Average American Expects to Retire Early: Survey

Timing Workplace Exits

Sixty-two percent of survey respondents intend to retire, and many of them said they will leave full-time work early, at age 57 on average. The median age of 60 for these early retirees is higher, but still seven years lower that the full retirement age to receive Social Security benefits.

Respondents’ planned retirement age is not tied to income, as might be expected, according to the survey. Among working respondents who said they will retire, the average planned retirement age is 58 for those with household incomes of $100,000 or more.

Although earlier than traditional retirement, this is still later than the planned work-leaving age of 54 for those with household incomes below $50,000 and 55 for those with household incomes between $50,000 and $74,999.

Among the 10% of respondents who said they plan never to retire, 42% do not think they will ever want to stop working. Others have a more practical reason for not retiring.

Thirty-one percent said they would not retire because they did not expect to save enough money to do so, and 18% currently have to or in the future will have to support other family members financially.

Retirement Savings Deficit

Eleven percent of survey participants have not started saving for retirement, according to the results. Twenty-seven percent of Generation Z have not done so, compared with 12% of millennials, 10% of Gen X and 3% of baby boomers. This is unsurprising, NerdWallet noted, as many Gen Zers are likely new to the workforce, not working yet or still in school.

In fact, a fifth of survey respondents are uncertain how much they should be saving. Among them, 33% of Gen Zers, 27% of millennials, 29% of Gen Xers and 10% of boomers said they did not know how much money they would need to finance a comfortable retirement.

For still others, work may remain a part of their retirement lives. Seventeen percent of respondents said they did not think they would ever be able to save enough money to completely stop working, and 22% said their retirement plan included working part time.

(Image: Adobe Stock)