Retiring comfortably is a common goal for many working Americans, but a majority say they’re behind on their retirement savings. According to Bankrate’s 2025 Retirement Savings Survey, three in five American workers (58 percent) say their retirement savings are behind where they should be.
More than one-third of American workers (those employed full-time, part-time or temporarily unemployed) expect to need $1 million or more to retire comfortably. However, only 50 percent of workers think it’s likely they can reach their retirement savings goal, according to the survey.
For some of those workers, it’s not for a lack of saving. About 60 percent are contributing the same or more to their retirement accounts as they were a year ago. Many are using popular tax-advantaged accounts such as 401(k) plans and IRAs, which offer tax benefits to help speed up their savings.
Working savers in the middle of their careers, or later, must prioritize their retirement contributions over discretionary spending, given that the window is narrowing to benefit from compounding through investing. Living like there’s no tomorrow can be akin to a self-fulfilling prophecy, financially speaking.
— Mark Hamrick, Bankrate Senior Economic Analyst
Here are the key results from Bankrate’s 2025 Retirement Savings Survey.
Bankrate’s key findings on retirement savings
Nearly 3 in 5 workers feel behind on their retirement savings
Fifty-eight percent of American workers say they’re behind where they should be on their retirement savings, including 37 percent who feel significantly behind. In comparison, in 2024, 57 percent of respondents said they were behind on retirement savings.
About 3 in 5 workers are adding the same or more to their retirement savings year-over-year
Sixty percent of workers are contributing the same or more to their retirement savings, compared to a year ago (in August 2024). Seventeen percent are contributing less than they were a year ago, while 23 percent didn’t contribute to their emergency savings last year or now.
One-third of American workers say they’ll need $1 million or more to live comfortably in retirement
Thirty-four percent of American workers expect to need $1 million or more to retire comfortably, while 18 percent said they’d need $2 million or more.
Most American workers feel behind on retirement savings
The majority of American workers (58 percent) say they’re behind on retirement savings. Of those, 37 percent say they’re significantly behind where they should be, while 21 percent say they’re slightly behind. The overall figures are similar to those in the last two surveys, when 57 percent (in 2024) and 56 percent (in the 2023 survey) said their retirement savings were lagging.
More than 12 percent of workers said they’re ahead of where they should be, including 6 percent who say they are significantly ahead and 6 percent who are slightly ahead. Another 22 percent say they’re right on track with their retirement savings, while 7 percent say they don’t know.
Older workers are more likely to say they’re behind where they need to be on retirement savings. Of those aged 18-34, more than 50 percent say they are behind, while 61 percent of those aged 35-54 say they’re behind. More than 64 percent of those aged 55 and older say their retirement savings are behind where they need to be.
Meanwhile, nearly 14 percent of those aged 18-34 say they’re ahead of where they need to be on retirement savings, and 13 percent of those aged 35-54 say the same. Just 10 percent of those aged 55 and up say their retirement savings were ahead.
“Looking across the generations and a variety of income levels, a key challenge for Americans and their retirement savings is to align their contributions with their realistic long-term needs,” says Hamrick. “Key to this process is doing some of the homework, particularly for more senior workers, to identify how much they expect to need when they retire.”
Retirement savings by income and education
Workers without a college degree were more likely to report feeling behind on their retirement savings.
- No high school/high school graduate: 57 percent
- Some college/two-year degree: 67 percent
- Four-year degree: 52 percent
- Post-graduate degree: 54 percent
Those with lower household incomes were more likely to report feeling behind on their retirement savings.
- Under $50,000 per year: 67 percent
- $50,000–$79,999 per year: 59 percent
- $80,000–$99,999 per year: 57 percent
- $100,000 per year or more: 49 percent
Most Americans are still adding to their retirement accounts, though many are not
While many workers say they’re behind on savings, the majority of them are adding the same or more to their retirement savings as they were this time last year. Nearly one in four workers (24 percent) are contributing more to their retirement accounts this year, while a further 36 percent are contributing the same amount, compared to a year ago.
In contrast, 17 percent of workers are contributing less than a year ago. Another 23 percent were not contributing last year or this year.
“The greatest opportunity to succeed with retirement savings is to begin as early as possible, such as for members of Gen Z and millennials,” says Hamrick. “By harnessing the power of compounding returns on investments, the combination of being on track, or even getting ahead of the game, will deliver dividends, figuratively and literally.”
Millennials were the generation that most often reported saving more compared to last year, while boomers were the least likely:
- Gen Z workers: 22 percent
- Millennial workers: 28 percent
- Gen X workers: 23 percent
- Baby boomer workers: 19 percent
However, millennial workers were the generation that most often reported saving less compared to last year, while Gen Z was the least likely:
- Gen Z workers: 13 percent
- Millennial workers: 19 percent
- Gen X workers: 17 percent
- Baby boomer workers: 15 percent
Of all the age groups, millennials most often reported that they saved more than last year. They were also the group most often to report saving less than last year.
About one-third of American workers think they’ll need more than $1 million for retirement
The range of what Americans think they’ll need for a comfortable retirement varies dramatically. While 14 percent of workers said $250,000 or less, five percent said $10 million or more.
Respondents were asked to select the range of wealth they think they’ll need to retire comfortably, and a majority said more than $500,000, while about one-third said $1 million or more.
- 14 percent said $250,000 or less
- 58 percent said $250,000 or more
- 51 percent said $500,000 or more
- 34 percent said $1 million or more
- 18 percent said $2 million or more
- 7 percent said $5 million or more
- 5 percent said $10 million or more
- 28 percent said they didn’t know
Of all generations, millennial workers most often reported that they expect to need $1 million or more to retire comfortably:
- Gen Z workers: 33 percent
- Millennial workers: 38 percent
- Gen X workers: 35 percent
- Baby boomer workers: 24 percent
Gen Z reported they don’t know how much they need to retire comfortably most often (33 percent), followed, perhaps surprisingly, by baby boomers at 30 percent. Twenty-seven percent of Gen X reported not knowing, while 25 percent of millennials said the same.
“Our collective failure to focus on retirement savings points to a growing risk that Social Security and Medicare will be critically necessary parts of the solution for many Americans in retirement,” says Hamrick. “Yet looming funding shortfalls for these popular programs are potentially disastrous unless resolved by elected officials. The time-bomb is ticking.”
A retirement calculator can help you find how much you can save
Just half of American workers think they can reach their retirement savings goal
Fifty percent of American workers with a retirement goal in mind think they’ll be able to achieve it, according to this year’s survey. That number is broadly in line with the results of 2024 (49 percent) and 2023 (52 percent). Meanwhile, 47 percent said it’s not likely they’ll reach their retirement savings goal, while 3 percent said they didn’t know.
By generation, Gen Z workers with a retirement goal most often (55 percent) said they were likely to reach their goal. This group was followed by boomers (53 percent), millennials (52 percent) and Gen X, with a much lower 42 percent.
Fifty-five percent of Gen X workers said they were unlikely to reach their goal. They were followed by millennials and boomers (both at 45 percent) and Gen Z at 40 percent.
3 tips to help you maximize your retirement savings
With Social Security under threat, it’s more important than ever that Americans take charge of their retirement savings.
Here are some key ways that you can save for retirement.
1. Take full advantage of tax-advantaged accounts
Workers have several tax-advantaged ways to save, which can help them amass a nest egg for retirement faster. Both employer-sponsored 401(k) plans and IRAs can help workers save without the immediate drag of taxes slowing down their ability to compound wealth. These accounts let you invest in potentially high-return assets such as stocks and stock funds, helping you turbocharge your retirement funds, too. Both types of plans also offer Roth versions — a Roth 401(k) and a Roth IRA — that are set up so you’ll never pay taxes on withdrawals again.
These accounts let you stash thousands each year under their tax protection, but they do have limits. You’ll be able to put up to $23,500 into a 401(k) plan annually, though workers age 50 and older can save an additional $7,500 catch-up contribution. Plus, many companies provide an employer match, which is free money that goes right into the account. The IRA lets workers with earned income save $7,000 a year, though those age 50 and older can add an extra $1,000.
2. Automate as much as possible
When it comes to saving, many people find it hard to do. So it’s important to make it as easy as possible — and you can do that by automating the process. For example, with a 401(k) plan, your money is pulled straight from your paycheck before it even gets into your account. Then it’s automatically invested into whatever you’ve selected ahead of time.
You can take a similar step with an IRA, though you’ll have to set up this plan yourself. You can have your bank automatically move money from your account to your IRA on payday. In either case, this automatic process means you don’t have to actively decide to save every time a paycheck comes in — so you’re more likely to stick to the good behavior of saving for retirement.
3. Work with a financial advisor
A good financial advisor has seen it all and knows the best route to take to help you reach a comfortable retirement. So, an advisor can help clients avoid the pitfalls and make the smartest decisions to get the retirement you want, even if you don’t think you have enough. They can help you select good investments for a 401(k) or IRA and can assist you in finding the right time to take Social Security and how to maximize your benefit.
And importantly, the best advisors not only develop a financial plan but also help you stick to it during tough times.
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