Workers Think They'll Need $1 Million to Retire. Actual Retirees Get by With Less
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The number of workers who believe they’ll need a seven-figure nest egg in retirement has jumped sharply from a year ago, even as many older Americans today enter retirement with only meager savings.
In a report released Monday by Betterment at Work, 48% of surveyed workers say they think they’ll need to have at least $1 million saved in order to be comfortable. That's a jump of 11 percentage points from a year ago.
These results reflect working America’s anxiety about stubbornly elevated inflation, rising health care costs and questions about the long-term viability of Social Security. Financial anxiety hit an all-time high of 90% in this year’s survey, with more than half of workers — and nearly 6 in 10 baby boomers — thinking about putting off retirement because they haven’t saved enough.
“Retirement expectations are escalating faster than savings reality,” the report said. “The gap between what workers think they'll need and what they expect to have continues to widen, raising questions about whether they have a clear strategy to meet those goals.”
This $1 million goal is likely to remain aspirational for the vast majority of today’s workers. Betterment found that only about 1 in 4 expect to have that much saved by the time they retire, while other research indicates that a majority of older Americans haven’t even saved six figures, let alone seven.
In fact, a separate report from advocacy group The Senior Citizens League found that 56% of Americans older than 65 retired with less than $50,000 (which, for comparison, a mere 4% of respondents in the Betterment survey say would be enough money for a financially comfortable retirement). TSCL respondents counted money saved in retirement accounts as well as regular savings accounts.
Even so, fewer than 5% retired with savings of $1 million or more.
Workers are 'broadly misinformed' about Social Security funding woes
A big part of Americans' retirement income concern stems from an increasingly widespread belief among workers that they won’t be able to rely on Social Security, the trust funds for which are set to run out in 2035. Unless Congress intervenes, all beneficiaries would receive an across-the-board cut at that point.
A survey out Monday from the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank, found that more than 4 in 5 working-age Americans expect to fall back on Social Security. About half of those predict that the program will comprise a "major" portion of their income in retirement.
Despite this, Cato found that 56% of retirees — as well as 70% of Americans currently in the workforce — believe that their benefits will be slashed.
The disconnect could be the result of a lack of education about Social Security’s solvency and long-term viability. Cato found that most Americans aren’t exactly sure how retirement benefits are paid for. (This tracks with TSCL’s research, which finds that even 37% of current retirees don’t understand the details of Social Security’s funding issues.)
“Americans overwhelmingly value Social Security but are broadly misinformed” about how it works, Cato researchers wrote.
Anxiety, SECURE 2.0 help boost participation in 401(k)s
Despite the knowledge gap when it comes to Social Security, workers today have more opportunities to save for retirement, according to Betterment.
Its survey found that the availability of and participation in 401(k) participation has increased: The percentage of employers offering retirement benefits has climbed to 81%, which is up about 20 percentage points from just two years ago.
Among workers with access to 401(k) plans, a survey high of 91% report participating.
While worry about the future probably contributes to that increased participation, structural changes are likely to be playing a role, as well: Last year was the first year in which a provision from 2022’s SECURE 2.0 Act went into effect that made it so when people take a new job that includes retirement benefits, they’re automatically enrolled in a 401(k), rather than having to proactively enroll on their own.
The survey also found that 79% of 401(k) plans now have an employer match, up from 62% in 2021, giving people more incentive to save. About 90% of eligible savers contribute enough to get the match.
Another piece of good news: While a $1 million nest egg might sound nice, TSCL suggests that most people will probably be financially comfortable with half or even a quarter of that amount. The report found that most older adults who consider their finances healthy retired with savings of $250,000 to $499,999.
The Betterment survey found that 20% of respondents believed having a nest with a range of $100,000 to $499,999 would provide for a comfortable retirement, with another 7% saying that between $50,000 and $99,999 would be adequate.
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