Over 40% of Americans don't know how much they'll need for retirement

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For many workers, retirement can feel so far away that months or even years pass without reviewing their plan or creating one at all.

In fact, many Americans do not know how much they'll need to support themselves in retirement. More than 4 in 10 Americans have never tried to calculate what retirement will cost them, according to a national survey of U.S. adults aged 25 to 75 from Evergreen.ai, a financial-planning platform.

Among those who expect to retire within 15 years, 1 in 3 still haven't run the numbers.

Why workers put retirement planning on the back burner

There are several reasons Americans may be putting off retirement planning.

The Employee Benefit Research Institute's 2026 Retirement Confidence Survey found that workers face several challenges, including concerns about changes to the retirement system, difficulty saving for retirement due to high healthcare and housing costs, uncertainty about where to turn for financial guidance, and mounting debt.

About 3 in 5 workers said debt negatively affects their ability to save for retirement.

"First, they don't even know where to start — there is so much information out there that it's overwhelming to start planning for retirement. People approaching retirement get information overload," said Nathan Nicolaisen, a certified financial planner and the founder of Redspire Wealth Management. "Second, they might be scared to look at their finances, so they avoid it. Third, they might feel like they don't need to plan and are in a good spot or that everything will work itself out."

The problem with hoping that things will just work themselves out without a clear plan is that you could end up falling behind without even realizing it — particularly if you miscalculate how much money you'll need to live comfortably in retirement.

Even people with a clear savings target will likely need to adjust that figure throughout their lives as their needs and income evolve. Certain living expenses, such as housing, may decrease as you age and downsize or pay off your mortgage, while others, such as healthcare, may increase as you get older.

You may also need to adjust your contributions if you aim to retire earlier or later than originally planned. Inflation, which erodes your money's purchasing power, matters too.

Many experts agree that failing to make a plan or failing to start saving as soon as possible, because you haven't figured out how much you need, could end up being a costly mistake in the long run.

"Most of the people I've met who are behind on retirement got there the same way. They assumed there was always more time," said Jay Pinkston, CFP®, founder of Pinkston Wealth. "Then one day they realize retirement is close, and now they're almost afraid to sit down and plan because they don't want to see how far behind they are."

Pinkston says the highest cost of waiting is lost compounding. "When I run retirement projections, an extra year of time often makes a bigger difference than saving more each month," he said.

Calculating your retirement number and building a savings plan

Northwestern Mutual's 2026 Planning & Progress Study found that Americans believe they'll need an average of $1.46 million to "retire comfortably," up from $1.25 million in 2022.

If that figure sounds out of your reach, you're not alone. The same study found that nearly a quarter of those with retirement savings report having just one year or less of their current annual income set aside for it.

The good news is that a smaller balance doesn't necessarily mean you're behind.

One common rule for determining your savings goal is to aim for 10 to 12 times your annual salary by retirement. This type of guideline could be a good starting point as you begin to create a plan, but your actual retirement savings goal should be more unique to your future lifestyle and expenses.

"I start with spending," said Pinkston. "Once we know what retirement will actually cost, we look at savings and retirement income to see whether it will last, and then we figure out what adjustments to make."

Some workers who have put off calculating their retirement costs because they're overwhelmed may find they aren't that far off track. Especially once they've factored in other sources of income, such as their Social Security benefits, annuities, spousal income, and other assets that could be used to cover costs.

In cases where someone finds that they're still quite a ways off from their desired target, experts say this doesn't mean the situation is hopeless. Savers can still take steps to boost their retirement savings by increasing their income and reducing current expenses and debt balances to make larger contributions.

This is also an opportunity to reevaluate not just how much you're saving, but where that money is being kept, and whether it's worth exploring alternative savings vehicles to maximize your money's growth potential.

"They have to start, and starting means taking an honest look at where they stand today before looking forward. Think of it like a map. You can't get directions to point B if you don't know where point A is," said Pinkston. "Once you know your starting point, the path forward gets a lot clearer, even if it's not the path you originally hoped for."

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Figuring out how much you need to save for retirement can be tough, especially if it's still a long way off. These guidelines can help you determine the right amount.

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