An earlier retirement may not be your goal, but having a plan can help protect your future.
Credit: Daniel de la Hoz / Getty Images Key Takeaways
Workers expect to retire at a median age of 65, but retirees report leaving work at a median age of 62.
Nearly half of retirees left work earlier than planned, often because of health problems or changes at their employer.
A backup plan can help you prepare for fewer saving years, health insurance costs before Medicare, and Social Security decisions.
Many Americans plan to leave the workforce at age 65, but find themselves retiring earlier than anticipated.
In the 2026 Retirement Confidence Survey by the Employee Benefit Research Institute and Greenwald Research, workers’ median expected retirement age was 65, while retirees reported retiring at a median age of 62.
Almost half of those in retirement said they left the workforce sooner than they had anticipated. Among those who retired earlier than planned, 41% said they did so due to hardship, such as illness, while 35% did so because of changes at their company or organization. However, 36% said they could afford to retire sooner. (Respondents could cite more than one reason.)
What This Means For You
Planning on a later retirement can be risky when many workers leave the workforce earlier than expected. Starting in your 40s or 50s, build a backup plan by saving more and mapping out health insurance costs and Social Security timing.
For workers, retiring early can mean accumulating less in retirement savings, having to choose pricier health insurance options, and needing to collect Social Security earlier.
While you might not be planning to retire early, it could be worth creating a contingency plan just in case. Retiring three years earlier than expected could mean missing out on thousands of dollars worth of additional savings.
For example, if you earn $80,000 and contribute 5% of your salary to your 401(k) and earn a 5% match, you would lose out on $24,000 worth of retirement savings by retiring at age 62 instead of 65—plus potential investment growth on those contributions.
Additionally, early retirees will need to determine how they’ll obtain health insurance, as Medicare is generally available only to those age 65 and older. Early retirees may need to rely on their spouse for health insurance, enroll in COBRA, or find a plan on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) exchange.
To help prepare for some of these costs, you might want to try stashing additional money in your retirement accounts while you’re still working. If you’re 50 or older, you could be eligible for catch-up contributions to your 401(k) or individual retirement account (IRA). For 2026, the catch-up contribution limits are $1,100 for IRAs and $8,000 for 401(k)s, while eligible workers turning 60 through 63 can make larger 401(k) catch-up contributions of up to $11,250.
Another way of mitigating the risk of retiring earlier than intended is to evaluate your job in your early 50s, according to Geoffrey Sanzenbacher, professor of the practice at Boston College. If you have a job that you don’t think you can stick with until you’re ready to retire, you might want to switch jobs now, finding a role that better fits your skills, abilities, and timeline.
Planning for Social Security is also important. Consider how collecting early could affect the size of your monthly checks. If your full retirement age, or the age at which you receive 100% of your Social Security benefit, is 67, and you collect at age 62, your monthly benefit will be reduced by 30%.
Ultimately, whether it’s worth it to collect early will depend on your life expectancy, whether your spouse is collecting on your record, and more.
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