--- title: The Number of 401(k) Millionaires Hits a Record High description: A record 769,000 people had $1 million in their 401(k)s at the end of June. Here’s what’s driving the surge in retirement wealth. authors: - name: Liliana Hall role: Reporter url: https://money.com/author/liliana-hall/ bio: Liliana Hall joined Money in 2025. She is an Austin-based reporter for Money, where she covers a range of topics, including financial news, policy, banking, investing, passive income, financial planning and student loan debt. education: University of Texas at Austin at_money_since: 2025 articles: 132 covers: - Retirement - Banking - Business - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Debt - Economy and Politics - Education - Health and Wellness - Housing - Insurance - Investing - Lifestyle - Loans - Mortgages - Personal Finance - Pets - Shopping - Taxes social: - https://x.com/lilihallllllll - https://www.linkedin.com/in/liliana-hall/ editors: - name: Katherine Peach role: Associate Editor url: https://money.com/author/katherine-peach/ bio: Katherine Peach is an associate editor with a focus on news and email at Money. She didn’t always intend to write about money. She’s a classically trained pianist who dreamed of becoming an archaeologist. However, in 2007 Katherine began working in financial publishing as an editor for Agora Inc. (Apparently, unearthing ideas about improving your personal finances isn’t such a bad career alternative!) Katherine’s writing and editing work has been featured in Investing Daily, Clever, Investor Junkie, The Palm Beach Letter, Truth & Plenty, Independence Monthly, NICHE, AmericanStyle, AntiqueWeek, Millennial Money, Money Done Right, TheStreet, Sure Dividend and many others. Katherine holds a Bachelor of Arts in Ancient Studies with concentrations in Archaeology and Ancient Languages and a minor in Literature from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. She is a member of Phi Beta Kappa. education: University of Maryland, Baltimore County at_money_since: 2025 articles: 14 covers: - Retirement - Banking - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Debt - Economy and Politics - Education - Federal Reserve Rate Cuts - Health and Wellness - Housing - Identity Theft - Insurance - Investing - Lifestyle - Loans - Mortgages - Personal Finance - Professional Services - Shopping - Taxes published: '2026-09-09T12:30:03.000Z' section: Retirement tags: - News - Retirement word_count: 556 canonical: https://money.com/401k-millionaires-fidelity-retirement-savings/ type: NewsArticle source: structured-blocks --- > **Disclosure:** We research all brands listed and may earn a fee from our partners. Research and financial considerations may influence how brands are displayed. Not all brands are included. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/). ![piggy banks on the rise](https://img.money.com/2026/09/News-401k-millionaires-high.jpg) More than 100,000 people joined the [401(k)](https://money.com/401k-isnt-an-investment-plan/) millionaire club from March to June. A record 769,000 savers had at least $1 million in their workplace retirement accounts at the end of June — 115,000 more than just three months earlier, according to Fidelity's latest [retirement analysis](https://about.fidelity.com/data-and-insights/q2-2026-retirement-analysis). A Fidelity spokesperson confirmed the figures in an email to Money on Thursday. But $1 million is still far from what most people have saved. The average 401(k) balance was $155,800 at the end of June, while the median balance was just $35,800. The record came after a rough first quarter for the stock market. The S&P 500 [fell roughly 7%](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/30/business/oil-gas-prices-iran.html) as the war in Iran and surging oil prices fueled concerns about inflation and a slowing economy. Stocks rebounded in the second quarter, with the S&P 500 rising 14.9% — its strongest quarterly gain since 2020. The millionaire ranks grew outside workplace plans, too. Fidelity reported 684,140 IRA millionaires at the end of June, up from 571,622 at the end of March. The average IRA balance reached $144,523, up 10% from the previous quarter. ## What it takes to become a 401(k) millionaire The stock market's strong second quarter helped lift retirement balances, but Fidelity's latest data also shows that consistently saving — and starting early enough to give those savings time to grow — plays a major role in reaching $1 million. The [average employee contribution rate](https://about.fidelity.com/data-and-insights/q2-2026-retirement-analysis) reached a record 9.6% in the second quarter, while employer contributions averaged another 4.8%, bringing the average savings rate to 14.4%. That’s just shy of Fidelity’s [recommended 15% savings rate](https://www.fidelity.com/learning-center/personal-finance/average-retirement-savings). More than 8 in 10 participants (81.2%) contributed enough to receive their full employer match, and 12.1% increased their contribution rate during the quarter. Fidelity’s average 401(k) balance is now 75% higher than it was a decade ago, illustrating the role that years of contributions and investment growth can play in building retirement wealth. The average 401(k) millionaire was 58 years old and had been saving for 25 years. \[moved this up\] These savers were also contributing considerably more of their own money than the average participant. The average individual savings rate among 401(k) millionaires was 17.3%. When employer contributions were included, the average savings rate rose to 25.8%. Gen Xers — those born between 1965 and 1980 — made up the largest share of the 401(k) millionaire population, accounting for 62% of the group. Baby boomers (born between 1946 and 1964) represented roughly 31%, while millennials (born between 1981 and 1996) made up 6%. Still, the record number of millionaires doesn’t mean every retirement saver is on track to reach that milestone. Nearly 1 in 5 retirement savers, or 19.5%, had an outstanding 401(k) loan in the second quarter, up from 19.2% at the end of the first. Hardship withdrawals were also up, with 3% of retirement savers taking one in the second quarter, compared with 2.6% a year earlier. “The combination of record account balances, strong savings behaviors and effective plan design tells an encouraging story about how Americans are approaching retirement,” Sharon Brovelli, president of Workplace Investing at Fidelity Investments, said in a press release. “Workers continue to prioritize their financial future, saving at record levels and taking advantage of valuable benefits such as employer matching contributions. 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