Those final years leading up to retirement are both exciting and complex. You may be at your peak earning power, balancing leadership responsibilities, family priorities, and long-term financial decision- all while starting to map out your real retirement timeline.
For many high-earning women, retiring in their 50s or 60s is an achievable goal. However, preparing for a lifetime of financial independence requires a plan and strategy that reflects your lifestyle, potential longevity, and future needs. The earlier you clarify your numbers and your options, the more flexibility and confidence you’ll have as you approach this next chapter.
Here are a few important considerations to make as retirement starts coming into view.
How Much Will You Need to Retire in Your 50s or 60s?
There is no “magic number” that guarantees a comfortable retirement at any age. Rather, you’ll need to estimate your anticipated expenses based on your spending patterns, lifestyle expectations, healthcare needs, and the kind of flexibility you want in your later years.
You may find it helpful to estimate your anticipated retirement expenses based on your current lifestyle. From there, try applying general planning guidelines to serve as a starting point. For example, the 4% rule suggests it’s safe to withdraw roughly 4% of your portfolio annually, while the 25x rule recommends multiplying your annual expenses by 25. Keep in mind these are not hard and fast retirement rules that work for everyone, but they do offer a useful baseline for early modeling.
If you’re planning to retire before “traditional” retirement age (say 65), you’ll also want to account for timing gaps around benefits. For example, you won’t be eligible for Medicare until age 65, meaning you may need to pay more for marketplace healthcare coverage or rethink your retirement timeline to account for coverage needs. You also won’t have access to Social Security until age 62, though benefits increase monthly if you wait until age 70 to start collecting. Remember: it pays to wait until at least your full retirement age to take Social Security to avoid reducing your monthly benefit! Some employer plans and pensions have age-based access rules to account for as well.
The important takeaway here is to build a retirement timeline that accounts for your existing resources, what you’ll have access to later, and what potential hurdles may require additional planning.
Take Advantage of Catch-Up Contributions
Beginning at age 50, you’re allowed to contribute beyond the standard annual limits to certain retirement accounts, including 401(k)s and IRAs.
Having the opportunity to make extra tax-advantaged retirement savings can be especially valuable for women who paused or reduced contributions earlier in their careers (say, if they took time out of work to caregive or otherwise support their family). Catch-up provisions can help women close those gaps at a time when their income is often at its highest.
Contribution limits are adjusted periodically for inflation, and enhanced catch-up provisions now apply to certain workers in their early 60s. In 2026, the normal catch-up contribution is $8,000, which brings the annual contribution limit up to $32,500. However, for those who are between the ages of 60 and 63, the higher catch-up contribution limit is $11,250 (totaling $35,750).1
The IRS has also implemented new requirements (starting January 2026) for high earners making catch-up contributions. Starting this year, if your wages from the prior year exceeded $150,000, your catch-up contributions will need to be made on a Roth basis.
Consider if a Coast FIRE Retirement Works for You
There is no one way to do retirement, and the “traditional” route might not be for you. For some women, gradually phasing into retirement offers a better balance of purpose, income, and flexibility. If you’ve been a diligent saver and investor, you may be able to explore other options for transitioning to retirement, say through a Coast FIRE strategy.
You achieve a Coast FIRE by reaching a point where your invested assets, if left to grow without additional contributions, are projected to fund your future retirement. Once you reach that milestone, you may be able to “coast” by covering your current living expenses through lighter or more flexible work, without needing to continue aggressive retirement savings.
This approach can work well for women with strong early savings habits, substantial portfolios, or lower projected retirement spending needs. If you’re interested in transitioning professionally towards consulting, board work, part-time leadership roles, or passion-driven projects, “coasting” to retirement may make the most sense.
Just keep in mind, this method doesn’t work for everyone. If your retirement projections are tight, your spending needs are high, or market volatility would significantly disrupt your plan, a Coast FIRE path may introduce too much risk.
Reassess Risk Often
When you were still decades away from retirement, you had plenty of time to recover from major market downturns, recessions, and general volatility. But as the timeline towards financial independence shortens, your ability to handle risk drops as well.
The closer you come to needing to withdraw from your portfolio and savings, the more risk-aware you need to be. Gradually, your priorities will shift from long-term, growth-focused investing to preservation and longevity.
One of the biggest risks to manage in this phase is called “sequence of returns” risk. This refers to the danger of experiencing poor market returns in the early years of retirement while simultaneously taking withdrawals. Losses combined with distributions can put disproportionate pressure on a portfolio and reduce its long-term sustainability. You can help reduce this risk by adjusting your portfolio’s asset allocation, building cash reserves, and creating a withdrawal strategy.
Another Tip? Build Your Retirement Dream Team
Your retirement is too important to manage alone, especially when you’re already balancing competing priorities at home and in the office. Working with a knowledgeable advisory team can help you model scenarios, stress-test your plan, and adjust as your goals evolve.
If you’d like to learn more about preparing for your next phase, we encourage you to schedule a conversation with our team today. Together, we’ll explore opportunities to build a retirement plan around your values, priorities, and goals for the future.
Sources:
1www.irs.gov/newsroom/401k-limit-increases-to-24500-for-2026-ira-limit-increases-to-7500
FAQs:
- How much do I need to retire in my 50s or 60s?
There’s no universal “magic number.” Your retirement needs depend on your spending patterns, lifestyle expectations, healthcare costs, and desired flexibility. General guidelines like the 4% rule (withdrawing 4% of your portfolio annually) or the 25x rule (multiplying annual expenses by 25) can serve as a starting point, but your plan should reflect your unique situation and goals. - What benefits should I plan around if I retire before 65?
If you retire before traditional retirement age, you’ll need to account for timing gaps. You won’t be eligible for Medicare until age 65, which means budgeting for marketplace health coverage. Social Security isn’t available until age 62, though your benefit increases if you wait until 70. We typically don’t advise that retirees take Social Security before their full retirement age due to the reduced benefits that come with taking your benefit early. Some employer plans and pensions also have age-based access rules to factor into your timeline. - What is Coast FIRE, and is it right for me?
Coast FIRE is a retirement strategy where you’ve saved enough that your investments, left to grow without additional contributions, are projected to fund your future retirement. Once you reach that point, you can “coast” by covering current expenses through lighter or more flexible work. This approach works well for women with strong early savings habits who want to transition toward consulting, board work, or passion projects. However, if your projections are tight or your spending needs are high, it may introduce too much risk.
