Average Savings by Age: How Americans Compare

Average Savings by Age

The Federal Reserve tracks balances by age for transaction accounts, which include checking, savings, money market and brokerage cash accounts, as well as prepaid debit cards. While some of these balances aren’t held in designated savings accounts, they do represent cash on hand.

We’ll look at both the median and mean (average) transaction account balances from the Fed’s data. Mean account balances are an average of all balances used in the survey divided by the number of accounts. However, because the data used in the SCF is weighted to include super-wealthy households, the statistical average may be skewed. For comparison, we’ll also include median balances to get a sense of where the midpoint between the highest and lowest balances lies. According to the Fed report, median values may be more representative than averages of typical account balances for each group.

Here’s what the Fed’s Survey of Consumer Finances reports about savings by age.

Savings by Age 34

Average transaction account balance: $20,540
Median transaction account balance: $5,400

Early adulthood is full of financial challenges—getting through school, launching a career, starting a life and paying down student loan debt, to name a few. The standard advice is to save at least three to six months’ worth of expenses in an emergency fund. The reality: $5,400 is the median checking and savings balance and $20,540 is the average for people under age 35.

How to Save Money Under 35

Although entry-level wages are generally low and young people have many competing uses for their money, these practices can help get you off to a good start:

• Start a savings habit. A 2024 Bank of America survey found that only 15% of Generation Z (ages 18 to 27) are setting aside a portion of their income in savings, and only one in five are saving for retirement. Establishing good habits is key, even if you start small.
• Prioritize your emergency fund. You may need to build gradually, but having savings in place as a hedge against job loss and emergencies is essential.
• Tame your finances. Consider using a personal finance app to make checking your accounts, paying bills and tracking your financial goals easier.

Savings From Ages 35 to 44

Average transaction account balance: $41,540
Median transaction account balance: $7,500

Your mid-30s to your mid-40s are often building years. Your career is underway. You may have purchased a home and started a family. As you take on additional responsibility, good financial habits, excellent credit and strong savings have an added value. Between ages 35 and 44, the average transaction account balance is $41,540 and the median is $7,500.

How to Save Money From 35 to 44

Look for ways to up your savings game. By optimizing your savings, you’ll save more and do more with the savings you have.

• Save on multiple fronts. Consider saving toward goals like buying or remodeling your home, replacing your car or setting aside money for your kids’ college. Steady contributions to a 401(k) at work and/or a traditional or Roth IRA can help keep retirement goals on track.
• Diversify your savings. Once you have enough saved in checking and savings, consider branching out. You may want to keep some of your additional savings in high-interest certificates of deposit (CDs) or invest a portion in stocks, bonds or exchange-traded funds.

Savings From Ages 45 to 54

Average transaction account balance: $71,130
Median transaction account balance: $8,700

The years between 45 and 54 are often the peak earning years. According to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data, median wages for workers ages 45 to 54 are higher than for other age groups at $1,339 per week (or $69,628 per year). Transaction account balances are at or near the peak for this age group as well at a median of $8,700 and an average of $71,130.

How to Save Money From 45 to 54

While you’re earning more, save more.

• Capitalize on your earning potential. Set aside as much of your income as you can for retirement, cash savings and taxable investments. Think about asking for a raise, seeking out a better-paying job or developing a business (or side business) of your own.
• Tap savings carefully. Now may be the time you use the money you saved in a 529 education account to send your kid to college, or withdraw funds from your home renovation fund to finally upgrade your kitchen. Enjoy putting the money you saved to good use—and be careful not to overspend.
• Target retirement. This is the time to check your progress and set a course for retirement. Are you saving enough? Are you investing wisely? Do you have a plan? Start now, while you still have a bit of runway to get retirement plans off the ground.

Savings From Ages 55 to 64

Average transaction account balance: $72,520
Median transaction account balance: $8,000

What do people ages 55 to 64 do? They may adjust to an empty nest, launch an encore career, finally get the job recognition they deserve, start mapping out retirement moves, receive an inheritance and think about living on less. They have an average transaction account balance of $72,520 and a median balance of $8,000, not including retirement funds, CDs and investment accounts.

How to Save From 55 to 64

Hopefully, the savings habits you’ve developed will carry you forward into retirement. That said, it’s not too late to get help, take stock or catch up.

• Get financial advice. Meet with a retirement planner. Talk to your tax advisor. Ask your retired friends to share their experiences (and referrals). With major changes ahead—and plenty of changes happening now—expertise certainly doesn’t hurt.
• Catch up if you need to. The IRS lets you make additional contributions to your 401(k) plan and IRA accounts when you’re 50 and older. In 2025, you can make a super-sized catch-up contribution of up to $11,250 to your 401(k) if you’re 60 to 63, bringing your maximum contribution up to $34,750.

How Much to Save by Age

Looking at transaction account balances provides one perspective on saving. Here’s another: The investment firm Fidelity offers guidelines to help retirement savers better understand how much they should have saved by age 30, 40, 50, 60 and retirement age, 67. According to Fidelity, here’s how much to aim for saving by each milestone birthday:

• Age 30: One times your salary
• Age 40: Three times your salary
• Age 50: Six times your salary
• Age 60: Eight times your salary
• Age 67: 10 times your salary

Of course, these are only estimates. Your individual retirement needs will vary depending on your housing costs, lifestyle, Social Security benefits, medical expenses, lifespan and more. Still, these calculations can give you a quick gauge on your progress toward retirement. If you’re about to celebrate your 30th birthday and you have a year’s salary in your 401(k), cut yourself an extra slice of cake.

Learn more >> How Much Will You Spend in Retirement?

How to Increase Your Savings

If you want to increase your savings and save consistently over time, try creating a savings strategy. Regularly setting aside a portion of your income and making a plan for retirement contributions, emergency savings, special purpose “sinking” funds and tax-advantaged savings for college or health care can help keep your savings on track.

Need an additional boost? Here are a few extra tips.

1. Get a Handle on Spending

Make a budget, track your spending and look for ways to reduce your expenses, both right now and over the long term. As examples, consider putting half of your annual bonus into a CD for safekeeping, or cancel an unwanted streaming subscription and send the payment amount to savings every month.

2. Automate Your Savings

Setting up your bank accounts to send an automatic transfer to your savings account every month (or every paycheck) makes saving effortless and helps increase the chances that you’ll save consistently. And if out of sight is out of mind, you may never miss the money.

3. Pay Down Debt

Making monthly debt payments cuts into the amount you can allocate toward spending and saving. Pay down high-interest credit card debt, which can grow quickly through interest charges alone. Paying off car loans, personal loans or student loans frees up money you can route directly to savings.

4. Mind Your APYs

The interest you earn on your savings can make a huge difference over time. As of November 2024, the difference between the annual percentage yield (APY) of a typical savings account and a top high-yield savings account can be greater than 4%. The additional interest you earn grows your balance with no additional effort on your part. At 0.02% APY, $5,000 earns $1 in a year. At 4.5%, it earns $230. Five years later, the high-interest account has a balance of $6,262 while the low-interest account has $5,005.

Learn more >> Simple Ways to Save Money

Where to Keep Your Savings

Three options to consider for savings are high-yield savings accounts, money market accounts and CDs. All three offer higher APYs than regular savings accounts, and each has its own pros and cons.

• High-yield savings account: These work just like regular savings, only they pay substantially higher interest. High-yield savings accounts are often offered through online banks.
• Money market account: Money market accounts also pay higher interest than traditional savings accounts. They typically come with a debit card or checkbook so you can make a limited number of payments, which makes them convenient as well.
• Certificate of deposit (CDs): These pay high rates of interest, but they’re time-limited. Unlike a savings or money market account, a CD has a defined term. At the end of the term, your CD closes and you roll your money into a new CD or move it elsewhere. If you need to withdraw money before the term is up, you may forfeit a portion of your interest.

You don’t necessarily have to pick only one type of account: You can have more than one savings account. In fact, multiple accounts may be a good idea, especially as your savings—and savings goals—grow.

Learn more >> How to Open a Savings Account

The Bottom Line

Is the average American saving enough? According to the Fed’s findings, the results are inconclusive. Median transaction balances were uniformly lower than what the average person might need to fully fund their emergency savings, let alone save up for major purchases or accumulate wealth, though average transaction account balances were higher.

A more important question is whether you’re saving enough. While it’s interesting to consider what the average person has saved, only you can determine whether your savings, retirement and investment accounts are growing and thriving as they should be. If you want to save more, make it a priority. Increasing your savings is an excellent idea at any age.