Key takeaways
It can be difficult to determine exactly how much you will need to save for retirement, but there are some general guidelines based on age that can serve as a good starting point.
Generally, experts recommend have one times your salary saved by age 30 and eight times saved by 60.
If you’re feeling behind, there are several ways you can boost your retirement and emergency savings starting now.
Workers often find themselves struggling with how much they should be saving for retirement. While it certainly depends on a person’s individual situation, experts and financial advisors have general guidelines on what you need to have saved at each stage of your life.
For example, experts at Fidelity Investments recommend that you save:
At least one times your salary by your 30th birthday
Three times your salary by your 40th birthday
Six times your salary by your 50th birthday
Eight times your salary by your 60th birthday
Here’s how those numbers break down based on age, average income and monthly expenditure, according to nationwide data. Also included are emergency savings goals for three and six months of spending.
Average retirement savings goal by age
Age | Retirement saving goal | Emergency saving goal |
|---|---|---|
30 | $84,939 | $17,967 to $35,934 |
40 | $327,225 | $22,735 to $45,470 |
50 | $693,918 | $24,330 to $48,660 |
60 | $778,208 | $20,845 to $41,690 |
Note:Retirement savings goals are based on Fidelity’s recommendations above using income after taxes data in the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Expenditure Survey, 2023. Emergency savings goals are calculated using the average annual expenditure mean for that age group in the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Expenditure Survey, 2023.
Think of these savings targets as less of an exact number and more of a general range. They will show you how your emergency savings and retirement account balances stack up to the recommendations.
Below you’ll find a full savings guide that estimates how much you should have in savings and retirement accounts at different age milestones.
How much do you need in an emergency fund?
Let’s start with your emergency fund. Standard financial advice says you should aim for three to six months’ worth of essential expenses, kept in some combination of high-yield savings accounts and other liquid accounts.
“For a working individual earning income, the goal should be to have just enough cash to provide an emergency buffer to protect against any pitfalls that could hinder financial well-being,” says Sergio Garcia, senior financial planner at Frontier Investment Management in Dallas.
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