The typical American family that has a retirement account held $106,000 in it last year, up 11 percent from 2022 after adjusting for inflation. That is the figure from the Federal Reserve’s 2025 Survey of Consumer Finances, released Oct. 9, which also found that 54.9 percent of families hold some kind of retirement account. The Fed’s full report puts the median in 2025 dollars, so the gain is real growth rather than the effect of rising prices.
The number answers a question many near-retirees ask: whether a balance is ahead of or behind the typical family. The catch is in the wording. The $106,000 is the median among families that have an account, not among all families, and about 45 percent have none at all. A balance of $60,000 would sit below the typical account holder yet above the zero held by the many families with nothing in an IRA, 401(k), 403(b) or thrift savings plan.
The $106,000 median compares 2025 with the 2022 survey, and it only moves when the Fed publishes its next set of results.
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A median of $106,000 and a mean of $451,100
The Fed reports both measures, and the distance between them shows how unevenly balances are spread. The conditional mean value of retirement accounts was $451,100 in 2025, up 23 percent from $365,700 in 2022. The conditional median went from $95,200 to $106,000. When the average is more than four times the typical figure, a small number of very large accounts is pulling it up.
The share of families with an account barely changed. It was 54.3 percent in 2022 and 54.9 percent in 2025, an increase of 0.6 percentage point. The Fed counts individual retirement accounts and employer-sponsored plans such as 401(k)s, 403(b)s and thrift savings accounts. Traditional pensions fall outside this number: defined benefit plans are held by around one-fourth of families, the report says, and they are counted separately.
Retirement plan coverage and balances by age
For families whose reference person is 64 or younger, the Fed measured participation in IRAs, 401(k)-type plans and defined benefit pensions together. It was 64.4 percent in 2022 and 65.1 percent in 2025. Defined benefit coverage declined among families near retirement, driven by lower-income households.
Mean balances among IRA and 401(k)-type holders rose for every group except the youngest, in thousands of 2025 dollars:
- Under 35: $53,800 in 2022, $48,400 in 2025.
- 35 to 44: $154,800 and $182,400.
- 45 to 54: $342,700 and $415,800.
- 55 to 64: $588,500 and $670,200.
Total net worth tells a different story for people past 65. Median family net worth for the 65-to-74 group fell 4 percent to $431,300, while the median for families headed by someone 75 or older rose 37 percent to $504,900. The Fed attributes the increase for the oldest group mainly to higher retirement account values. Families headed by someone 55 to 64 had a median net worth of $411,900, up 3 percent, and median net worth for families under 35 fell 23 percent to $33,000.
Stocks and debt in the same survey
Retirement balances track the stock market, and the Fed’s press release reports that stock ownership, direct or indirect, slipped from 58 percent of families in 2022 to 56 percent in 2025. Among families that own stock, the median holding rose 36 percent to $77,400. Direct ownership is a narrower measure at 19.0 percent of families, which excludes holdings through retirement accounts and funds.
Debt moved the other way for some households. The Fed says the share of families with debt payments above 40 percent of income rose from 6.5 percent to 8.6 percent, a level last seen in the 2013 survey. Real median family income rose 7 percent to $82,200, and 44.7 percent of families carried a credit card balance after their last payment, with a median of $3,100 among them. Real median net worth rose 2 percent to $215,900, while mean net worth rose 7 percent to $1.24 million. The survey interviewed 4,367 families, and the Fed’s data set contains 21,835 records for them, as described on its Survey of Consumer Finances page.
Measuring a retirement balance against the $106,000 benchmark
The Fed’s release and the underlying report are the places to start, because both define what is counted. A fair comparison uses only retirement accounts, not a home or a pension, and looks at the balance of the household rather than one spouse. The survey treats a family as the dominant person or couple plus financially interdependent members.
The benchmark also depends on age. A median that blends 30-year-olds with 60-year-olds says little about whether a particular saver is on track, and the mean figures by age show the spread: $415,800 for the 45-to-54 group and $670,200 for 55 to 64, against $182,400 for ages 35 to 44. Anyone comparing should set the balance against the group closest in age and keep in mind that the group figures are means, which run well above the typical account.
The Federal Reserve’s survey results, released at 10:00 a.m. Eastern on Oct. 9, 2026, remain the source for every figure above.
More Financial Reading
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- 17 Places to Find Your Share of the $4.25 Billion States Give Back
- The New $6,000 Senior Deduction and 15 More Tax Moves for Retirees
This article was produced with AI assistance and reviewed by The Financial Wire’s editorial team.
David M. Keller is a finance writer based in Columbus, Ohio, covering personal finance and consumer-focused economic topics. He earned his degree in journalism from Ohio University and began his career reporting on local business and economic trends for a regional media outlet. Since then, he has contributed to a variety of online publications, focusing on clear, practical coverage of topics such as cost of living, debt, and everyday financial decision-making.
