Waiting To Start Saving For Retirement Can Cost You Thousands

This calculation assumes you save $5,000 a year in today’s dollars, each year and earn a 4% rate of return after inflation.

Chart shows the retirement account balance for investors who begin saving at ages 25 through 40. Each year the person waits to begin saving for retirement, they lose thousands of dollars in interest.

This sample calculation was run by David Blanchett, head of retirement research at QMA.

Table: Ana Lucia Murillo Source: David Blanchett Get the data