regards to retirement. The smart thing to do is save money personally, but that isn't an option for a lot of people. Especially given most millennials aren't even saving, Social Security is going to run out of money by the time we all hit 65, and with credit scores absolutely plummeting, basically many of us are going to be working until the day we die, and for most it isn't our fault, just shite luck.
My employer offers a 401K but doesn't contribute/match, so I don't bother. I've been maxing out my Roth IRA the past 4 years or so, and saving the rest in index funds.
Is this separate from other retirement accounts like a roth ira? I'm just about at the right amount compared to the chart, but that's after adding up both roth and simple ira (which is what my work offered, not a 401k). Without the roth, not even close to my bracket's numbers
Way behind my age group. Didn't get a 401(k) until my late thirties so rip. My company doesn't match so I've been contributing at 20% to try and catch up. I got my Roth IRA and stock portfolio that will help with my retirement as well. Been maxing my IRA so that will be a decent nest egg in a few decades.
kinda true.
19500 is the current pre-tax limit. But, your employers contributions don't count towards that. Folks in their 50s are allowed catch up contributions. Additionally it is allowable in the tax code (and if your plan supports it) to make after-tax contributions as well. Further the code and some plans allow that money to be immediately rolled into Roth 401k status. This is known as the mega backdoor roth as you can do an extra 20k or so a year in roth money if the plan supports it.
all of those little extra ways can combine for much higher contributions for the year, and the max of all contributions from all sources is like 57k or something now per year.
turning 25 this year.
401(k) only, I have about $10.5k contributed with $14.6k employer match bringing it to about $25k. So combining those, significantly higher than my age group. Not counting, slightly lower. Vestment is in ~4 months though, so if I were to leave now I'd lose all that match money. Holding out for that for sure...
Counting my Roth account doubles the total, though. I max out my employer match in the 401k and then max Roth, so more of my personal contributions are in the Roth.
Either way, I'm definitely fortunate and in a good position. I occasionally check in on my friends and make sure they are thinking about retirement funds because even with small contributions one can afford - it will add up and it's important to start early.
401(k) only, I have about $10.5k contributed with $14.6k employer match bringing it to about $25k. So combining those, significantly higher than my age group. Not counting, slightly lower. Vestment is in ~4 months though, so if I were to leave now I'd lose all that match money. Holding out for that for sure...
Counting my Roth account doubles the total, though. I max out my employer match in the 401k and then max Roth, so more of my personal contributions are in the Roth.
Either way, I'm definitely fortunate and in a good position. I occasionally check in on my friends and make sure they are thinking about retirement funds because even with small contributions one can afford - it will add up and it's important to start early.
My job doesn't offer a 401k, but I've got a Roth IRA I max out every year and a decent chunk of savings with no debt. Really need a career change, though, as a Roth IRA is so limited by the contribution caps.
Sounds about right to me. I just started putting 10-15% on mine at age 27. Even though I make good money, I had way too many things to worry about before + I got several tens of thousands in emergency savings. I'll try to stick to 15% for good by the end of the year.
That's why it's important to gradually decrease your exposure to equities and more toward bonds and other fixed-income assets as you get closer to retirement.
Nowadays there are target-date retirement funds that automatically do this for you.
Ah yes, of course, often I'm at a loss about what to do with my spare money.
My leftover money. The stuff I don't need right now or in the immediate future.
My leftover money. The stuff I don't need right now or in the immediate future.