Nearly half of American workers don’t know where to turn for retirement guidance.

According to the 2026 Retirement Confidence Survey by the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) and Greenwald Research — the longest-running study of its kind — 43% of workers said they have no idea who to go to for good financial or retirement planning advice. One in four retirees said the same.

But here’s what makes that number even more alarming: Plenty of people who believe they know where to turn are getting advice from sources that could do real damage to their financial futures.

The survey tracked where Americans actually go for guidance. The results are eye-opening. Workers’ top source? Family and friends. Professional financial advisors ranked third. And artificial intelligence tools nearly doubled in usage from a year ago.

Here are all five major sources, ranked from worst to best — so you know exactly what you’re dealing with.

5. Social media influencers and financial ‘gurus’

One in five workers said they rely on financial experts or gurus from the media or social media for retirement guidance. That number needs to go down.

These people aren’t fiduciaries, which means they’re not legally required to act in your best interest. Many are compensated by the products they promote or the clicks they drive.

Some of them give perfectly reasonable general advice. But here’s the problem: General advice applied to your specific retirement situation is like a general weather forecast applied to your backyard. Close enough to feel right, off enough to cause real damage.

If a “guru” is telling you what to buy without knowing anything about you, stop listening.

Quick aside — most internet financial advice comes from people who weren’t alive during the last recession. I’ve been writing about money for more than 40 years. Want rock-solid advice? Sign up for the free Money Talks Newsletter. Takes 10 seconds. No fluff. No spam.

4. AI tools

This one deserves more nuance than a simple thumbs-down.

AI usage as a retirement guidance source jumped from 11% of workers in 2025 to 18% in 2026 — one of the fastest-growing categories in the survey. That makes sense. AI is free, always available, and doesn’t judge you for not knowing what a required minimum distribution is.

For education, it’s genuinely useful. Understanding how a Roth IRA works, what “fiduciary” means, or how Social Security’s delayed retirement credits stack up — AI handles all of that well.

But AI can’t see your full financial picture. It doesn’t know your health situation, your pension, your spouse’s income, or your plans for your 401(k) when you change jobs. It can explain concepts. It can’t build you a plan.

Treat it as a study buddy, not a strategy session.

3. Family and friends

Workers’ top source of retirement guidance is their family and friends — 39% cited them in the survey, ranking them higher than professional advisors.

It’s easy to understand why. These conversations are free, comfortable, and filled with good intentions.

But unless your sibling is a fee-only certified financial planner who knows your tax situation inside and out, you’re getting advice filtered through someone else’s life circumstances.

What worked for your neighbor who retired at 57 on a generous pension may be completely wrong for you. Use these conversations for emotional support, not for strategy.

2. Your employer’s HR department and plan provider

This one’s criminally underused, and you’re already paying for it.

Only 27% of workers said they turn to their employer’s human resources or benefits department for guidance. That’s a missed opportunity.

Your 401(k) plan provider — Fidelity, Vanguard, Empower, or whoever holds your account — typically offers free planning tools, retirement calculators, and access to real humans who can walk you through your options.

Your HR department knows the specifics of your plan: the matching contributions you may be leaving on the table, catch-up contribution rules once you hit 50, and plan features you probably didn’t know existed. If you’re not sure where your next retirement dollar should go, that’s exactly the conversation to start there.

This isn’t comprehensive retirement planning. But it’s a solid, free starting point — and most people completely ignore it.

1. A professional, fiduciary financial advisor

This is the right answer — but only if you find the right one.

About 4 in 10 Americans currently work with a professional financial advisor, according to the survey. Among retirees, it’s their single most-used source of guidance, cited by 39%. Among workers, only 33% turn to one.

The key word is “fiduciary.” That means they’re legally required to put your interests first — not their own commission income.

That distinction matters more than ever right now. A major consumer protection rule that would have required retirement investment advisors to meet fiduciary standards was struck down by federal courts earlier this year — a change that affects anyone looking for retirement guidance.

Before you sign anything, ask two questions: Are you a fiduciary 100% of the time? How are you compensated? If the answers are “sometimes” and “commissions,” keep looking. There are 10 questions a bad financial advisor hopes you never ask — know them before you sit down.

A fee-only fiduciary — paid directly by you, not through product commissions — is the gold standard. And the payoff can be dramatic.

Research cited by Vanguard found that working with a qualified advisor could more than double a portfolio’s growth over 25 years compared to going it alone.

If you’ve got at least $100,000 in investments, one free service to check is SmartAsset. You fill out a short questionnaire and instantly get matched with up to three vetted financial advisors in your area.

The bottom line

If you’re among the 43% of workers who don’t know where to turn — now you do.

Start with your employer’s plan resources. Use AI and reputable financial sites to build your knowledge. Lean on family for support, not strategy. Ignore the influencers. And when you’re ready to get serious, find a fee-only fiduciary.

The money you’re protecting took decades to earn. The guidance you use to protect it should clear a higher bar than a YouTube algorithm.