Something shifts in your fifties. For decades, "retirement" was a word on a form — a someday so far off it barely felt real. Then one day you do the math and realize it's not decades away anymore. It's about ten years out. Close enough to see, close enough to plan, and close enough that the choices you make now genuinely move the outcome.
This is the runway — the final approach. Here's what belongs on your checklist.
1. Turn on catch-up contributions
Once you hit 50, the government lets you save extra in your retirement accounts, and this is the decade to use it. For 2026, the IRS allows a base 401(k) contribution of $24,500, plus:
- An extra $8,000 if you're 50 or older — a total of $32,500.
- An extra $11,250 if you're age 60 to 63 — a total of $35,750.
These are your highest-earning, lowest-distraction years for saving. If you can push contributions up, this is the moment it matters most.
2. Build the healthcare bridge to 65
Here's the gap that catches people off guard: Medicare generally doesn't start until you turn 65. Your initial enrollment window opens around your 65th birthday and runs for seven months. So if you want to retire at 62 or 63, you need a plan to cover health insurance for those in-between years — through a marketplace plan, a spouse's coverage, or retiree benefits. Health coverage is often the single biggest thing standing between people and an earlier retirement, so figure it out early.
3. Nail down your Social Security timing
When you claim Social Security has a permanent effect on the size of your check. According to the Social Security Administration, your "full retirement age" is 67 if you were born in 1960 or later. You can claim as early as 62, but your benefit is permanently reduced; wait past full retirement age and it grows. There's no single right answer — it depends on your health, savings, and whether you're still working — but it's a decision to make on purpose, not by default.
4. Put a real date on it — then test it
Vague goals produce vague results. Pick a target retirement age and run the numbers against it:
- Estimate your income. Add up what Social Security, any pension, and sustainable withdrawals from your savings would actually provide.
- Estimate your expenses. What will your life actually cost — including healthcare, which tends to rise?
- Compare the two. If there's a gap, you've just found it while you still have a decade to close it.
5. Clear debt off the runway
Heading into retirement with a smaller pile of fixed bills makes every other number easier. Where you can, aim to knock out high-interest debt — and ideally your mortgage — before the paychecks stop, so your retirement income stretches further.
The last ten years of work are where a comfortable retirement is won or lost. Max the catch-up contributions, solve the healthcare-to-65 gap, make Social Security a deliberate choice, and put a real, tested date on the calendar. Specific beats someday.
Your first step today
Pick a target retirement age — an actual number — and write down the three income sources you'll rely on: Social Security, any pension, and your savings. Even a rough estimate tells you whether you're on track or need to adjust while there's still plenty of runway left.