U.S. retirement assets climbed 4.5% from June, accounting for 34% of all household financial assets across the country.
Those are the latest findings from the Investment Company Institute (ICI), which analyzed retirement assets for Q3 2025. “The US Retirement Market, Third Quarter 2025” report found that assets in individual retirement accounts (IRAs) totaled $18.9 trillion at the end of Q3, for an increase of 5.2% since the second quarter.
Defined contribution (DC) plan assets were $13.9 trillion by the end of the third quarter, up 5.1%.
“The latest data show that retirement assets in the US are at a record high, underscoring the continued success of Americans’ long-term retirement savings and investing,” said Shelly Antoniewicz, chief economist at the ICI. “Over the past 25 years, rising assets in IRAs and 401(k) plans reflect broader participation in these plans, even as markets fluctuate. 401(k) plans and IRAs have fueled the growth in retirement assets, helping to provide families with a secure financial future.”
Government defined benefit (DB) plans came in at $9.5 trillion in Q3, up 3.1%, while private-sector DB plans saw $3.1 trillion in assets at the end of the quarter and annuity reserves outside of retirement accounts came in at $2.6 trillion.
IRAs and DC plans
According to the ICI, 38% of IRA assets, or $7.3 trillion, were invested in mutual funds. Equity funds held $4.3 trillion in assets, followed by hybrid funds at $1.2 trillion.
Of the $13.9 trillion in all employer-sponsored DC plans, $10 trillion were held in 401(k) plans. Over five trillion were held in mutual funds, followed by $3.4 trillion in equity funds and $1.6 trillion in hybrid funds, including target-date funds (TDFs).
In addition to 401(k)s, $875 billion were held in other private-sector DC plans, $1.5 trillion in 403(b) plans, $532 billion in 457 plans, and $1.1 trillion in the Federal Employees Retirement System’s Thrift Savings Plan (TSP), reports the ICI.
Retirement entitlements
Retirement entitlements like financial assets, other assets, and unfunded liabilities of DC plans came in at $52.1 trillion. Financial assets accounted for $48.1 trillion of financial assets, $189 billion of other assets, and $3.8 trillion of unfunded liabilities.
The ICI reports that retirement entitlements made up 37% of financial assets in all U.S. households.
Unfunded liabilities were more prominent in government DB plans, at 29% of benefit entitlements for state and local government DB plans, 25% for federal government DB plans, and 3% for private sector DB plans.
Additional data from the ICI can be found here.