Your Retirement Will Probably Look Nothing Like Your Parents', According to the Northwestern Mutual 2025 Study

"According to the study, 80% of Americans envision a retirement different from their parents' generation, and 32% expect their retirement to last a decade or longer than their parents' did. The survey reached 4,626 U.S. adults between January 2 and January 19, 2025, weighted to mirror the population. The picture that emerges centers on the financial backdrop reshaping what retirement can be."

"When someone imagines a retirement that stretches a decade beyond what their parents planned for, the entire structure changes with it. A longer horizon reshapes how big the nest egg needs to be, how carefully withdrawals have to be sequenced, how much part‑time work might matter, and how far Social Security can realistically carry the load. In the group that expects a different kind of retirement, many picture themselves working longer and placing greater emphasis on protecting what they've built."

"The U.S. personal savings rate has slipped from 6.2% in the first quarter of 2024 to 4% in the first quarter of 2026, even as wages kept climbing. Average hourly earnings for private‑sector workers reached $37.41 in April 2026, up from $34.47 at the start of 2024 and the highest level in the BLS series. Income is rising. The share of income being saved is falling. For a retirement expected to last longer, that mismatch works against the math that holds everything together."

Most Americans expect retirement to look different from their parents’ retirement, with many anticipating retirements lasting a decade or longer. A longer expected retirement horizon changes how large a nest egg must be, how withdrawals need to be sequenced, how much part-time work may matter, and how much Social Security can cover. Many also expect to work longer and place more emphasis on protecting accumulated assets rather than following a simple stop-at-65 model. Savings conditions make these plans harder to carry out, as the personal savings rate has fallen while wages and hourly earnings have risen. The mismatch between rising income and falling saving reduces the ability to fund longer retirements.

Read at 24/7 Wall St.