Only 3.2 percent of Americans hold $1 million or more in retirement accounts while roughly 59 percent have saved under $10,000, even as the IRS opens its most generous 2026 contribution window for workers aged 60 to 63.
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3.2% of Americans hold $1 million as 59% save under $10,000
Only 3.2 percent of Americans have accumulated $1 million or more in retirement accounts, while roughly 59 percent have saved less than $10,000, according to data from the Employee Benefits Research Institute drawn from the Federal Reserve's Survey of Consumer Finances. The gap between those two groups is widening just as the IRS opens its most generous contribution window in history for workers in their early 60s.
"Worker confidence in having enough money for a comfortable retirement has slipped to its lowest level since 2017, and the pressure is coming from both sides — sticky prices on necessities and the weight of household debt," said the 2026 EBRI and Greenwald Research Retirement Confidence Survey, which found confidence among workers fell to 61 percent from 67 percent a year earlier. Retirees were not spared, with their confidence dropping five percentage points to 73 percent.
Among Americans who actually hold a retirement account, 4.7 percent have crossed the $1 million threshold, while 4 percent hold between $500,000 and $999,999. On the other end, roughly 20.5 percent of Americans have between $10,000 and $99,999 set aside. The survey attributes much of the shortfall to years of elevated living costs: 65 percent of workers now report debt as a problem, and prices marked up sharply in prior years have largely stayed elevated even as inflation cooled from its peak.
The stakes are rising because the cost of simply getting older keeps climbing. For 2026, the standard Medicare Part B premium rose to $202.90 a month, up $17.90 from $185.00 in 2025 — an increase of nearly 10 percent — and healthcare inflation is outpacing standard living costs. For retirees who have built substantial tax-deferred portfolios, avoiding steep Income-Related Monthly Adjustment Amount surcharges has become a critical part of making a seven-figure nest egg last.
The 2026 Contribution Window for Workers 60 to 63
The IRS pushed the standard 401(k) employee contribution limit to $24,500 for 2026, up $1,000 from $23,500 in 2025. More consequential for older savers, SECURE 2.0 regulations unlocked a "super catch-up" provision: workers between the ages of 60 and 63 can contribute an additional $11,250 on top of the standard limit, bringing their total annual 401(k) contribution to $35,750.
That window is meaningful for anyone in that age range still making up ground, but it carries a wrinkle for high earners. Workers whose prior-year wages exceeded $150,000 from the same employer are now required to make any catch-up contributions on a Roth, after-tax basis, under a SECURE 2.0 provision that took full effect in 2026. That removes the upfront tax deduction during what may be a worker's final high-earning years, trading it for tax-free withdrawals later.
For the roughly one in five Americans holding between $10,000 and $99,999, a realistic path toward the $1 million milestone still exists. The key is consistency — prioritizing retirement contributions before discretionary spending and holding that habit through market cycles and economic uncertainty. Whether the strategy involves maximizing 401(k) contributions with or without employer matches, executing a mega backdoor Roth conversion, or aggressively paying down high-interest debt, a concrete plan matters more than the size of the paycheck.
The last time worker confidence sat this low, in 2017, the S&P 500 went on to deliver double-digit annual gains in three of the next four years, a reminder that sentiment and market outcomes can diverge sharply. With the higher 2026 contribution limits now in force, older workers who act on the super catch-up window have a rare chance to close the gap before retirement arrives.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
