How Many People Retire With $1 Million or More in Retirement Accounts? The Number Might Surprise You

Many American dreams of retiring with a million-dollar nest eggs-normally you feel that you need about $ 1.5 million to retire-but the reality is different. Using the data of the US Federal Reserve’s Consumer Finance Survey data (updated in 2022 but released in 2025), only 2.5% of all Americans have actually saved $ 1 million or more in their retirement accounts – a figure that can be used to see financial media in recent years.

In real retired people, only 3.2% have reached a range of $ 1 million.

Million-Dollar Reality Check

According to Fed data, only more than half of Americans (54.3%) have retirement accounts, and among them, one of 20 (4.7%) has reached a mark of less than one $ 1 million. If you include all assets, such as real estate and other savings, this figure increases by 18% of the American houses.

What really retired most people have

When examining specific groups, the gap between expectation and reality becomes even more clear. The average retirement saving for a home -led homes between 65 and 74 years is $ 200,000, falling to $ 130,000 for those 75 and older.

Why some reach $ 1 million

Many factors explain why the retirement accounts of million-dollar are relatively rare. Income plays the most obvious role, high-ion homes usually saving an average of $ 769,000 compared to $ 79,500 for medium-income homes.

Education creates a dramatic difference, also. College graduates are more than three times the retirement savings of people with a high school diploma. The average price of retirement savings for an American college bachelor ($ 141.7k) is more than three times compared to people with a high school diploma ($ 44K).

The homeowner also affects retirement savings, an average of $ 303,000 in retirement accounts with home owners, as tenants more than 2.5 times as tenants.

About 500k American 401 (K) is a millionaire

Despite the overall percentage, there is a significant increase at the top end. Fidelity Investments reported that the number of “401 (K) Millionaire” reached the records of about 497,000 Americans by 2024, with around 399,000 individual retirement accounts with at least $ 1 million also had at least $ 1 million – two groups that often overlap.

The key to reaching these zodiac signs? Starting continuously over many years and contributing continuously, it takes about 27 years over average time, according to an allegiance analysis of its accountholders.

“I have noticed that customers have started with six loan figures and very low assets and eventually reach $ 500,000 (and more) of net financial funds,” David Tenreli, a certified financial planner said, the financial plan said, ” InvestopediaIf you are a high-ie professional, it is easy to arrive, he said. “But high income is not the only way of financial prosperity; Fragley living, intelligently investing, and adaptation to taxes are all important elements to accumulate financial money for anyone.”

Bottom line

The day of your retirement day is an elusive target for the vast majority of Americans by having millions of dollars in your account, which has been achieved less than 30. No wonder Americans are concerned about their retirement. About three-five of us are afraid that we will underline our savings.

For those still working, the message is clear: start quickly saving, contribute consistently, and consider reaching $ 1 million as being part of a very exclusive club.