How much should I have saved for retirement by 30, 40, 50 and 60?

One widely quoted rule of thumb, from Fidelity, says to aim for about 1× your salary saved by 30, 3× by 40, 6× by 50, 8× by 60 and 10× by 67. It's one firm's yardstick, built on the assumption that you save 15% of your pay from age 25, so treat it as a rough nudge, not a grade: your own target comes from what your life will cost.

If you're reading this with a knot in your stomach, you're not alone, and you're not late to the conversation. Plenty of people find these charts and feel behind. This guide explains where the numbers come from, when they fit and when they don't, and how to work out a number that's actually yours.

This is general education, not financial advice. Your income, accounts, health and family all matter. Use the calculators to explore, and check big decisions with a licensed professional.

Benchmarks checked October 25, 2026 against Fidelity's Viewpoints article (dated September 25, 2026). Contribution limits checked against IRS.gov and Social Security rules against SSA.gov the same night. The IRS hasn't announced 2027 limits yet, so this guide uses 2026 figures.

The savings-by-age benchmarks

Here's the rule of thumb, with what it would mean for someone earning $60,000 a year. "Salary" means your pay at that age, before tax, and "saved" means retirement savings and investments.

Source: [Fidelity](https://www.fidelity.com/viewpoints/retirement/how-much-do-i-need-to-retire). The $60,000 column is our made-up illustration.

Other firms publish their own versions with different multiples and assumptions. None of them is a rule you're required to meet.

What those numbers assume

Fidelity's footnotes are worth reading, because they explain why the chart might not fit you. The guideline assumes:

• You start saving at 25 and save 15% of your income every year, including any employer match.
• You retire at 67 and plan for your money to last to age 93.
• Your savings replace about 45% of your pre-retirement income each year, with no pension.
• More than half your savings is in stocks on average over your life, following a typical target-date fund mix.
• Your pay grows 1.5% a year faster than inflation.
• The plan works even in poor markets, at a 90% level of confidence in Fidelity's modeling.

Change any of those and the target changes. Fidelity itself says the 10× goal becomes 12× if you retire at 65 and 8× if you retire at 70, and that a below-average lifestyle could need about 8× while an above-average one could need about 12×.

Why a chart can say you're behind when you're not

A benchmark built on "15% from age 25" will flag almost anyone whose life didn't follow that script. Some common reasons your own target could be lower than the chart:

• You have a pension. The benchmark assumes none. A pension that covers part of your spending can cut the savings you need a lot. The Pension FIRE calculator shows how much.
• You'll spend less than you earn today. Once retirement saving, commuting and maybe a mortgage stop, many people need far less than their working income.
• You started later but save more now. Someone saving 20% from 40 isn't on the same curve as someone saving 15% from 25, and the chart can't see that.
• Social Security may cover more of your income than you'd guess. Its formula replaces a bigger share of earnings for lower and middle earners: 90% of the first slice of average monthly earnings, then 32%, then 15% above that (SSA).
• You plan to work a little longer. Fidelity's own numbers drop from 10× to 8× for retiring at 70 instead of 67.

It can cut the other way too. If you plan to retire well before 67, have no pension, or expect to spend more than you do now, your number could be higher than the chart.

A better check: your own number

Instead of comparing yourself with a curve, size your actual gap. Three steps:

1. Estimate yearly spending in retirement. Start from what you spend now, take out costs that will end, and add ones that will start, like health insurance before Medicare at 65.
2. Subtract income you can count on. Social Security from the age you plan to claim (your free my Social Security account shows your estimate), any pension, any part-time work.
3. Multiply the gap by about 25. That's the 4% rule turned around. It's a starting point, not a promise, and longer retirements may call for a bigger cushion.

The FIRE number calculator does this with your own numbers, and the Freedom Date calculator shows when your savings could get there at your current pace. For the full walk-through, see how much do you need to retire?

A made-up example: Dana at 45

Dana (invented for this guide) is 45, earns $70,000 a year and has $90,000 in a 401(k) and an IRA. On the chart, somewhere between 3× at 40 and 6× at 50, Dana "should" have well over $200,000. Dana has about 1.3×. By the chart, that's behind.

Now Dana's own numbers:

If Dana's $90,000 grew at a made-up 5% a year after inflation until 67 (22 years), it would reach about $263,000 on its own. To close the rest, Dana would need to add roughly $10,000 a year, about 14% of pay, employer match included.

That's a real commitment, but it's a plan, not a verdict. And from 50, catch-up contributions give Dana more room: for 2026, a 401(k) allows $24,500 plus an extra $8,000 at 50 or older, or an extra $11,250 at ages 60 to 63 (IRS). Working one or two more years, or claiming Social Security later, would shrink the gap further.

All figures are made up, ignore taxes and fees, and assume a steady return that real markets won't deliver. They show the method, not a forecast.

If you're behind the chart

Start with the levers that move the most. Behind on retirement savings? covers each one in detail. In short:

• Get the full employer match if you have one. The 401(k) match shows how.
• Raise your savings rate a point or two now, and again with each raise. The savings rate guide shows why the share you keep matters more than the size of your paycheck.
• Use catch-up room from 50. For 2026, IRAs allow $7,500 plus $1,100 at 50 or older (IRS). Catch-up contributions after 50 explains the rules.
• Time Social Security on purpose. For anyone born in 1960 or later, full retirement age is 67, and claiming at 62 means a check about 30% smaller for life (SSA). When to claim Social Security goes deeper.
• Don't chase big returns to make up time. Taking more risk than you can live with tends to backfire, especially close to retirement.

If you're ahead of the chart

Nice work. Two things are still worth doing: check that your spending estimate is realistic (the chart can't see it), and look at which accounts your savings sit in, since that decides how easily you can reach them before 59½. Getting to your money before 59½ covers the options if you're aiming to stop early.

Common questions

How much should I have saved by 30?

One common rule of thumb, from Fidelity, is about 1× your salary by 30, so roughly $60,000 if you earn $60,000. It assumes you started saving 15% of your pay at 25. If you're not there, a steady savings rate from here matters far more than hitting a milestone by a birthday.

How much should I have saved by 40?

Fidelity's guideline is about 3× your salary by 40. It's one firm's rule of thumb, based on saving 15% a year from 25 and retiring at 67 with no pension. Your own target depends on what you'll spend in retirement and the income you'll have from Social Security or a pension.

How much should I have saved by 50?

About 6× your salary is Fidelity's benchmark for 50. If you're below it, you still may have 15 or more working years left, and from 50 the IRS allows catch-up contributions: for 2026, an extra $8,000 in a 401(k) and an extra $1,100 in an IRA.

How much should I have saved by 60?

Fidelity suggests about 8× your salary by 60 and 10× by 67, for retiring at 67. Its own footnotes say retiring at 65 could call for about 12×, and retiring at 70 about 8×. Social Security timing, part-time work and a pension can all change what you need.

Do these benchmarks use gross salary or take-home pay?

They're multiples of your salary before tax. They're about retirement savings and investments, so it's simplest to leave your home's value out unless you plan to sell it or downsize to help fund retirement.

Is it too late if I'm far behind?

No. The chart assumes a single path that few people follow exactly. Working out your own gap, raising your savings rate, using catch-up contributions from 50, and timing Social Security can close a surprising share of the distance. Looking at the numbers, even once, is progress.

Next step

Find the number that's actually yours, using what you spend rather than a chart.

Try the FIRE number calculator →