Overview
- Roughly four in ten households led by people in their 30s and about 39% of those led by people in their 40s have no retirement account, based on Federal Reserve data analyzed by Investopedia.
- Among 40-something households that do have accounts, the median balance is about $73,000, while the median across all in that age group drops to roughly $13,000.
- Workers point to debt, housing expenses, and health care bills as the main barriers to putting money away for retirement, according to the Employee Benefit Research Institute’s 2026 survey.
- Workplace plan access is uneven, with 72% of private‑sector workers offered a plan but only 55% at firms with fewer than 50 employees, Bureau of Labor Statistics data show.
- Delaying saving cuts outcomes sharply, with a 40‑year‑old investing $5,000 a year at 7% reaching about $316,000 by 65 versus about $126,000 if starting at 50.