The 5 States With the Least Retirement Savings (Page 2)

1. Mississippi

The average household has just $35,000 in retirement savings in Mississippi, or 59.2% of the median $59,127 annual income. Only 41.8% of households are using retirement-specific accounts, the lowest adoption rate studywide.

• Median retirement savings: $35,000
• Median household income: $59,127
• Retirement account prevalence: 41.8%
• 401(k) & Thrift Savings Plan prevalence: 35.8%
• IRA or Keogh Account prevalence: 10.4%

2. Oklahoma

• Median retirement savings: $39,450
• Median household income: $66,148
• Retirement account prevalence: 47.9%
• 401(k) & Thrift Savings Plan prevalence: 39.9%
• IRA or Keogh Account prevalence: 19.7%

3. Alabama

• Median retirement savings: $46,000
• Median household income: $66,659
• Retirement account prevalence: 43.1%
• 401(k) & Thrift Savings Plan prevalence: 33.7%
• IRA or Keogh Account prevalence: 21.9%

4. Louisiana

• Median retirement savings: $50,000
• Median household income: $60,986
• Retirement account prevalence: 44.1%
• 401(k) & Thrift Savings Plan prevalence: 38.3%
• IRA or Keogh Account prevalence: 13.3%

5. Kentucky

• Median retirement savings: $50,000
• Median household income: $64,526
• Retirement account prevalence: 51.7%
• 401(k) & Thrift Savings Plan prevalence: 41.7%
• IRA or Keogh Account prevalence: 22.7%

Methodology

Household retirement data comes from the U.S. Census Bureau for 2023, published July 2025. Median household income data comes from the U.S. Census Bureau 1-Year American Community Survey for 2024. Full data was available for 40 states (data for Alaska, Delaware, Maine, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, South Dakota, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wyoming was unavailable). Check out the complete study from SmartAsset here.