Average Retirement Savings for Married Couples by Age
Couples hold far more than single households, yet the typical couple still trails popular targets. Here is the data, by age band.
Key takeaways
- Married or partnered savers hold a median $30,500 under 35, rising to $376,000 at 55 to 64.
- Fidelity's multiples are targets, not averages: 1x salary by 30, 3x by 40, 6x by 50, 8x by 60, 10x by 67.
- The average for couples sits far above the median, because a few very large balances pull the mean up.
- Couple totals are not double a single person's savings: earners, accounts and shared costs all differ.
- Being behind is common, and catch-ups, spousal IRAs and a higher savings rate can still close much of the gap.
The headline numbers for married couples
The clearest couple-specific figures come from Boldin's analysis of the Federal Reserve's 2025 Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF) microdata. They cover married or partnered households that already hold a retirement account, such as a 401(k) or IRA, in 2025 dollars. Households with no account are excluded, so these figures describe savers, not every married couple. Balances climb steeply through the 40s and 50s, then ease once withdrawals begin.
| Age band | Fidelity guideline (target) | Married or partnered median | Married or partnered average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 35 | 1x salary by 30 | $30,500 | $59,200 |
| 35 to 44 | 3x salary by 40 | $79,400 | $216,000 |
| 45 to 54 | 6x salary by 50 | $200,000 | $528,000 |
| 55 to 64 | 8x salary by 60 | $376,000 | $870,000 |
| 65 to 74 | 10x salary by 67 | $300,000 | $914,000 |
Source: medians and averages from Boldin's analysis of the Federal Reserve 2025 Survey of Consumer Finances, married or partnered households with a retirement account; guidelines from Fidelity's benchmarks as summarised by Britannica Money and Experian. For context, a single 401(k) is smaller: Vanguard's 2024 data put the average 401(k) balance at $271,320 for ages 55 to 64, median $95,642, as reported by SmartAsset.
Guidelines are targets, not averages
Fidelity's guideline is often printed beside actual savings, but it is a different kind of number. It assumes saving from age 25 at about 15% of pay, including any employer match, and retiring at 67. The milestones are 1x salary by 30, 2x by 35, 3x by 40, 4x by 45, 6x by 50, 7x by 55, 8x by 60 and 10x by 67.
Applied to a household, the multiple uses combined salary. A couple earning $120,000 together would aim for about $720,000 by age 50 (6 x $120,000). Set that beside the actual median of $200,000 for married or partnered households aged 45 to 54, and the gap is stark. That does not mean most couples have failed. The guideline assumes an uninterrupted saving career that career breaks, childcare costs and mortgages often interrupt.
Why a couple's total is not double a single person's
Doubling one person's balance is a tempting shortcut, and it is usually wrong. Many married households have one main earner, so there may be only one workplace plan. Even two-earner couples rarely match on earnings, contribution rates and career length, so their balances diverge. Retirement accounts are also individual by law: each spouse owns their own 401(k) and IRA, even though a couple plans around the combined total.
Some rules help couples, though. A working spouse can fund a spousal IRA for a partner with little or no earnings, if the couple files jointly and has enough earned income to cover both contributions. For 2025 the limit was $7,000 per person under 50, or $8,000 at 50 and over, so a couple could contribute up to $14,000, or $16,000 if both qualified for catch-ups, as explained by DDK CPAs. Shared costs help too, and two Social Security records can reduce what savings alone must supply.
What the average hides
The gap between median and average is the most important detail here. The median is the middle household: half of comparable savers hold more, half hold less. The average adds every balance together and divides by the number of households, so a handful of million-dollar accounts drags it upward. At 55 to 64, the median couple holds $376,000 while the average is $870,000. Judging yourself against the average can therefore make an ordinary saver look far behind, when they may be ahead of most peers.
Coverage matters as well. Because only account-holders are counted, the true median across all married couples would be lower. At 55 to 64, Boldin puts the single-headed median at about $70,000, against $376,000 for married or partnered households.
Are we on track, and how do we catch up?
Start with the median for your age band, not the average and not the Fidelity multiple alone. If you are above the median, you are ahead of more than half of comparable saver households, even if you trail the guideline. To run your own numbers, use the retirement calculator and compare account types in our guide to the best retirement planning tools.
Consider this illustrative example, not a forecast. Maya and Tom, both 52, earn $120,000 combined and hold $300,000 across their accounts. Fidelity's age-50 target for them is about $720,000 (6 x $120,000), so they are $420,000 short of that target. Saving 15% of pay means $18,000 a year; over 15 years to 67, those contributions alone add $270,000 (15 x $18,000), taking them to $570,000 before any investment growth. Growth, catch-ups after 50 and employer matches could narrow the rest of the gap, but none is guaranteed.
Practical catch-up steps include raising contributions after each pay rise, claiming the full employer match, using a spousal IRA where one partner has no plan, and checking our Roth vs 401(k) guide. Couples catch up as a household: agree the combined target first, then decide which account gets the next dollar. Broader context sits in is 100k a good salary and our investment strategies guide.
This article gives general US guidance based on published survey and guideline figures, which vary by source and year and cover different populations. It is not financial advice, and your own target depends on your spending, health, retirement age and Social Security position.