Retirement is a period that many people look forward to. When you retire, you expect to be done with work for good. However, this isn’t always the case. As retirement statistics show, a great number of people continue working even after retiring.
The retirement lifestyle varies across different social groups. For example, retirement is not the same for men and women, but gender isn’t the only factor affecting retirement conditions. These differences can also be noticed in terms of age and race.
So, whether you are ages away from retirement or you plan to retire soon, here is some information about retirement that is worth knowing.
Top Ten Most Interesting Retirement Stats and Facts
- Most Americans expect to retire at 66.
- Greece, Iceland, Israel, and Italy have the highest retirement age in the world.
- 28% of retirees still work in retirement.
- Hawaii is the state with the highest retirement age in the US.
- Women’s median retirement savings are around $23,000.
- In 2019, most Hispanics retired at the age of 61 or earlier.
- 44% of African American families have at least one retirement account.
- 39% of adults have started saving for retirement in their 20s.
- The average annual spending on American retirees is $50,220 a year.
- 14% of millennials and Gen X-ers have taken from or stopped contributing to their retirement accounts due to the pandemic.
General Retirement Statistics to Know in 2022
If you’re new to this, here is what you know about retirement in general. How many people are retired, when they retire and how is retirement treated around the world — here are the answers.
1. Most Americans expect to retire at 66.
(Gallup)
For over a decade, the majority of Americans have expected their age of retirement to be between 65 and 67. In general, most people look forward to retiring after 60. Of course, there are people planning to retire before the age of 59, but the percentage is pretty low.
In 2018, only 12% of non-retirees wanted to retire before 60. Similarly, 15% expected to retire somewhere between 60 and 64, 24% at 65, and 41% after 65.
2. Greece, Iceland, Israel, and Italy have the highest retirement age in the world.
(Trading Economics)
These countries lead when it comes to the highest retirement age in men — 67. As retirement statistics for 2020 show, they are followed by the Netherlands (66.67) and Portugal (66.42). Australia, Ireland, the United Kingdom, and the United States all have the same average retirement age for men, which is 66 years.
3. 13% of Gen X had a 401(k), or a retirement account, but weren’t contributing to it.
(Business Insider)
A 401(k) can be defined as a retirement account that is generally sponsored by an employer. Unfortunately, half of Gen X-ers don’t have this, nor any other retirement account.
As financial facts show, millennials aren’t in a great situation either when it comes to retirement plans. Namely, 54% of millennials have no retirement account, and 11% of those who do have one don’t make monthly contributions.
4. 28% of retirees still work in retirement.
(Investopedia)
A fair share of retirees don’t spend their life in retirement in a way many would assume they do. On the contrary, most workers expect to continue working even when retired. However, even though 80% of them said that they expected this, only 28% actually worked in 2019, according to the retiree statistics.
5. Most people work in retirement for financial reasons.
(Transamerica)
Of those who work in retirement, 80% do so for financial reasons. The other most common reason has to do with healthy aging, and 72% of retirees have this on their mind when they choose to work. In regard to financial reasons, people want income, while they want to stay active for healthy aging.
Retirement Age Statistics
Like with everything else in this world, this is a highly individual thing, but there are still some rules to it. Here are some numbers to help you figure out when you will be able to retire and enjoy naps whenever you want.
6. The average retirement age for American men is 65.
(The Balance)
Men tend to work longer than women, which is shown by the fact that women usually retire at the age of 63. After all that workplace stress, both men and women can relax, because the average retirement length is around 20 years.
7. Hawaii is the state with the highest retirement age in the US.
(Business Insider)
An average Hawaiian retires at 74. The savings one Hawaiian needs for this count around $2,151,884. As retirement stats for 2020 show, the situation is different across the United States. For instance, in Utah, people mostly retire at 53, and they need $815,537 to do that.
8. Millennials will have to save around 40% of their paycheck if they want to retire in 30 years.
(CNBC)
It is usually recommended to save 15% of your paycheck for your retirement. However, this might not always be enough. Millennials, in particular, should start saving more. Nearly half of their income should be set aside for the future.
9. Women’s median retirement savings are around $23,000.
(The Motley Fool)
Retirement readiness statistics show that women need a median retirement savings of $500,000. Since the number they usually have is far below this one, it’s pretty difficult for female workers to achieve financial security once they retire.
Retirement and Race
You may wonder how these two are connected, but they are. You don’t have to take our word for it — here are the numbers.
10. In 2019, 80% of Caucasian respondents had some retirement savings.
(Statista)
Unfortunately, not all races have the same numbers when it comes to retirement statistics. For instance, only 6% of Hispanic respondents had some retirement savings.
Moreover, 43% of Caucasian respondents had their retirement savings on track, while only 29% of African American respondents were in the same situation.
11. In 2019, most Hispanics retired at the age of 61 or earlier.
(Federal Reserve)
More precisely, 65% of Hispanic workers in the US retired at 61 or earlier. According to the retirement statistics from 2019, 19% of Hispanic workers retired between 62 and 64, while 15% retired at 65 or after.
Most of the Caucasian workers and African American workers have also retired at 61 or before – 48% and 56%, respectively.
12. 44% of African American families have at least one retirement account.
(Federal Reserve)
African American and Hispanic families are less likely to have any retirement account than Caucasian families. This comes from the fact that 65% of Caucasian families have at least one retirement savings account, while only 28% of Hispanic families can say the same.
13. Social security is the sole source of income for 26% of Asians and Pacific Islanders.
(National Academy of Social Insurance)
People of color have fewer chances of pensions or retirement savings than Caucasian Americans. For that reason, Social Security is often their only source of income in retirement. More precisely, 40% of Hispanics, 33% of African Americans, and 18% of Caucasians rely on Social Security when talking about income in retirement.
Retirement Facts to Keep in Mind
In the end, here are some bonus stats and facts you may want to know before you retire and, preferably, before you even start considering to start saving.
14. 39% of adults have started saving for retirement in their 20s.
(CNBC)
Even though it is advised to start saving for retirement early, not many people can do so. Namely, almost 40% of adults have started saving in their 20s, a bit over 25% of them have started saving in their 30s, 15% in their 40s, while 6% of adults have started saving for retirement in their 50s.
15. The average annual spending on American retirees is $50,220 a year.
(Money Talks News)
According to the retirement stats, average annual spending for a US household led by a retiree doesn’t differ much from one led by a worker. For instance, the average annual spending across all households in the US is estimated at $63,036.
16. The average household spending on retirees is around $17,472 per year.
(Money Talks News)
The largest part of any retiree’s spending has to do with housing. Transportation ($7,492) is the other reason why retired people spend so much, and it is followed by healthcare ($6,833), and food ($6,599), retirement statistics show. Finally, retirees spend a lot on utilities and public services ($3,810 on average) as well.
17. 18% of workers are very confident that they will retire with a comfortable lifestyle.
(Transamerica)
Most of the workers have a positive attitude and positive expectations from their retirement. More precisely, 63% of them are confident that they will lead a comfortable lifestyle when they retire. A large percentage of the total is “somewhat confident” that they will retire in such a way – 45%, as US retirement statistics show.
18. 14% of millennials and Gen X-ers have taken from or stopped contributing to their retirement accounts due to the pandemic.
(FlexJobs)
The current situation with the coronavirus has changed a lot of things in our lives. It has affected the finances as well. Since many people feel like there is no other way to make money at the moment, they have reached their retirement accounts. Namely, 12% of older workers have used money from their retirement accounts since the pandemic started.
FAQ
How much does the average person have when they retire?
Unfortunately, things aren’t too bright when it comes to retirement savings. Unfortunately, most American retirement accounts are empty — 21% of Americans don’t have any retirement savings, while only 10% have less than $5,000. A third of baby boomers have up to $25,000 in savings.
An average retirement saving account for a worker under 30 is $32,500; for a worker between 35 and 44, it is $100,000, while a worker of 45–55 has $215,800. Finally, a worker of 55-65 has $374,000, and workers that are 65–74 have $358,000. When it comes to the workers without savings, they have between $480 and $17,000, depending on their age.
(TheStreet)
What is the average retirement income for 2019?
A major part of the income of the elderly is made up of Social Security benefits – 38%. Most people in this group are single, and they usually have an income of about $1,470 per month, which makes up about $17,640 per year.
Unfortunately, many Americans have no retirement accounts, which makes the number lower than it should be.
(SmartAsset)
How much should I have saved for retirement by the age of 60?
Experts agree that the right time for retirement is when your pre-retirement salary makes 80% of your retirement income. For instance, if your goal is a $100,000 annual retirement, you should make $80,000 before you retire. This is the safest way to ensure a comfortable retirement while you are still employed.
(Investopedia)
How much does the average 65-year-old have saved for retirement?
The average retirement account for people at the age of 65–74 is $358,000, while the median retirement account for the same group is $126,000. Since this is a common age for retiring, the numbers soon begin to change. Namely, if you retire at 65, you can expect a decline in your account as soon as you cease to work.
(TheStreet)
To Sum Up
No matter how old you are, you are probably concerned about your retirement. Retirement is something that we are all expecting, and the sooner we start preparing for it, the better we will spend it.
As retirement statistics have shown, people with different backgrounds can expect different things from their retirement. Depending on your gender, race, state, and savings, you will know what to look forward to. Nevertheless, make sure to enjoy your life, both before and after retiring.
