Are you on track for a comfortable retirement? As physicians, our financial journey looks different from most professionals. While we earn higher incomes, we start our careers later, often carrying substantial student loan debt. This unique situation means the standard retirement savings benchmarks don’t quite fit our path.

The Physician’s Financial Timeline

Most traditional retirement advice assumes people start saving in their mid-20s. But let’s be real – at 25, many of us were still buried in medical textbooks or working long residency hours for modest pay. By the time we start earning “physician salaries” in our early to mid-30s, our non-medical peers might already have a decade of retirement savings.

Retirement Savings Targets for Physicians

Here’s a more realistic set of retirement savings benchmarks for physicians:

• By age 40 (about 5-7 years into practice): Aim for 1 to 2 times your annual income. For a physician earning $300,000, that’s $300,000 to $600,000 saved for retirement.
• By age 45: Target 3 to 4 times your annual income. This acceleration reflects your ability to save more substantially after paying down student loans.
• By age 50: Work toward 5 to 7 times your annual income. By this point, many physicians have cleared major debts and can maximize savings.
• By age 55: Shoot for 7 to 10 times your annual income. This range accounts for different specialties and practice situations.
• By age 60: Aim for 10 to 13 times your annual income. This higher multiple compensates for our later start.
• By retirement (typically age 65-70): Target 13 to 18 times your annual income. This higher multiplier accounts for the higher standard of living many physicians maintain.

Why Physicians Need More Savings

We need higher savings multiples than the general population for several reasons:

• Later start to serious saving: Those years of training mean we begin significant retirement contributions nearly a decade later than other professionals.
• Higher standard of living: Many physicians become accustomed to a lifestyle that requires more savings to maintain in retirement.
• Less benefit from Social Security: Because of our higher incomes, Social Security will replace a smaller percentage of our pre-retirement earnings compared to average earners.
• Longer life expectancy: As health professionals, we often live longer than average, meaning our retirement savings need to last longer too.

Getting on Track: Practical Steps for Physicians

Feeling behind? Don’t worry – our higher incomes give us powerful catch-up abilities:

• Maximize tax-advantaged accounts first: Contribute the maximum to your 401(k), 403(b), or government 457 plan. In 2025, that’s $23,000 per year, plus an additional $7,500 if you’re over 50.
• Consider a backdoor Roth IRA: Even with a high income, this strategy allows you to contribute to a Roth IRA.
• Explore defined benefit plans: If you own your practice, these plans allow for significant tax-deferred savings.
• Look into health savings accounts (HSAs): These offer triple tax advantages and can serve as another retirement vehicle.
• Accelerate savings after debts are paid: Once student loans are cleared, redirect those payment amounts to retirement savings.
• Maintain reasonable lifestyle inflation: The jump from resident to attending salary is substantial. Try to save at least half of your post-residency income increase.

The Power of Physician Income

The good news is that our higher incomes give us a significant advantage once we start saving seriously. A physician who begins saving 20-30% of their income at age 35 can catch up to recommended benchmarks surprisingly quickly.

For example, a physician earning $300,000 who saves $75,000 annually (25%) will accumulate over $1 million in just 10 years, assuming a 7% average return. That’s not including any employer contributions or the compounding that occurs over time.

Beyond the Numbers

Remember that these benchmarks are guidelines, not rigid rules. Your personal retirement needs depend on many factors:

• Your desired lifestyle in retirement
• Whether you plan to work part-time in your later years
• Geographic location and cost of living
• Expected healthcare costs
• Legacy and inheritance goals
• Debt situation approaching retirement

Take Action Today

No matter where you stand compared to these benchmarks, the most important step is to assess your current situation and develop a plan:

• Calculate your current savings rate as a percentage of income
• Project your savings at your current rate to see if you’ll reach your goals
• Identify opportunities to increase your savings rate
• Consider consulting with a financial advisor who specializes in working with physicians

Remember, even small increases in your savings rate can have dramatic effects over time. Increasing your savings by just 3-5% of your income could mean hundreds of thousands of additional dollars by retirement.

The journey to retirement security for physicians starts later but can accelerate quickly. With intentional planning and our significant earning power, we can build substantial retirement savings despite our delayed start. The key is to start focusing on retirement savings as early in your career as possible, even while balancing student loans and other financial priorities.

Where do you stand compared to these physician-specific benchmarks? Are you on track, behind, or ahead? Whatever your situation, now is the perfect time to review your retirement strategy and make adjustments to secure your financial future.

This post is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Always conduct thorough research and consult with financial professionals before making investment decisions.

About the Author: Dr. BWMD is a practicing physician and parent who writes about the intersection of medicine and personal finance. When not seeing patients or writing about physician finances, he enjoys spending time with his family and teaching the next generation of medical professionals about the importance of financial wellness.