2025 Retirement Survey: 58% of Seniors Fear Running Out of Money
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Retirement has always been included in the American Dream. First, you get the white picket fence — then spend your later years admiring it from the comfort of your front porch. For decades, leaving the workforce at 65 was a rite of passage. But in 2025, retirement is no longer a guarantee. Rising costs, mounting debt, and heavy reliance on Social Security leave many seniors unsure if they can afford to stop working at all.
Key Insights
58% of seniors worry their money won’t last through retirement.
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22% of Americans 60+ are still working, and 18% say they may never retire.
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46% of retirees have considered returning to work.
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14% of seniors have nothing saved for retirement at all.
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77% of older Americans rely on Social Security to get by, with 19% saying Social Security is their sole retirement plan.
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To better understand how older Americans are navigating retirement in 2025, we went straight to the source. The Retirement Living Research Team surveyed 1,000 U.S. adults aged 60 and older. Respondents answered questions about their retirement status, savings, debt, Social Security reliance, and financial concerns.
Wondering how your retirement preparedness compares? Keep reading to find out.
Why More Seniors Are Working Past Retirement Age
By now, you’ve heard the dire news about American retirement: a lot of us can’t quite get there. In 2025, Gallup found that about 4 in 10 Americans don’t have any money invested in a retirement savings plan. (If you’re in this category, take some time to learn what a 401(k) is and how an IRA can work for you.)
This means that seniors are waking up to find their dream retirement delayed — or even completely out of reach. More seniors are working well into their later years because they can’t afford not to. When we surveyed adults aged 65+ about the reasons they were still working, 48 percent cited financial reasons, including covering basic expenses, supplement retirement income, and paying off debt.
Even those who do manage to retire still face financial pressure. In our survey, 46 percent of retirees said they had considered jumping on the “un-retirement” trend — also known as returning to work.
The Financial Squeeze on Older Americans
Living isn’t cheap, and neither is aging. Seniors face rising costs and living expenses just like the rest of us — without a yearly raise or cost-of-living adjustment to help them get by. Here are some of the battles today’s seniors are fighting:
Sky-High Costs
62 percent of seniors surveyed have cut back due to rising costs. Inflation makes basic expenses like food and medical care harder to afford.
In The Red
72 percent of older Americans are still paying off debt, with credit card debt the number one culprit. Others are working to pay off mortgages, home equity loans, medical debt, student debt, and auto or personal loans. It’s hard to save enough for retirement when some of your fixed income is already earmarked elsewhere.
Paying It Forward
30 percent of seniors are financially supporting loved ones. And we’re not just talking about taking out a life insurance policy. Though it might cut into their own retirement savings, many seniors regularly support children or grandchildren financially.
The Biggest Retirement Fears in 2025
This is a scary statistic: 58 percent of seniors surveyed worry their finances won’t last through retirement. Here are their top financial concerns:
Healthcare
Medical expenses can quickly eat away at retirement savings. 15 percent of seniors say healthcare costs are their biggest financial fear.
Inflation
Rising prices can make a fixed income feel smaller every year. 13 percent of retirees name inflation their biggest financial fear.
Outliving Savings
Even those who have saved for retirement worry that it isn’t enough. 11 percent of seniors report that their number one fear is outliving their savings. After all, it’s not just the daily fluctuations of the stock market that can affect your retirement account: global events like the Covid-19 pandemic can dent retirement plans, too.
Losing Social Security
10 percent of seniors say their biggest retirement worry is losing Social Security benefits. Want to know more about the fraying Social Security net? Keep reading.
The Social Security Safety Net Is Strained
When the Social Security Act was passed in 1935, it established a national pension system to help support citizens in their old age. The administration paid its first benefits to retirees in 1937, and soon expanded to include a retiree’s spouse and children, as well as people with disabilities. Today, more than one in five Americans receives some sort of Social Security benefit.
But the question on everyone’s minds is: Will Social Security be there for me when I retire? The answer? We just don’t know. And current retirees are worried, too — not only for themselves, but for their children and grandchildren, too.
These fears don’t stop people’s reliance on the program. Our survey found that 77 percent of older Americans rely on Social Security to some degree, with 19 percent depending on it entirely. For older Americans who receive Social Security:
- 59 percent rely on Social Security for at least half of their monthly expenses
- 88 percent say benefits don’t keep up with the rising cost of living
- 89 percent believe benefits need to increase
- Retirees in Vermont, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts rely the most on Social Security.
Retirement Today vs. Previous Generations
Remember that American Dream we talked about? Some retirees worry they’d have to go back in time to find it. 82 percent of seniors agree it’s harder for them to comfortably retire than it was for their parents, with half saying it’s “much harder” today.
These seniors also have some advice for the generations coming after them: 41 percent wish they’d started saving for retirement before the age of 25. Hear that, recent college grads?
What You Can Do If You’re Behind
The state of retirement may sound pretty bleak, especially if you’re one of the nearly 4 in 10 Americans with zero money in your retirement accounts. But you’re not alone — and the situation isn’t without hope. Here are a few tips to boost your retirement savings, whether you’re starting in your 40s, supercharging savings in your 50s, or beyond.
- Not sure if you’re on the right track? Try punching your numbers into a retirement calculator.
- Feeling overwhelmed? Consider reaching out to a financial advisor, who can take stock of your current savings and offer advice on how to move forward.
- Ready to put some money aside? Learn about different investment types and how to get the best bang for your buck.
- Worried about the unpredictable stock market? Consider tangible assets, like working with a gold dealer or starting a Gold IRA.
Methodology
To better understand the current State of Retirement in the U.S., Retirement Living surveyed 1,000 adults aged 60 and older in July 2025.
The online survey asked about employment status, savings, debt, cost-of-living concerns, reliance on Social Security, and overall retirement readiness. Some questions allowed for multiple responses. Percentages are rounded and may not total 100%.
This research is part of Retirement Living’s ongoing effort to highlight the financial realities facing today’s retirees.
Reference Policy
We love it when people share our findings! If you do, please link back to our original article to credit our research.
Article Sources
“What Percentage of Americans Have a Retirement Savings Account?” Gallup. Evaluated 11 August 2025.
“Social Security Act.” Britannica. Evaluated 12 August 2025.