The Retirement Outlook of the American Middle Class
America’s middle class is the heartbeat of our society, a main driver of our economy, and the embodiment of the American dream. Representing more than half of the U.S. population, the middle class is ever-present in our popular culture and social conscience. In today’s chaotic post-pandemic environment, how are middle-class Americans faring? What are their hopes and dreams? What is their current financial situation? And what is their long-term retirement outlook?
The Retirement Outlook of America’s Middle Class, a collaboration between nonprofit Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies (TCRS) and Transamerica Institute, paints a portrait of the middle class as defined by people with a household income between $50,000 and $200,000.
The report examines the middle class's happiness, health and well-being, personal finances, employment status, access to employer-sponsored retirement benefits, and retirement outlook. It illuminates their public policy priorities for the President and Congress to help people have a financially secure retirement. It also provides recommendations for individuals, employers, and policymakers, and it offers a suggested reading list for those who want to learn more about the middle class.
The report is based on findings from the 24th Annual Transamerica Retirement Survey conducted in late 2023. The survey sample comprised more than 5,700 U.S. residents, age 18 and older with an annual household income between $50,000 and $200,000. For analytical purposes, this report offers a further segmentation analysis of the middle class by comparing those with household incomes of $50,000 to $99,999 and $100,000 to $199,999.