Here Is How Long You Will Live In Retirement

One of the great mysteries of knowing how much money you will need in your retirement is knowing how long you will live after the day you call it quits in your work life. We do know that the average life expectancy of Americans is 79.11 for 2023, and, of course, we know that this is impacted by your sex, ethnicity and health.

But does that tell the whole story?

Life Expectancy After 65
Keep in mind life expectancy is greatly influenced by many factors, including epidemics and social factors. If a man is gunned down in his twenties it's going to impact the overall number, especially if it is a lot of men losing their lives too early. But if you live to age 65, then your life expectancy is probably looking well into your 80s, or more.

Cool Tool
Recently I stumbled across this forecast for anyone's particular life expectancy. Now, of course, this isn't a guarantee. How could it be? But answer a few simple questions and the analytics begin to kick in.

Blueprint Income has a life expectancy calculator based on you. Try it now! Here's what mine found.

Therefore, if I were to retire at age 65 I would choose to have enough inflation adjusted income to last me 324 months! So, as a plausible number to shoot for I'd take my expected monthly expenses in retirement and multiply them by 324 to get to the number I'd need.

Have a little fun and play with your number and let me know if it helps to give you clarity, or anxiety. Remember, planning is everything, the plan is nothing. Or so said General/President Eisenhower.