Updated: July 29, 2026
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The single most useful retirement question is not “how much” but “how much for whom, and for how long.” A 45-year-old software engineer with a paid-off house needs a different balance from a 62-year-old teacher with a defined-benefit pension. This page walks through the frameworks, the 2026 IRS limits, and the concrete steps that turn a savings target into a working plan.
Every dollar figure below traces to a primary source: the IRS newsroom release, an IRS Notice, IRS Publication 590-A or 590-B, or a Social Security Administration table. Nothing here is guaranteed to hold across future tax years, so revisit the numbers each November when the IRS posts the following year’s adjustments.
How much do you need to save for retirement?
Two working models cover most households. Neither is right on its own, and neither will match your final answer within 10 percent, but both give you a defensible starting number to iterate on with a fiduciary advisor.
Model 1: Multiples of pre-retirement income
The multiple-of-income framework asks how many years of your working salary you should hold in retirement accounts by a given age. It builds a rough glide path from your first job to age 67 without requiring any market forecast.
Retirement researchers commonly cite a target of roughly ten times your final gross salary by age 67, the current full Social Security retirement age. That number assumes you also collect a Social Security benefit and hold minor supplemental income (a part-time role, a small pension, a rental).
If you earn $100,000 today and expect a similar real income near retirement, that framework points to a $1 million target in retirement accounts by 67. Adjust up if you want a higher lifestyle floor, down if you expect substantial pension or annuity income.
Model 2: The 4 percent rule
The 4 percent rule was published by financial planner William Bengen in the Journal of Financial Planning in 1994. It asks how much a retiree can withdraw in year one, then inflate each subsequent year, without depleting the portfolio over 30 years.
To use it in reverse, divide your desired first-year retirement income by 0.04. An $80,000 annual withdrawal implies a $2 million portfolio. A $60,000 withdrawal implies a $1.5 million portfolio.
The rule assumed a 50/50 stock-bond mix, monthly rebalancing, and pre-tax withdrawals adjusted for inflation each year. It is a starting sketch, not a promise. Households with longer time horizons often start closer to 3.5 percent, and those with substantial Social Security income can defensibly start higher.
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The calculator above accepts your current age, target retirement age, current savings balance, expected annual rate of return, and desired ending balance. Use it to test how a one-percentage-point higher return or a five-year later retirement changes the required monthly contribution.
How much should you save by age?
The benchmarks below are a synthesis of multiple retirement-planning studies and align with the ten-times-final-salary target by age 67. Treat them as checkpoints, not deadlines.
- By age 30: about one times your annual salary saved across all retirement accounts.
- By age 40: about three times your annual salary.
- By age 50: about six times your annual salary.
- By age 60: about eight times your annual salary.
- By age 67 (Social Security full retirement age for anyone born in 1960 or later): about ten times your final salary.
If you started later than 30, close the gap by raising your contribution rate by one percentage point every year you receive a merit increase. That single habit compounds faster than any single-year lump sum most households can realistically fund.
2026 IRS contribution limits at a glance
The IRS announced 2026 cost-of-living adjustments in IR-2025-111 (Nov. 13, 2025), with the full technical framework in Notice 2025-67. Every number below traces to that release.
- 401(k), 403(b), governmental 457, and TSP employee deferral limit: $24,500 (up from $23,500 in 2025).
- IRA contribution limit (traditional or Roth): $7,500 (up from $7,000 in 2025).
- Catch-up contribution for 401(k)-family plans, age 50 and older: $8,000.
- Super catch-up for 401(k)-family plans, ages 60 through 63: $11,250 (replaces, does not add to, the $8,000 catch-up during those four years).
- IRA catch-up for age 50 and older: $1,100 (up from $1,000 in 2025).
- HSA contribution limit (self-only coverage): $4,400.
- HSA contribution limit (family coverage): $8,750.
- HSA catch-up for account holders age 55 and older: $1,000.
SECURE 2.0 Act section 603 requires that catch-up contributions made by employees whose prior-year FICA wages exceed $145,000 (indexed) be treated as Roth contributions starting Jan. 1, 2026. Confirm with your plan administrator that your election is coded correctly before the first payroll cycle of the year.
The retirement account types that carry the plan
Four account types cover the vast majority of household retirement balances in the United States. Each has a distinct tax profile, contribution ceiling, and set of withdrawal rules.
401(k), 403(b), 457, and TSP
These are employer-sponsored defined-contribution plans. Your deferral is deducted from pre-tax wages (traditional) or after-tax wages (Roth). If your employer offers a match, contribute at least enough to capture the full match before funding any other account.
Money grows tax-deferred inside a traditional 401(k) and is taxed at ordinary income rates on withdrawal. Roth 401(k) balances grow tax-free and distribute tax-free after age 59 and a half if the account is at least five years old.
Traditional IRA
A traditional IRA accepts up to $7,500 in 2026 ($8,600 for age 50 and older), subject to earned income. Contributions are often deductible, though the deduction phases out at higher incomes when either spouse is covered by a workplace plan. IRS Publication 590-A covers the phase-out tables in full.
Balances grow tax-deferred and are taxed at ordinary income rates on withdrawal. Required minimum distributions begin at age 73 for anyone reaching age 72 after Dec. 31, 2022 (SECURE 2.0 Act section 107).
Roth IRA
A Roth IRA also accepts up to $7,500 in 2026 ($8,600 for age 50 and older). Contributions are funded with after-tax dollars, so nothing is deductible today. In exchange, qualified distributions after age 59 and a half and a five-year holding period are entirely tax-free.
Roth IRAs have no required minimum distributions during the original owner’s lifetime, which makes them a strong vehicle for households that expect a higher tax bracket in retirement or want to leave tax-free assets to heirs.
Self-directed IRA
A self-directed IRA (SDIRA) is a traditional or Roth IRA held at a custodian that permits alternative assets: real estate, private notes, precious metals, and certain other categories. It carries the same contribution limits and distribution rules as a mainstream IRA.
Households considering an SDIRA for physical gold or silver should read the OPRS gold IRA dealers to avoid guide before committing capital. The dealer landscape is uneven, and choosing the wrong one can cost you multiple percentage points a year in avoidable fees.
How much should a couple save for retirement?
A married couple filing jointly can each fund a workplace plan up to the $24,500 employee deferral cap in 2026, plus each spouse can fund an IRA up to $7,500. That is a combined $64,000 of tax-advantaged capacity before any catch-up contributions.
The multiple-of-income benchmarks work the same way for a couple as for a single filer, applied to joint gross income. If the household earns $200,000, the ten-times target at 67 is roughly $2 million across all accounts.
Spousal Social Security rules also shift the picture. A lower-earning spouse can claim up to 50 percent of the higher earner’s primary insurance amount, and survivor benefits can equal 100 percent of the deceased spouse’s benefit. Model both spouses’ claiming ages before locking in a plan.
Six steps to build the plan
Step 1: Fund the workplace match, then the HSA
Free money first. Contribute at least enough to your 401(k), 403(b), or TSP to capture the full employer match. Then, if you are enrolled in a qualifying high-deductible health plan, fund the HSA. IRS Publication 969 covers HSA eligibility.
The HSA is the only account in the tax code that offers a deduction on the way in, tax-deferred growth, and tax-free withdrawals for qualified medical costs. After age 65, non-medical HSA withdrawals behave like a traditional IRA distribution, with no penalty.
Step 2: Choose an IRA (Roth or traditional)
If you expect a lower marginal tax bracket in retirement, favor the traditional IRA and take the deduction today. If you expect the same or a higher bracket later, favor the Roth IRA and pay the tax now.
Households at the border can split contributions between both accounts in the same tax year. The combined limit across all IRAs is $7,500 in 2026 ($8,600 with the age-50 catch-up).
Step 3: Automate everything
Set the workplace deferral to a fixed percentage of gross pay. Set the IRA to draft on the first business day of each month. Set the HSA to draft on the same day. Automation removes the willpower question from the equation.
Every time you receive a merit increase, raise the workplace deferral by one full percentage point before the raise hits your take-home pay. You will not miss what you never saw.
Step 4: Pick an allocation you can defend in writing
Choose a target asset mix (equities, fixed income, cash equivalents, alternatives) that you can explain in one sentence. Rebalance to it on a fixed calendar. Do not rebalance because a headline scared you.
A diversified allocation spreads single-market risk. Dollar-cost averaging (contributing the same amount on the same schedule regardless of price) removes the timing decision. Both behaviors beat market timing for most retail investors over long horizons.
Step 5: Use every catch-up dollar from age 50
The last 15 working years are when most households have the surplus cash flow to fund retirement seriously. Congress wrote catch-up contributions into the tax code for exactly that window.
Workers age 50 and older can add $8,000 in 2026 to a 401(k), 403(b), governmental 457, or TSP, raising the total employee deferral to $32,500. Ages 60 through 63 replace that $8,000 with the $11,250 super catch-up under SECURE 2.0 section 109.
Step 6: Track progress against benchmarks once a year
Review the plan once a year, ideally in Q1 when W-2 and 1099 documents are fresh. Compare balances against the age-based multiples above. Adjust the deferral rate or the allocation only when the review turns up a real gap, not because markets moved.
See the OPRS guide on building up retirement savings across three life stages for tactical adjustments by age.
Social Security timing and RMD age
The claiming decision and the RMD age together shape the tax profile of your withdrawal years.
Full retirement age for Social Security is 67 for anyone born in 1960 or later. Claiming at 62 permanently reduces the monthly benefit by roughly 30 percent. Delaying to 70 raises the benefit by roughly 24 percent above the age-67 amount, capped at age 70.
Required minimum distributions from traditional IRAs and 401(k) balances begin at age 73 under SECURE 2.0 Act section 107. The required beginning date rises to age 75 for anyone reaching age 74 after Dec. 31, 2032.
The first RMD is due by April 1 of the year after you reach age 73. Every subsequent RMD is due by December 31. Missed RMDs draw a 25 percent excise tax under SECURE 2.0, reduced to 10 percent if corrected within the two-year window.
Where diversification into metals fits (and where it does not)
Precious metals belong in a retirement portfolio conversation only after the tax-advantaged accounts above are funded to at least the employer match, the HSA is maxed, and the household has an emergency fund of three to six months of expenses.
Households that decide to allocate a portion of retirement savings to physical gold or silver typically do so through a self-directed IRA at a custodian that permits alternative assets. The dealer landscape carries real risk: 3 of 27+ gold IRA dealers reviewed by OPRS make the 2026 trusted list.
Before opening any gold IRA account, read the OPRS 2026 evaluation of gold IRA custodians and dealers and understand exactly which fees, storage arrangements, and buyback policies you are signing up for.
The bottom line
Two frameworks anchor most retirement targets: ten times your final salary by age 67, or a nest egg that a 4 percent annual withdrawal can support for 30 years. Both are starting points, not endpoints.
The 2026 IRS limits give a two-income household roughly $64,000 of tax-advantaged capacity before catch-ups, and more after age 50. Automating contributions, capturing every employer match, and rebalancing mechanically will out-earn most tactical moves over a full career.
If diversification into precious metals enters the plan, screen the dealer before you screen the metal. Related OPRS reading: building a diversified portfolio for retirement, 15 tips for retirement savings by life stage, and whether a self-directed IRA fits your plan.
Sources cited
- IR-2025-111, 401(k) limit increases to $24,500 for 2026, IRA limit increases to $7,500 (Nov. 13, 2025)
- IRS Notice 2025-67, 2026 cost-of-living adjustments for retirement plans (PDF)
- IRS Publication 590-A, Contributions to Individual Retirement Arrangements
- IRS Publication 590-B, Distributions from Individual Retirement Arrangements
- IRS Publication 969, Health Savings Accounts and Other Tax-Favored Health Plans
- 26 U.S. Code §401(a)(9), Required distributions from qualified retirement plans
- SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022, Public Law 117-328, Division T (PDF)
- 42 U.S. Code §416(l), Retirement age definitions (Social Security)
- 20 CFR §404.313, Delayed retirement credits for old-age insurance benefits
- 20 CFR §404.415, Reduction of monthly benefits for early retirement