What is a good monthly retirement income for a couple?
Adding a bit of wiggle room, $3,000 per month or $36,000 per year is a good monthly retirement income for a couple to start with. What is this? While this is a helpful benchmark, all couples should estimate their personalized numbers based on their spending needs.
Estimate Your Income
Following the conservative rule of thumb and withdrawing 4% a year will provide this couple with another $1,500 monthly or $18,000 a year. Combining these two sources of income gives this average couple a total of $5,100 per month or $61,200 in retirement income per year.
It's recommended that most couples save at least seven to eight times their combined annual income to retire comfortably.
Top the amount with 401(k) savings, living on $3,000 a month after taxes is possible for a retiree. For those who only have social security benefits to rely on, there are many places where they can retire on their checks both in the USA and around the world.
In a world in which the average monthly Social Security benefit is just over $1,792, it may seem like a pipe dream to live off $10,000 per month in retirement. But the truth is that with some preparation, dedication and resolve, many Americans can reach this impressive level of retirement income.
| State | Average Retirement Income |
|---|---|
| California | $34,737 |
| Colorado | $32,379 |
| Connecticut | $32,052 |
| Delaware | $31,283 |
A retiree in California would need $90,399 annually to live comfortably during retirement.
As of 2022, the median household income in the U.S. was $74,580, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Assuming a middle-class retiree earned this salary and retired at age 65 — specifically 65 and 11 months — their Social Security benefit would be $1,867 per month.
Social Security offers a monthly benefit check to many kinds of recipients. As of December 2023, the average check is $1,767.03, according to the Social Security Administration – but that amount can differ drastically depending on the type of recipient. In fact, retirees typically make more than the overall average.
Plan to maintain your standard of living
To accomplish this, financial experts say you'll need between 70-80% of your pre-retirement income. So, for example, a couple earning $60,000 per year would need between $42,000 ($60,000 x . 70) and $48,000 ($60,000 x . 80) each year during retirement.
What is the average Social Security check at age 66?
According to recently released data from the SSA's Office of the Actuary, just over 590,000 retired-worker beneficiaries were receiving $1,298.26 per month at age 62, as of December 2023. That compares to about 2.11 million aged 66 retired-worker beneficiaries who were taking home $1,739.92 per month.
Annuity. An annuity is another type of account that can be set up through an insurance company. The key benefit of an annuity is that it can pay you lifetime income, meaning you won't run out of income, and it may offer other insurance-like benefits.
Retiring on a fixed income can seem daunting, but with some planning and commitment to a frugal lifestyle, it's possible to retire comfortably on $2,000 a month. This takes discipline but ultimately will allow you to have more freedom and happiness in your golden years without money worries.
62 Years Old
If people born after 1960 claim their benefits the month they turn 62, they'll get only 70% of what they would have received had they waited until the full retirement age of 67. The average monthly payment of $1,782 drops by 30% during the first month of eligibility to $1,247.40.
After analyzing many scenarios, we found that 75% is a good starting point to consider for your income replacement rate. This means that if you make $100,000 shortly before retirement, you can start to plan using the ballpark expectation that you'll need about $75,000 a year to live on in retirement.
The above chart shows that U.S. residents 35 and under have an average of $30,170 in retirement savings; those 35 to 44 have an average $131,950; those 45 to 54 have an average $254,720; those 55 to 64 have an average $408,420; those 65 to 74 have an average $426,070; and those over 70 have an average $357,920.
Housing. Housing—which includes mortgage, rent, property tax, insurance, maintenance and repair costs—is the largest expense for retirees.
According to Maslyk, living comfortably on less than $2,000 per month during retirement is challenging. He emphasizes that even with a paid-off house, essential monthly costs can amount to about $1,200 per month. This includes expenses like utilities, internet, insurance, property taxes, maintenance and improvements.
The 3% rule in retirement says you can withdraw 3% of your retirement savings a year and avoid running out of money. Historically, retirement planners recommended withdrawing 4% per year (the 4% rule). However, 3% is now considered a better target due to inflation, lower portfolio yields, and longer lifespans.
Can a retired couple live on $50,000 a year?
$50,000 per year is considered a moderate income in the United States, and many individuals and families manage to live comfortably on this income.
Safe Withdrawal Rate
Using our portfolio of $400,000 and the 4% withdrawal rate, you could withdraw $16,000 annually from your retirement accounts and expect your money to last for at least 30 years. If, say, your Social Security checks are $2,000 monthly, you'd have a combined annual income in retirement of $40,000.
They have more than $320,000 saved. Retirees in EBRI's affluent category had more than $320,000 saved for retirement, but the amount you'll need may be very different. The average 401(k) balance of Americans age 65 or over who are saving money for retirement is $255,151.
Defining the middle class is tricky. According to the Pew Research Center, you could be considered “middle class” if your household income is two-thirds to double the national median income — so $47,189 to $141,568.
That puts the median annual income at about $59,540. According to the Pew Research Center's guidelines (two-thirds to double the national median), middle-income Americans would have annual incomes between $39,693 and $119,080 in 2023, before adjusting for local cost of living and household size.
