Americans start managing their retirement finances early in life, also thanks to many financial instruments and products for those who want save money for their late years. This is true also for the wealthiest one percent of the population. Among top one percent individuals, those between 65 and 69 years saved on average nearly *** million U.S. dollars for retirement.

In the 1st quarter of 2025, personal savings amounted to 3.97 percent of the disposable income in the United States. The personal savings rate peaked in 2020, when U.S. households saved on average over 15 percent of their income. After that, it has remained between three and five percent. Savings during recessions During recessions, households often tend to increase their savings due to economic uncertainty and to compensate for any possible loss of income, which could occur, for example, in the case of falling into unemployment. For example, as seen in this statistic, the savings rate increased noticeably between 2007 and 2012, coinciding with a period of crisis. However, there are also factors that affect the amount of money that households can manage to set aside, such as inflation. Saving can be particularly difficult during periods when the inflation rate has been higher than the growth rates of wages. Savings accounts The value of savings deposits and other checkable deposits in the U.S. amounted to roughly 11 trillion U.S. dollars in early 2025, even after a significant fall in the amount of money placed in those types of instruments. In other words, savings accounts are a type of financial asset that is very widely used among households to save money. Nevertheless, interest rates of savings’ accounts differ a lot from one financial institution to another. Some of the lesser-known online banks had the highest interest rates, while the major banks often offered lower interest rates.

In 2017, around *********** adults in the United Kingdom had no cash savings. Once you are an adult, having savings is a key element of preparing yourself for life’s little and big surprises. Building cash savings can be a difficult task as it takes careful planning, and time to accumulate. Those aged between 18 and 24 years of age in the United Kingdom have the lowest mean amount in cash savings of any age group. As of 2017, one in eight UK adults had no cash savings, with a further ** percent of the population having between zero and ************ British pounds.

With age comes wisdom

The correlation between age and the mean amount of cash savings can be somewhat linked to individuals’ priorities. Younger people will be looking to put money towards large items such as a car, home or travel whereas those aged over ** have not only had time to build their savings, but also are more likely to have no unsecured debt, and to own a property outright.

Rainy day fund

As we get older, the importance of having some form of savings for an emergency, or unforeseen circumstances becomes clearer. Planning for the long-term becomes of higher importance as we age. Despite this, as of 2018, just over half of the adult population had adequate savings for retirement.

This dataset provides values for PERSONAL SAVINGS reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.

Percentage difference of total savings and income (annuity) at age 65 for people working part time with no chronic condition, part time with diabetes, full time with diabetes, and not in the labour force due to diabetes compared to those working full time with no chronic condition.

This table contains 58320 series, with data for years 1999 - 2016 (not all combinations necessarily have data for all years). This table contains data described by the following dimensions (Not all combinations are available): Geography (20 items: Canada; Atlantic; Newfoundland and Labrador; Prince Edward Island; ...); Assets and debts (27 items: Total assets; Private pension assets; Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSPs), Registered Retirement Income Funds (RRIFs), Locked-in Retirement Accounts (LIRAs) and other; Employer-sponsored Registered Pension Plans (EPPs); ...); Net worth quintiles (6 items: Total, all net worth quintiles; Lowest net worth quintile; Second net worth quintile; Middle net worth quintile; ...); Statistics (6 items: Total values; Percentage of total assets or total debts; Number holding asset or debt; Percentage holding asset or debt; ...); Confidence intervals (3 items: Estimate; Lower bound of a 95% confidence interval; Upper bound of a 95% confidence interval).

Saving and investment behaviour in private households. Possibilities and needs of financial precaution in private households. Retirement planning. Pension.

1. Accumulation of money and current income situation: management of average monthly income in 2012; amount actually saved in 2012; precise list of all monthly sources of respondent’s and if not widowed his or her partner’s income; total amount of net income; refused or granted credit within the past five years; no application for credit because of expectation of refusal.

2. Retirement: expected age of retirement; respondent retired; expected kind of respondent’s and partner’s income during retirement; expected (private) pension as percentage of last expected net income; if estimation does not include the private pension: reasons for the estimation of the expected pension without the private pension; expectation to work during retirement to supplement pension; pro and contra working during retirement (enjoyment of work, financial situation, state of health, wish to have more time for other things); expected need for financial support at the age of retirement; expected support from children, other relatives and friends or the state; evaluation of time of entry into retirement: wish for earlier or later entry (in years); occupations in addition to retirement within the last year and reasons of having them; percentage of the household’s net income due to those occupations and similar one’s of the partner; wish to receive employer’s pension scheme; information provided by employer about pension scheme.

3. Property ownership: a member of the household is the owner of the housing; market value of the housing property; other property ownerships and properties’ market value.

4. Monetary assets: quantity, kind (economizers, building loan contracts, fixed-interest securities, equity and real estate funds or other securities); worth of all owned monetary assets at the end of 2012; no monetary assets at the end of 2012.

5. Employer´s pension scheme and private pension scheme: quantity, kind (life insurance, employer’s pension scheme, government-funded private pension scheme, private pension insurance), estimated or known balance and monthly contribution at the end of 2012; no pension scheme at the end of 2012.

6. Loan or mortgage: financial charge of respondent or partner that is not covered at the end of 2012; kind of loan.

7. Operating assets and other assets: respondent’s and his or her partner’s operating assets; market value of those assets at the end of 2012; other active debts and its worth; other assets (e.g. jewelry or antiquities) and its worth.

8. Attitudes and expectations: assessment of future economic development in Germany and Europe, assessment of one’s own future economic situation, the spending power of currency, stability of the financial sector and the future of the Euro as a currency; risk-taking behaviour towards one’s health, carrier, financial matters, leisure, sports and while driving; prefer years of working against years of retirement in the scenario of getting 3 more years to live; attitudes towards provision for old age: responsibility of the state, the individual, guarantee of the governmental, private and work related pension; overall trust towards people.

9. Government-funded contracts and insurances: statutory or private nursing care insurance; additional private nursing care insurance; knowledge about additional government funding for private nursing care insurance; estimated percentage of yearly premium for cost coverage.

Demography: gender; age (year of birth); living together with a partner; number of children and persons in the household (size of household); educational degree; educational training of respondent and his or her partner; profession of respondent and partner; reason for part time occupation of respondent and partner; union membership of respondent and partner; highest degree of respondent’s parents; lived with parents at the age of 10; amount of books in the household when the respondent was 10 years old.

Additionally coded was: urbanization; state; number of administrative district; survey wave; weighting factor.

Households where the major income earner was from 35 to 44 years old had the highest amount of net savings in 2023. That segment saved on average nearly ****** Canadian dollars that year alone. Households of individuals older than ** had negative net savings amounting to ****** Canadian dollars, which means that their expenses were higher than their revenue. These figures do not show the overall value of savings accumulated in bank accounts and other assets, but the amount of money that households managed to save in a single year.

In Europe, the variation in average amounts of financial wealth per adult varied considerably as of 2022, from approximately ******* U.S. dollars in Switzerland to roughly ***** U.S. dollars in Azerbaijan. In Europe, the overall average financial wealth per adult as of 2022 was ****** U.S. dollars. In terms of private wealth, Europe held the second highest value in the world, after North America. What is financial wealth? Financial wealth, also known as financial assets or liquid assets can include wealth that an individual has in the forms of cash, stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and bank deposits. In addition to financial wealth, wealth can also be measured in other assets, called non-financial wealth. This includes physical assets, such as real estate, land, vehicles, jewelry, and art, just to name a few. Where do most wealthy individuals live? Individuals with a net worth over *********** U.S. dollars are called high-net worth individuals (HNWI). The United States was the home country to the highest number of HNWIs in 2021. China followed, although their number of HNWIs did not even reach ********* of the number in the United States. In Europe, Switzerland is the country with the highest average financial wealth per adult, but with its small population size, the number of HNWIs does not come near the numbers in the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Italy – the European countries with the highest number of HNWIs. Considering Switzerland’s small population size, however, it is the country in the world with the highest proportion of millionaires.

Footnotes:1Gender refers to an individual's personal and social identity as a man, woman or non-binary person (a person who is not exclusively a man or a woman). Gender includes the following concepts: gender identity, which refers to the gender that a person feels internally and individually; gender expression, which refers to the way a person presents their gender, regardless of their gender identity, through body language, aesthetic choices or accessories (e.g., clothes, hairstyle and makeup), which may have traditionally been associated with a specific gender. A person's gender may differ from their sex at birth, and from what is indicated on their current identification or legal documents such as their birth certificate, passport or driver's licence. A person's gender may change over time. Some people may not identify with a specific gender.2Given that the non-binary population is small, data aggregation to a two-category gender variable is sometimes necessary to protect the confidentiality of responses provided. In these cases, individuals in the category “non-binary persons” are distributed into the other two gender categories and are denoted by the “+” symbol.3Age' refers to the age of a person (or subject) of interest at last birthday (or relative to a specified, well-defined reference date).4The median income of a specified group is the amount that divides the income distribution of that group into two halves, i.e., the incomes of half of the units in that group are below the median, while those of the other half are above the median. Median incomes of individuals are calculated for those with income (positive or negative).5Average income of a specified group is calculated by dividing the aggregate income of that group by the number of units in that group. Average incomes are calculated for those with income (positive or negative).6Total income refers to the sum of certain incomes (in cash and, in some circumstances, in kind) of the statistical unit during a specified reference period. The components used to calculate total income vary between: – Statistical units of social statistical programs such as persons, private households, census families and economic families; – Statistical units of business statistical programs such as enterprises, companies, establishments and locations; and – Statistical units of farm statistical programs such as farm operator and farm family. In the context of persons, total income refers to receipts from certain sources, before income taxes and deductions, during a specified reference period. In the context of census families, total income refers to receipts from certain sources of all of its family members, before income taxes and deductions, during a specified reference period. In the context of economic families, total income refers to receipts from certain sources of all of its family members, before income taxes and deductions, during a specified reference period. In the context of households, total income refers to receipts from certain sources of all household members, before income taxes and deductions, during a specified reference period. The monetary receipts included are those that tend to be of a regular and recurring nature. Receipts that are included as income are: * employment income from wages, salaries, tips, commissions and net income from self-employment (for both unincorporated farm and non-farm activities); * income from investment sources, such as dividends and interest on bonds, accounts, guaranteed investment certificates (GICs) and mutual funds; * income from employer and personal pension sources, such as private pensions and payments from annuities and registered retirement income funds (RRIFs); * other regular cash income, such as child support payments received, spousal support payments (alimony) received and scholarships; * income from government sources, such as social assistance, child benefits, Employment Insurance benefits, Old Age Security benefits, COVID-19 benefits and Canada Pension Plan and Québec Pension Plan benefits and disability income. Receipts excluded from this income definition are: * one-time receipts, such as lottery winnings, gambling winnings, cash inheritances, lump-sum insurance settlements and tax-free savings account (TFSA) or registered retirement savings plan (RRSP) withdrawals; * capital gains because they are not by their nature regular and recurring. It is further assumed that they are more relevant to the concept of wealth than the concept of income; * employers' contributions to registered pension plans, Canada Pension Plan, Québec Pension Plan and Employment Insurance; * voluntary inter-household transfers, imputed rent, goods and services produced for barter and goods produced for own consumption.7The reference period for this variable is calendar year 2019. The variable is intended for comparison with its 2020 equivalent and other 2019 income variables. Income for 2019 is presented in 2020 constant dollars.8The sum of employment income (wages, salaries and commissions, net self-employment income from farm or non-farm unincorporated business and/or professional practice), investment income, private retirement income (retirement pensions, superannuation and annuities, including those from registered retirement savings plans [RRSPs] and registered retirement income funds [RRIFs]) and other money income from market sources during the reference period. It is equivalent to total income minus government transfers. It is also referred to as income before transfers and taxes.9The reference period for this variable is calendar year 2019. The variable is intended for comparison with its 2020 equivalent and other 2019 income variables. Income for 2019 is presented in 2020 constant dollars.10All income received as wages, salaries and commissions from paid employment and net self-employment income from farm or non-farm unincorporated business and/or professional practice during the reference period.11The reference period for this variable is calendar year 2019. The variable is intended for comparison with its 2020 equivalent and other 2019 income variables. Income for 2019 is presented in 2020 constant dollars.12Gross wages and salaries before deductions for such items as income taxes, pension plan contributions and employment insurance premiums during the reference period. While other employee remuneration such as security options benefits, board and lodging and other taxable allowances and benefits are included in this source, employer's contributions to pension plans and employment insurance plans are excluded. Other receipts included in this source are military pay and allowances, tips, commissions and cash bonuses associated with paid employment, benefits from wage-loss replacement plans or income-maintenance insurance plans, supplementary unemployment benefits from an employer or union, research grants, royalties from a work or invention with no associated expenses and all types of casual earnings during the reference period.13The reference period for this variable is calendar year 2019. The variable is intended for comparison with its 2020 equivalent and other 2019 income variables. Income for 2019 is presented in 2020 constant dollars.14Net income (gross receipts minus cost of operation and capital cost allowance) received during the reference period from self-employment activities, either on own account or in partnership. In the case of partnerships, only the person's share of income is included. Net partnership income of a limited or non-active partner is excluded. It includes farming income, fishing income and income from unincorporated business or professional practice. Commission income for a self-employed commission salesperson and royalties from a work or invention with expenses associated are also included in this source.15The reference period for this variable is calendar year 2019. The variable is intended for comparison with its 2020 equivalent and other 2019 income variables. Income for 2019 is presented in 2020 constant dollars.16All cash benefits received from federal, provincial, territorial or municipal governments during the reference period. It includes: * Old Age Security pension, Guaranteed Income Supplement, Allowance or Allowance for the Survivor; * retirement, disability and survivor benefits from Canada Pension Plan and Québec Pension Plan; * benefits from Employment Insurance and Québec parental insurance plan; * child benefits from federal and provincial programs; * social assistance benefits; * workers' compensation benefits; * Canada workers benefit (CWB); * Goods and services tax credit and harmonized sales tax credit; * other income from government sources. For the 2021 Census, this includes various benefits from new and existing federal, provincial and territorial government income programs intended to provide financial support to individuals affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and the public health measures implemented to minimize the spread of the virus.17The reference period for this variable is calendar year 2019. The variable is intended for comparison with its 2020 equivalent and other 2019 income variables. Income for 2019 is presented in 2020 constant dollars.18Refers to the sum of payments received from COVID-19 - Emergency and recovery benefits and Employment Insurance (EI) benefits.19The reference period for this variable is calendar year 2019. The variable is intended for comparison with its 2020 equivalent and other 2019 income variables. Income for 2019 is presented in 2020 constant dollars. In 2019, earning replacement benefits is equal to Employment Insurance (EI) benefits.20All Employment Insurance (EI) benefits received during the reference period, before income tax deductions. It includes benefits for unemployment, sickness, maternity, paternity, adoption, compassionate care, work sharing, retraining, and benefits to self-employed fishers

In 2023, residents aged 65 years and above made up 9.2 percent of the total employed resident population in Singapore. Improvements in healthcare and the standard of living over the years have contributed to an increase in life expectancy in Singapore. As a consequence, Singapore is currently one of the most rapidly aging societies, including an aging workforce, in Asia. Aging workforce The minimum retirement age in Singapore is currently set at 62 years old. Even so, 31.5 percent of residents aged 65 years old were still employed or seeking employment. For many Singaporeans, retirement brings with it an increased economic burden. There is no system of state-funded pensions, and retirees depend largely on their savings. However, a survey on current working age Singaporeans found that few were financially prepared for retirement. Increased financial dependency on elderly breadwinners An increasingly elderly population has also led to the trend of increasing number of households who depend on elderly breadwinners, almost tripling since 2000. The number of elderly single-person households have also increased. To mitigate the economic burden on the elderly, the Singapore government has launched several upskilling programs to ensure that the elderly remain competitive in the workforce. However, beyond extending their employability, few other social safety nets are currently available to ensure a comfortable retirement for the elderly, regardless of income level.