Can You Afford to Retire? Here's How Much Americans Spend Daily in Retirement Most Americans are still retiring around age 65.
By Sherin Shibu
Key Takeaways
- Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) showed the overall average for expenses among retirees was $4,345 per month or $52,141 every year.
- The median age for retirees is 62 and the average is 65 years of age, according to a 2023 EBRI survey.
- Younger retirees spend more daily than older, according to the report.
The age of a retiree could be correlated with how much they spend — and nearly half of retirees say that they retired earlier than expected.
A new piece from Go Banking Rates with statistics from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) shows a difference in the expenses of younger and older retirees and reveals the average income of those who reach retirement age.
BLS data showed that younger retirees between 65 and 74 years of age had more expenses on average, at $4,870 per month than those 75 years or older, who averaged about $1,000 less at $3,813 per month.
The overall average for expenses among retirees was $4,345 per month or $52,141 every year. This number is below the average income per year for retirees, which the U.S. Census Bureau placed at $75,254, but higher than the median income of $47,620 found by the Census Bureau.
A 2023 survey from the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) showed that even though workers are more likely to say that they expect to retire at 70 or older, the data shows that the median age for retirees is 62 years of age and the average is 65 years of age.
Nearly half of retirees (46%) indicated that they left the workforce earlier than they intended to, due to health problems, disabilities, or changes at their company.
Only 35% of who people retired earlier than planned said that they did so because they could afford it.
