I'm in My Early 40s With a Little Over $500,000 in My 401(k)—Just Trying to See Where I Actually Stand Compared to Others

2 hours ago 2

AJ Fabino

Sat, January 17, 2026 astatine 12:31 PM CST 5 min read

Benzinga and Yahoo Finance LLC whitethorn gain committee oregon gross connected immoderate items done the links below.

Quick Summary

By the numbers, idiosyncratic successful their aboriginal 40s with implicit $500,000 tucked distant are up of the mean for their property group. The mean 401(k) equilibrium for radical successful their 40s is astir $420,000, with a median person to $165,000.
But benchmarks lone reply portion of the question. If you privation to tally existent status scenarios based connected your age, contributions, and spending assumptions, you tin usage SmartAsset to get matched with a fiduciary fiscal advisor for free.
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A Reddit idiosyncratic successful their aboriginal 40s said they had a small implicit $500,000 successful a 401(k) and asked however that stacks up against peers. That instinct is common.

Federal Reserve information shows that lone astir 31% of non-retired adults judge their status savings are "on track," adjacent among radical who are actively saving. Uncertainty tends to persist good into mid-career, erstwhile balances commencement to look meaningful but the decorativeness enactment is inactive acold away.

So however does $500,000 successful a 401(k) successful your aboriginal 40s really stack up?

According to information from Empower, the mean 401(k) equilibrium for radical successful their 40s is $419,948, with a median equilibrium of $164,580. By that benchmark, a equilibrium northbound of $500,000 places idiosyncratic good supra some the mean and the midpoint for their property group.

Across each property groups, the mean 401(k) equilibrium is astir $335,000, with balances peaking successful the 50s earlier declining arsenic retirees statesman withdrawals. That discourse matters. Comparing yourself to a nationalist mean without adjusting for property tin distort the picture.

Empower's ain information shows wide gaps adjacent wrong property cohorts. Many radical successful their 40s person balances acold beneath the average, portion a smaller radical has accumulated overmuch more. Federal Reserve surveys reenforce this, showing that preparedness is uneven and heavy influenced by income, entree to leader plans, and consistency of contributions.