Americans without children may avoid some of the substantial costs associated with raising a family, but that does not necessarily translate into greater confidence about retirement. New research from insurance company Allianz Life has found that 54 percent of Americans who don't have children believe they can meet their retirement savings goal, compared with 72 percent of parents. The results suggest that while parents face expenses that can run into hundreds of thousands of dollars over the course of a child's upbringing, retirement preparedness may depend on more than simply having fewer financial obligations.
The 2026 Annual Retirement Study, conducted in January with 1,000 people age 25 and older, found a particularly wide gap in financial planning. Some 62 percent of respondents without children said they did not have a written financial plan, compared with 42 percent of parents. Among parents, confidence was highest among those with one or two children, at 74 percent, falling to 66 percent among those with three or more.
"It may seem counterintuitive that people without kids are less financially confident and more worried about retirement," Kelly LaVigne, the vice president of consumer insights at Allianz Life, said in a news release. "But not having children—and the expenses that come with kids—doesn't automatically mean you have a plan to save. Parenthood often forces tough conversations about money.
Without that catalyst, too many Americans may be moving forward without a strategy." Current expenses also weighed heavily on those without children, with 61 percent saying they could not think about saving for retirement because they were focused on covering day-to-day costs, compared with 53 percent of parents. Those without children were also more likely to worry that the cost of living, housing and long-term care would undermine their retirement. Parents nevertheless face sizable costs that can compete directly with retirement contributions.
Department of Agriculture's last estimate found that a middle-income, married couple with two children could expect to spend $233,610 to raise a child born in 2015 through age 17, or $284,570 after accounting for projected inflation assumptions. The calculation did not include college. Housing represented the largest share of spending, followed by food.
Child care and education costs accounted for the third largest share. Researchers at the Brookings Institution later updated that model to reflect higher inflation. Assuming inflation averaged 4 percent annually after 2020, they estimated that total expenditures for the same child could reach $310,605 by age 17.
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