Gen Zers Most Confident About Retirement, but Still Worry About Outliving Savings

Across all generations of savers surveyed in BlackRock’s 2024 “Read on Retirement” survey, employees expressed confusion about how much to save for retirement, worries about outliving their savings and uncertainty about how much income they will need in retirement.  

Generation Z employees expressed the highest level of retirement confidence out of any generation, with 77% saying they feel on track to retire with the lifestyle they want. However, 69% of this cohort said they worry about outliving their retirement savings. 

For the third year of BlackRock’s survey, more than 60% of all respondents expressed fear of outliving their savings. Employers expressed similar concerns, as only 58% said they believe participants are on track with their retirement savings, down from 64% in 2023. 

Millennials, in particular, are “feeling the squeeze,” as 62% reported that they carry credit card debt—the most of any generation—and 56% said they worry about outliving their retirement savings. Additionally, 72% of Millennials surveyed said they would stay with their current employer if it matched student loan payments with contributions to their retirement plan. 

Since January 1, employer contributions matching employees’ qualified student loan payments are allowed under the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022. 

Stressful Times for Gen X  

With retirement coming sooner for Generation X workers, respondents from that generation were both the most likely to report saving consistently for retirement and the least likely to feel on track.  

More than half (54%) of Gen Xers who self-identified as not on track feel they should be saving more, but only 31% of those eligible reported making catch-up contributions, according to BlackRock. Under 2024 IRS limits, individuals older than age 50 can save up to $7,500 extra annually in their 401(k) or 403(b) plans. 

“Our survey showed that Gen X had the highest volume of debt on a dollar basis across all generations,” said a spokesperson at BlackRock. “While there are likely multiple factors impacting why less Gen Xers are making catch-up contributions, debt load could be one reason impacting their decisions – and their retirement confidence.”

BlackRock also found that 40% of Gen X workers currently use a financial adviser, the lowest of any generation. 

Younger Workers Relying on Employers 

Gen Z employees are more likely than Gen X to work with a financial adviser; the survey found that a majority of Gen Z lacks firsthand investment knowledge and is seeking more professional management from their plan.  

For example, 63% of Gen Z members surveyed admitted they do not understand enough about investments to confidently manage their own savings. Instead, many Gen Z employees are relying on their employers to offer appropriate investments, as 25% said their trust in their employer to choose the right investment option for them is the primary reason they invest via a target-date fund. This may seem like a small percentage of workers, but BlackRock found that Gen Z workers trust their employers nearly four times more than Baby Boomers. 

What Lies Ahead? 

TDFs remain the “tool of choice” for the majority of workplace savers, as 61% are either already invested in a TDF or plan to be soon. However, 20% said they are not sure if they are invested in one or not.

“What’s encouraging is of those 20% not currently familiar with a target date fund, 69% said they’d be interested in using one within their retirement plan, after being provided a definition,” a BlackRock spokesperson said. “And the survey showed 79% of participants said providing specific education on investment options would help with retirement planning.”

Plan sponsors expressed a preference for making guaranteed income part of retirement planning, as 83% agreed their participants would benefit from a TDF solution that includes some sort of guaranteed income. A growing number of plan sponsors are also seeing mounting evidence that active investment strategies often perform better and benefit savers across market cycles, according to the report. For instance, 85% of plan sponsors agreed that active TDFs could reduce the impact of market volatility on investment outcomes. 

“Our research continues to underscore how complicated the path is for Americans when planning for retirement,” said Anne Ackerley, a senior advisor on retirement at BlackRock, in a statement. “This is an important moment to rethink retirement, and we are committed to convening conversations around ways we can make retirement investing simpler, more accessible, and more affordable for as many people as possible.” 

The survey included responses from more than 450 defined contribution plan sponsors, as well as 300 plan advisers, 1,300 workplace savers, 1,300 independent savers and 300 retired workplace savers in the U.S. It was fielded online from January 29 through March 7.