More Americans Are Retiring Alone—Here's What That Means Financially

The traditional retirement roadmap assumes a partner by your side—someone to share expenses, coordinate benefits, and step in as caregiver. But a growing share of Americans are navigating later life solo. In 2019, the Pew Research Center found that 38% of adults aged 25 to 54 were neither married nor living with a partner, up sharply from 28% in 1990. The trend has also flipped along gender lines: men are now more likely to be single than women, reversing past patterns.

For singles, retirement planning requires a distinctly different playbook. Without a second income to cushion job loss or a spouse to serve as the first backstop in a health crisis, key financial levers—emergency funds, investment allocations, Social Security timing, long-term care arrangements, and estate plans—carry heightened stakes. Morningstar’s director of personal finance, Christine Benz, argues that singles must be both more conservative and, paradoxically, more aggressive than their married counterparts.

The Financial Calculus Single Retirees Can't Afford to Ignore

Why Emergency Cushions Matter More for Singles

If you are the sole earner, a job disruption hits your household finances with full force. Benz advises singles to maintain a larger emergency reserve—typically enough to cover six to twelve months of essential expenses, well above the three-to-six-month rule of thumb for dual-income households. This buffer reduces the pressure to sell investments at an inopportune time or rush into a less-than-ideal job.

The Investment Paradox for Solo Earners

Because you are the only contributor to your retirement accounts, your portfolio must grow enough to sustain you alone. That means embracing a higher equity allocation during your working years—taking the risk that a dual-earner couple might split. The silver lining, Benz notes, is that you don’t have to reconcile your risk tolerance with a partner’s; you can set the dial yourself. She recommends target-date funds or managed accounts to maintain that aggressive-but-appropriate equity exposure throughout the accumulation phase.

Social Security: Delaying vs. Spousal Benefits

For someone who is single and has never been married, the math is straightforward: delay claiming as long as possible, ideally to age 70, to maximize an inflation-protected, lifelong income stream. That larger monthly check reduces the burden on your portfolio and insures against outliving your savings. Widowed or divorced singles, however, face a more complex decision. They must weigh their own benefit against survivor or ex-spousal benefits—and a combination may be possible. Crucially, divorced individuals are only eligible for a former spouse’s benefit if the marriage lasted at least ten years.

Long-Term Care: No Spousal Backstop

In partnered households, the well spouse often provides informal care—help with meals, dressing, or finances—delaying the need for paid assistance. Singles lack that first line of defense. Benz urges every single person to have a concrete long-term-care plan, whether that means purchasing insurance, earmarking assets for self-funding, or understanding what government resources are available. Clarifying which category you fall into helps define how much you can safely spend from your portfolio.

Estate Planning: Choosing Agents as You Age

Without a spouse to act as power of attorney or executor, singles must deliberately name trusted agents. A common pitfall is naming a sibling who is aging right alongside you. Benz suggests reviewing and updating those documents regularly—perhaps appointing a younger relative or even a paid professional fiduciary who may be better equipped to handle financial decisions and spot signs of cognitive decline.

Seven Concrete Steps Single Retirees Should Take Now

  • Fortify your emergency fund. Aim for six to 12 months of living expenses in a liquid account to cover sudden job loss or disability without derailing your retirement plan.
  • Go harder on equities while employed. As the sole contributor, maintain a high-equity portfolio during your accumulation years; a target-date fund or managed account can keep the allocation on track.
  • Delay Social Security if never married. Waiting until age 70 locks in the largest possible inflation-adjusted benefit, reducing the strain on your investments later.
  • Weigh spousal options if widowed or divorced. Compare your own benefit against survivor or ex-spousal benefits—get professional guidance, especially if your marriage lasted over ten years, as a combination strategy may be available.
  • Formalize a long-term-care strategy. Decide whether you will rely on insurance, self-fund, or need government assistance; your choice directly affects your safe spending rate.
  • Revisit estate planning documents. Don't let an aging sibling remain your power of attorney indefinitely—consider a younger relative or a paid fiduciary to manage affairs if you become incapacitated.
  • Enlist a fee-only financial planner. Even savvy DIY investors benefit from a professional who can step in during hospitalizations, flag cognitive decline, and ensure bills are paid.