Retirement planning has traditionally been the province of financial advisors specializing in the area, finance gurus and brick-and-mortar investment specialists.
Now, however, the average person has access to a variety of information not only via search engine results (screened for authenticity and veracity) but also through engagement with sophisticated artificial intelligence (AI) models, such as ChatGPT, Grok and Gemini.
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GOBankingRates asked each model “How much money will I need to retire in 2030, assuming I am an average American?” Each model provided different ranges of desired retirement savings alongside other conditional factors.
ChatGPT provided the most concise retirement planning response by far, looking at a retirement age of 65 as the standard benchmark and a life expectancy of 85.
It cited the current average spending in retirement for households headed by a U.S. senior citizen at $55,000 as of 2024, reliant upon Bureau of Labor Statistics data. However, when queried about that data, it was able to provide only a figure of $54,975 for 2022 and $57,866 for 2023 — a reminder to always take large language model data with a pinch of salt and crosscheck answers. In 2025, that figure is likely to be closer to over $60,000 based on that growth rate.
In any case, ChatGPT settled on a range of between $900,000 and $1.1 million saved by 2030 in order to enjoy a middle-class lifestyle while also relying at least partially on Social Security benefits, assuming a 4% withdrawal rate from your personal savings.
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By contrast, Grok provided a long and nuanced response when the question was posed, pointing to a median household income of about $74,580 (as of 2022) and expected spend of between $58,800 and $67,200 throughout retirement.
In the end, Grok indicated that a savings range of $820,000 to $1.03 million was appropriate, or $1.2 million to $1.65 million for those residing in a high-cost region.
The model also suggested that a significant savings gap currently existed ($87,000 versus the above target), meaning that retirement was imperiled for most Americans looking to spend their golden years comfortably. It also gestured toward a potential 17% decrease in Social Security benefits tied to the program’s insolvency issues.
