What is the average 401(k) balance by age?

The average 401(k) balance ranges from $6,899 for workers under 25 to $299,442 for those 65 and older, according to Vanguard's 2025 How America Saves report, which reflects 2024 plan data. The median figures are lower across all ages because high earners pull the average upward.

What is the median 401(k) balance by age?

The median 401(k) balance for workers under 25 was $1,948 and rose to $95,642 for workers ages 55 to 64, according to Vanguard's 2025 How America Saves report using 2024 plan data. The median is the more representative figure for most workers; half of participants had balances above it and half below, while the average is skewed upward by a small share of high-balance accounts.

What is the average 401(k) employer match?

The average employer contribution rate was 4.8% of pay in Q1 2026, according to Fidelity Investments data covering 26,800 plans and 25.6 million participants. Combined with the average employee savings rate of 9.6%, the total savings rate reached a record 14.4% in Q1 2026

The Average 401(k) Balance by Age in 2026

Saving for retirement can be stressful at every age, here's what the data shows.

By Kristi Waterworth – Updated Jul 2, 2026 at 11:58 AM EST | Fact-checked by Parker Hicks

Key Points

Baby Boomers' average 401(k) balance in Q1 2026 was $260,300, the highest of all generations.
Gen Z has the lowest average 401(k) balance at $18,000, reflecting less time for compound growth.
Overall U.S. average 401(k) savings rate reached a new high of 14.4% in Q1 2026.

There is a significant difference between retirement savings by generation when you slice the data and look at the average 401(k) balance by age. Baby boomers have the largest holdings overall, and Gen Z has the smallest, which may seem pretty logical, but the gap is wider than you may expect.

According to Fidelity, in Q1 2026, Boomer 401(k)s were worth, on average, more than 14 times those of their much younger counterparts.

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Average 401(k) balance by generation (Q1 2026)

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Data source: Fidelity Investments "Building Financial Futures" Report Q1 2026
Generation	Average 401(k) balance
Overall	$141,000
Baby boomers	$260,300
Gen X	$215,600
Millennials	$82,600
Average 401(k) balance — Gen Z	$18,000

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According to Fidelity Investments Q1 2026 reporting, Americans have about $141,000 in their 401(k)s. This breaks down by generation, with Baby boomers holding an average retirement savings of $260,300; Gen X holding $215,600; Millennials holding $82,600; and Gen Z just $18,000.

Although this looks dangerously skewed, the balance gap reflects additional time for compounding, not just contribution rates. Depending on how the market behaves in the future, Gen Z can easily catch up to their older counterparts.

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Average and median 401(k) balance by age

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Data source: Vanguard "How America Saves 2026" Report
Age range	Average / Median Balance (year-end 2025)
All participants	$167,970 / $44,115
Under 25	$7,259 / $2,234
25–34	$50,261 / $18,732
35–44	$120,742 / $46,919
45–54	$214,991 / $78,730
55–64	$305,006 / $107,269
65+	$330,186 / $103,202

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The American public is doing better than ever at saving in their 401(k) plans. The average 401(k) balance, according to Vanguard's How America Saves report, was $167,970 at the end of 2025, an all-time high and up 13% year over year.

The median is also an all-time high, at $44,115. However, this is skewed heavily toward older savers, with a 49x gap between the youngest and oldest groups.

For most workers, though, the median will be the most relevant data point to consider, since the average will always exceed the median due to higher earners skewing the mean regardless of age group.

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Average 401(k) savings rate by generation

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Data source: Fidelity Investments "Building Financial Futures" Report Q1 2026
Generation	Employee Savings Rate	Employer Contribution Rate
Overall (record)	9.60%	4.80%
Total savings rate incl. employer (record)	14.40%	N/A
Baby boomers	12.20%	5.10%
Gen X	10.50%	5.20%
Millennials	9.00%	4.80%
Gen Z	7.50%	4.00%

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Data source: Fidelity Investments "Building Financial Futures" Report Q1 2026
Contribution Categories	Amounts
Participants who increased contribution rate	18.00%
Average employee contribution amount	$3,120
Average employer contribution amount	$2,080
Participants who received employer contribution	85%

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Despite market volatility, 18% of 401(k) participants increased their participation in Q1 2026, according to Fidelity. The total savings rate, including employer contributions, in that period was 14.4%, another all-time high.

Boomers contributed 12.20% to their own 401(k)s, while Gen Z contributed just 7.50%. Because the contribution rate is significantly lower than the balance gap shown above, it's likely that the balance gap reflects compounding over more time.

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401(k) participation rates by age

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Data source: Federal Reserve "Survey of Household Economics and Decisionmaking" Report 2025
Age range	Tax-preferred retirement account or pension ownership
18–24	29%
25–54	66%
55–64	79%
65+	78%
Overall	67%

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The age at which someone begins participating in their retirement program, or has access to one, can greatly influence how much money they ultimately have for retirement.

There's a significant participation gap between populations under age 24 and those between 25 and 54, according to the Federal Reserve's Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households in 2025 report. Only 29% of workers between 18 and 24 have a retirement account, such as 401(k)'s and IRAs, where workers overall have a 67% participation rate in these programs; 18.8% of participants now use a Roth 401(k).

The earlier a worker starts saving, the more years of compounding take place, which contributes to older workers having more money for retirement saved than younger ones.

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Average 401(k) balance for long-term savers

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Data source: Fidelity Investments "Building Financial Futures" Report Q1 2026
Saving timeline	Amount
Average balance — 5-year continuous savers	$67,600
Average balance — 15-year continuous savers	$648,800
Population: participants saving 5+ consecutive years	5.6M+

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The longer a saver saves, the more money they can accumulate, especially given the wonders of compounding. According to Fidelity, in Q1 2026, 15-year continuous savers managed to accumulate an average of $648,800 in accounts, including all types of IRA. The 5.6 million participants who had saved for 5 years continuously saved $67,600 on average.

Conclusion

Retirement savings are trending in the right direction, with all-time highs for balances and savings rates. Younger workers are still lagging behind in retirement savings, but overall, two-thirds of workers are actively participating in their employers' plans and saving a lot over a long period of time. 15-year savers are seeing real returns on their efforts, and even 5-year savers have growing nest eggs to be proud of.

And although it looks like baby boomers have a huge advantage over other workers when it comes to savings, the reality is that they've simply had more time for their investments to grow through compounding. Gen Z's $18,000 401(k) has plenty of time to grow into a healthy retirement, too. This is just one component of average net worth, but one that cannot be underestimated.

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FAQs

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About the Author

Kristi Waterworth has been a contributing real estate and financial expert at The Motley Fool, covering real estate, investing, and personal finance topics, since 2020. Kristi has been interviewed by various TV media outlets and podcasts for her real estate investing expertise – from residential real estate to digital real estate and everything in between. Kristi’s journalist career spans over 25 years, and she has written about real estate investing, homeownership, and home construction specifically for the last decade. She was also previously a licensed Realtor and general building contractor before the Great Recession and housing market collapse. She holds a bachelor’s degree in American history from Columbia College in Missouri.

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