--- title: Why Americans' Confidence in a Comfortable Retirement Is Dropping description: Americans' dreams of comfortable retirement are souring due to still-heightened inflation and fears of stock market volatility to come. authors: - name: Brenden Rearick role: Reporter url: https://money.com/author/brenden-rearick/ bio: Brenden Rearick is a former reporter at Money who specialized in covering breaking news and enterprise stories about credit cards, real estate, investing, and personal finance trends. education: University of Pittsburgh, BA at_money_since: 2023 articles: 133 covers: - Retirement - Banking - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Economy and Politics - Education - Housing - Insurance - Investing - Lifestyle - Loans - Mortgages - Personal Finance - Professional Services - Shopping - Taxes - Technology former_staff: true 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: '2023-07-27T18:32:22.000Z' modified: '2023-08-18T16:02:11.000Z' section: Retirement tags: - News word_count: 451 canonical: https://money.com/retirement-confidence-drop/ 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/). ![Illustration of a piggy bank racing for money at the end of a long race track](https://img.money.com/2023/07/News-Only-56-Feel-on-Track-for-Retirement.jpg?crop=0px%2C177px%2C2880px%2C1620px&quality=85) Just over half of Americans think they're on track for a comfortable retirement. That's according to [new research](https://www.blackrock.com/us/individual/insights/retirement/2023-read-on-retirement-survey) from investment giant BlackRock, which released a report this week that not only shows a rapid drop in workers' confidence toward [retiring](https://money.com/retiring-in-2023/) but also indicates employers themselves are becoming less confident in the plans they offer. However, while confidence has dropped quickly over the last year, the company says a change in [portfolio management strategy](https://money.com/60-40-investing-strategy-comeback/) and a renewed trust in advisors could be what restores it. ## 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=%2Fretirement-confidence-drop%2F) ## What the data says According to BlackRock's newest Read on Retirement report, 56% of Americans feel they're on track to [retire comfortably](https://money.com/how-much-money-retire-comfortably/), meaning they believe they'll have enough money saved to accommodate the lifestyle they want. The newest figure makes for an 11-percentage-point drop since 2022's survey. The two largest concerns propelling this decrease in confidence are worries that market volatility will impact their [savings](https://money.com/high-yield-savings-accounts-middle-income/) — a fear shared by 93% of respondents, per BlackRock — and high levels of inflation eating into their balances — shared by 86%. ## Key context The poll was conducted between March and May, before inflation dropped to its current level of 3%. But the [inflation rate](https://money.com/inflation-june-2023-rent-insurance/) is still above the Federal Reserve's 2% target, meaning many consumers are continuing to deal with a heightened cost of living. Retirees, too, are suffering as [Social Security payments](https://money.com/social-security-2023-not-enough/) fail to match inflation. The Fed's hikes also tend to have a negative [effect on the stock market](https://money.com/how-high-interest-rates-impact-stocks-bonds/) because they make borrowing money more expensive for companies and consumers, which could continue the volatility keeping Americans on edge. The report says that savers aren't the only ones concerned: About 37% of employers say they are confident their plans enable employees to know how much of their balance can be spent each year in retirement. That's a significant drop from the 61% of employers that told BlackRock they felt confident in 2020. ## How to fix it In helping to right this sinking confidence, active management could be key. Almost 8 in 10 employees say they would be interested in turning to actively managed funds, which see a higher frequency of trades than typical passive funds in order to achieve better returns. On that note, access to [professional investment advisors](https://money.com/what-is-a-financial-advisor/) can be another important aspect of bolstering confidence. Of the respondents who feel that they *are* on track for retirement, 30% say that access to an [advisor](https://money.com/how-to-choose-a-financial-advisor/) is a primary reason why. ## Make your retirement plan work for you by investing in a Roth IRA ### Roth IRAs allow you to save money for retirement, while providing the flexibility that traditional retirement plans lack. Click below to learn more. [Start Investing](https://money.com/pr/ub41a2014241?ap_referrer=%2Fretirement-confidence-drop%2F) ![](https://s3.consumersadvocate.org/prd/image/image/22145/medium_add8dc72-0c71-4e11-a480-2e2335612296.png) Begin setting up an IRA with SoFi® today! [Start Investing](https://money.com/pr/ze4c74e74bbd?ap_referrer=%2Fretirement-confidence-drop%2F) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "@id": "https://money.com/retirement-confidence-drop/#breadcrumb", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://money.com" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Retirement", "item": "https://money.com/retirement/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Retirement Planning", "item": "https://money.com/retirement-planning/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Why Americans' Confidence in a Comfortable Retirement Is Dropping" } ] }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://money.com/#website", "url": "https://money.com", "name": "Money", "publisher": { "@id": "https://money.com/#organization" } }, { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://money.com/retirement-confidence-drop/#webpage", "url": "https://money.com/retirement-confidence-drop/", "name": "Why Americans' Confidence in a Comfortable Retirement Is Dropping", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://money.com/#website" }, "datePublished": "2023-07-27T18:32:22.000Z", "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://money.com/retirement-confidence-drop/" }, "inLanguage": "en-US", "breadcrumb": { "@id": "https://money.com/retirement-confidence-drop/#breadcrumb" }, "dateModified": "2023-08-18T16:02:11.000Z" }, { "@type": "NewsArticle", "headline": "Why Americans' Confidence in a Comfortable Retirement Is Dropping", "articleSection": "Retirement", "image": [ { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://img.money.com/2023/07/News-Only-56-Feel-on-Track-for-Retirement.jpg?crop=0px%2C177px%2C2880px%2C1620px&quality=85", "width": 1012, "height": 569, "caption": "News-Only-56%-Feel-on-Track-for-Retirement" } ], "author": [ { "@type": "Person", "name": "Brenden Rearick", "url": "https://money.com/author/brenden-rearick/", "@id": "https://money.com/author/brenden-rearick/#author", "description": "Brenden Rearick is a former reporter at Money who specialized in covering breaking news and enterprise stories about credit cards, real estate, investing, and personal finance trends.\r\n\r\n", "email": "brenden.rearick@money.com", "alumniOf": "University of Pittsburgh, BA" } ], "publisher": "https://money.com/#organization", "datePublished": "2023-07-27T18:32:22.000Z", "description": "Americans' dreams of comfortable retirement are souring due to still-heightened inflation and fears of stock market volatility to come.", "abstract": "Americans' dreams of comfortable retirement are souring due to still-heightened inflation and fears of stock market volatility to come.", "@id": "https://money.com/retirement-confidence-drop/", "inLanguage": "en-US", "dateModified": "2023-08-18T16:02:11.000Z", "editor": [ { "@type": "Person", "name": "Julia Glum", "url": "https://money.com/author/julia-glum/", "@id": "https://money.com/author/julia-glum/#author", "description": "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. ", "image": "https://img.money.com/2021/10/a_julia-glum.jpg?quality=85&w=400&h=440&crop=1", "email": "julia.glum@money.com", "jobTitle": "Managing Editor", "alumniOf": "University of Florida", "subjectOf": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://www.newsweek.com", "name": "Newsweek" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://www.ibtimes.com/", "name": "International Business Times" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://www.cbsnews.com/news/home-office-tax-deduction-who-qualifies/", "name": "CBS News" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/living/story/coupon-queen-woman-tik-tok-share-tips-couponing-66302189", "name": "Good Morning America" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://www.wusa9.com/video/entertainment/television/programs/great-day-washington/tips-to-being-better-with-money-in-2021/65-a5b83e05-73ba-4d60-b9a8-1d47f9ac6018", "name": "WUSA9" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://pix11.com/news/coronavirus/rebound/making-ends-meet/millenials-taking-biggest-financial-hit-from-pandemic/", "name": "Pix 11" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/10/opinion/active-shooter-drill-schools.html", "name": "The New York Times" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://mashable.com/article/forrest-fenn-treasure-found", "name": "Mashable" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2014/08/13/theres-an-app-for-that-authorities-say-man-asked-siri-for-help-dumping-body/", "name": "The Washington Post" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://www.cnbc.com/2020/06/08/treasure-buried-by-forrest-fenn-finally-found-after-10-years.html", "name": "CNBC" }, { "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://www.politico.com/tipsheets/florida-playbook/2017/03/gillum-for-governors-rollout-stumble-florida-woman-gets-trump-shout-out-rubios-tampa-office-problems-218973", "name": "Politico" } ], "sameAs": [ "https://x.com/superjulia", "https://www.linkedin.com/in/julia-glum" ], "worksFor": { "@id": "https://money.com/#organization" } } ], "wordCount": 451, "keywords": [ "News" ], "about": [ { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Retirement", "sameAs": [ "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Retirement" ] }, { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Retirement planning", "sameAs": [ "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Retirement_planning" ] } ] } ] } ```