--- title: Is Retirement Dead for Gen Z? 48% Expect to Work Beyond 65 description: Nearly half of Gen Zers plan to work beyond 65, with many worried about affording monthly bills and paying down debt in the meantime. 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: Julia Glum role: Managing Editor url: https://money.com/author/julia-glum/ bio: Julia Glum joined Money in 2018 and specializes in covering financial trends that affect everyday Americans' wallets. She also writes Dollar Scholar, a weekly newsletter that teaches young adults how to navigate the messy world of money. education: University of Florida at_money_since: 2018 articles: 453 covers: - Retirement - Banking - Business - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Debt - Economy and Politics - Education - Health and Wellness - Housing - Identity Theft - Insurance - Investing - Lifestyle - Loans - Mortgages - Personal Finance - Professional Services - Shopping - Taxes - Technology also_seen_in: - Newsweek - International Business Times - CBS News - Good Morning America - WUSA9 - Pix 11 - The New York Times - Mashable - The Washington Post - CNBC - Politico social: - https://x.com/superjulia - https://www.linkedin.com/in/julia-glum published: '2025-09-04T15:45:45.000Z' section: Retirement tags: - News word_count: 461 canonical: https://money.com/gen-z-retirement-obsolete/ 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/). ![Person working with loading computer screen for a head.](https://img.money.com/2025/06/News-Gen-Z-Retirement.jpg) Gen Z is not banking on an early retirement — or even a traditional one. More than a third of Gen Zers, or people who were born between 1997 and 2012, say the standard retirement age of 65 no longer feels relevant in today’s economy, according to a new survey from insurance company [Nationwide](https://news.nationwide.com/gen-z-grapples-with-debt-some-spend-freely-despite-low-confidence-in-retirement-readiness/). Nearly half (48%) say they plan to work beyond that age, with many pointing to the flexibility of remote work as a reason they can stay in the workforce past 65. "With [recent market volatility](https://money.com/what-to-do-volatile-stock-market/), it's not surprising that Gen Z savers are somewhat pessimistic about their financial futures," Kristi Martin Rodriguez, leader of the Nationwide Retirement Institute, said in a news release. "For these young people, retirement may seem like a lifetime away and feel like a very steep mountain to climb." ## The best time to open an IRA is today ### There's no time like the present to begin preparing for your retirement. Click on your state now to find out more. [Start Investing](https://money.com/pr/ue5e4621e2f0?ap_referrer=%2Fgen-z-retirement-obsolete%2F) Those long-term doubts are rooted in immediate financial pressures that can chip away at Gen Z's ability to save. Four in 10 say they're worried about affording their monthly bills over the next year, while 46% cite paying down debt — including student loans, credit cards and other obligations — as a top financial priority. While the burden of high-interest debt is stalling long-term planning for some Gen Zers, others are using it as motivation to make moves now. The Nationwide poll found 17% admit to spending more on non-essentials because they believe retirement may never be attainable. The result is a generation that feels financially stretched in the short term and uncertain about the long term — a mindset that could shape how they approach work, savings and retirement planning for decades to come. Gen Z isn't the only age group clocking in longer. Other surveys have shown that older Americans are also [pushing back their retirement](https://money.com/retirement-age-70-concerns/) timelines — many into their 70s — as they grapple with how rising costs will affect their [savings for retirement](https://money.com/workers-overestimate-retirement-savings/). But young workers' approach to retirement is proving distinct. Just as Gen Z tends to stray from financial norms, they're fond of taking advantage of less-traditional money tools to save their cash. (Case in point: [Gen Z is four times more likely](https://money.com/gen-z-crypto-vs-retirement/) to have cryptocurrencies than a retirement account.) These tools often lack the stability or long-term growth potential of more time-tested strategies — especially when it comes to retirement planning. "As a mother of two Gen Z daughters, I've been stressing the importance of beginning to save right away so they can leverage their most powerful advantage: a long-term horizon that allows them to maximize the power of compounding interest," Rodriguez said. ## It's not too late to open an IRA account for your retirement ### Click below to begin contributing to a Roth IRA account. [Start Investing](https://money.com/pr/u9a164023ac1?ap_referrer=%2Fgen-z-retirement-obsolete%2F) ![](https://s3.consumersadvocate.org/prd/image/image/22145/medium_add8dc72-0c71-4e11-a480-2e2335612296.png) Begin setting up an IRA with SoFi® today! 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