How much you need to have saved to retire in 2026, according to SmartAsset

A single retiree in Raleigh's Wake County who owns a home outright and collects Social Security needs an estimated $59,908 in savings. That covers essential costs plus modest discretionary spending. A single renter in Brooklyn, also counting on Social Security, needs an estimated $736,897 for the same kind of budget. That spread sits at the center of SmartAsset's data study on how much savings you need to retire in 2026.

The study, written by Patrick Villanova and published October 22, 2026, estimates retirement savings needs in 55 of the nation's largest counties. SmartAsset cautions that those counties are not representative of the U.S., especially smaller and rural areas.

Each estimate models one person who retires in 2026 in the county where they live. A household of two would spend more and may need a correspondingly larger nest egg. SmartAsset prices that person's retirement four ways. A homeowner with no mortgage is costed on essentials alone, then on essentials plus discretionary spending. A renter in a one-bedroom unit is costed the same two ways.

The discretionary budget starts at $6,257 a year. It draws on selected categories from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' 2024 Consumer Expenditure Survey for single people 65 and older. Those categories include entertainment, dining out and gifts. SmartAsset adjusted the total for inflation through December 2025 and then for regional price differences.

SmartAsset takes each county's average yearly Old-Age and Survivors Insurance benefit, using Social Security Administration data from December 2025. It subtracts that benefit from annual spending. It then divides the remainder by 0.047, which reflects a 4.7% withdrawal rate. The benefit figure is a county average, not a forecast of what any one retiree will collect. The study also runs each scenario without Social Security. In 17 of the 55 counties, a single renter covering essentials and modest discretionary spending would then need more than $1 million.

The slides that follow cover eight counties from SmartAsset's 55-county study. They run from the highest renter estimate after Social Security among the 55 counties to the lowest estimate for a mortgage-free homeowner with Social Security. Two more slides explain the withdrawal-rate method and whether anyone in the study could live on Social Security alone. Every figure is a standardized estimate, not a personal projection. Actual needs shift with longevity, investment returns, taxes, inflation, healthcare costs, spending habits, housing and benefits.

Illustration: Quartz

SmartAsset's savings targets come from one formula. It subtracts a retiree's yearly Social Security benefit from yearly expenses. It then divides what remains by 0.047. The result is the nest egg that would cover that gap with a 4.7% withdrawal each year.

The method builds on the 4% rule, a common benchmark for how much a retiree can draw from savings each year. SmartAsset treats that rule as a place to begin, not a fixed limit. Its study points out that spending often shifts over the course of retirement. Those shifts can call for a more flexible approach to withdrawals.

The rate drives the size of every target. Dividing by 0.047 makes the savings target about 21.3 times the yearly shortfall. A strict 4% rule would set the multiple at 25. Each $1,000 of annual spending that Social Security does not cover adds roughly $21,277 to SmartAsset's estimate. Under a 4% rate, the same $1,000 would add $25,000. That is a difference of about $3,723 for every $1,000 of uncovered spending.

The 4.7% method assumes that withdrawals in later years rise with inflation. The calculation does not model those increases separately.

The formula runs the same way in every scenario. The expense input changes with the county, with whether the retiree rents or owns a home outright, and with whether discretionary spending is included. That produces four targets per county with Social Security and four without. When the study drops Social Security from a scenario, nothing is subtracted. The target is then the full yearly budget divided by 0.047.

SmartAsset drew its discretionary spending base from Table 3600 of the Bureau of Labor Statistics' 2024 Consumer Expenditure Survey. It used CPI-U, the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, for the inflation adjustment. It applied regional price parities for the geographic adjustment.

SmartAsset notes that the providers of its data neither endorse nor sponsor the study.

Illustration: Quartz

A single retiree who owns a home outright in Wake County, North Carolina, needs an estimated $59,908 in savings once Social Security is counted. That is the lowest homeowner figure among the 55 counties in SmartAsset's 2026 study.

Wake County is home to Raleigh. The estimate covers essential costs plus discretionary spending for one person who retires there in 2026 and has no mortgage payment.

SmartAsset puts that homeowner's essential spending at $24,612 a year. Adding discretionary spending raises the yearly total to $30,796. The $6,184 difference is the county's discretionary budget after the study's regional price adjustment.

The county's average Social Security benefit is $27,981 a year. That leaves a gap of $2,815 a year between the homeowner's full budget and the average benefit. The $59,908 nest egg is sized to cover that gap at SmartAsset's 4.7% withdrawal rate.

The average benefit also exceeds the homeowner's essential costs by $3,369 a year. For a mortgage-free owner who spends only on essentials, the county's average benefit covers the bill in SmartAsset's model. The need for savings in the $59,908 estimate comes from discretionary spending.

Renters in Wake County face a different calculation. SmartAsset estimates a renter's essential spending at $36,012 a year. With discretionary spending, the total reaches $42,196. The renter's essential budget runs $11,400 a year above the homeowner's.

After the average benefit, a renter with discretionary spending would still face a shortfall of $14,215 a year. That is roughly five times the mortgage-free homeowner's yearly gap.

The lowest-in-study label applies to one scenario only: a mortgage-free homeowner who collects the county's average Social Security benefit. It does not describe what a Raleigh-area renter needs. It also does not apply to a retiree who is still paying off a mortgage.

Maricopa County, Arizona, ranks second lowest for mortgage-free homeowners at $73,004. That figure is $13,096 above Wake County's.

The $27,981 figure is a countywide average. A retiree whose own benefit falls below it would need more savings than the estimate shows. One with a larger benefit would need less.

Illustration: Quartz

A single retiree who owns a home outright in Maricopa County, Arizona, which includes Phoenix, needs an estimated $73,004 in savings. That money would cover essential and discretionary spending after Social Security. Among the 55 counties SmartAsset studied, it is the second-lowest homeowner figure, behind Wake County, North Carolina.

The estimate starts with spending. SmartAsset puts yearly essential costs for a mortgage-free homeowner in Maricopa County at $23,304. Adding discretionary spending raises the yearly total to $29,908.

The average yearly Social Security benefit paid to beneficiaries in the county is $26,477. That average covers all of a homeowner's essential costs, with $3,173 left over. It falls short once discretionary spending is included, leaving a gap of $3,431 a year. The $73,004 figure is the savings SmartAsset estimates would fund that gap.

Renting changes the result. A renter in Maricopa County faces estimated essential costs of $36,636 a year. That is $13,332 more than a homeowner with no mortgage pays. It also exceeds the average benefit by $10,159. Under SmartAsset's formula, a renter would need savings even to cover essentials. With discretionary spending, a renter's budget reaches $43,240. That total exceeds the county's average benefit by $16,763 a year, more than four times the homeowner's gap.

Discretionary spending adds the same $6,604 a year to both budgets in Maricopa County. For the homeowner, that single line turns a yearly surplus on essentials into a shortfall.

The comparison with Wake County shows the role of the benefit. A Maricopa County homeowner's full budget is $888 lower than the $30,796 a Wake County homeowner spends. But Wake County's average benefit of $27,981 is $1,504 higher than Maricopa County's. The larger benefit leaves Wake County with the smaller gap to fill from savings.

The low Maricopa County figure applies only to a single mortgage-free homeowner receiving the county's average benefit. Renters in the county face a much larger target.