Ask most people what scares them most, and you might expect answers like spiders, plane crashes, or death. But for many Americans in 2025, the real fear isn’t dying, it’s going broke.
According to a new Allianz Life survey, 64 percent of Americans fear outliving their assets more than death itself. The 2025 Annual Retirement Study involved surveying 1,000 adults aged 25 and above who earn $50,000 and upwards annually.
The Real American Nightmare
The survey revealed the concern about money crosses all age groups, with 70 percent of Gen X confessed to being more terrified of running out of money than death. Millennials followed at 66 percent and boomers at 61 percent.
The smaller number among the boomers makes sense. Most of them are already retired and better aware of how their finances look.
But among the youngest generations, particularly the ones with increasing living expenses, student loans, and an unsure future in front of them, retirement is less of a milestone and more like an abstraction.
What’s behind the fear?
Allianz’s top three culprits are inflation, low payouts on Social Security, and taxes that are too high.
With the cost of basic needs such as food and housing still elevated, and trust in Social Security diminishing, the fear of financial decline extends far beyond the realm of the elderly. And this is not some niche concern.
Whether saving for retirement or just wanting to be able to pay rent, Americans are seeing their financial cushions grow thinner year by year.
Talking the Talk but Not Walking the Talk
Not how prevalent the fear is, but the number of people actively dealing with it remains limited. Just 23 percent of Americans talked with a financial professional about their worries this year, down from 28 percent in the prior year.
Even more significantly, 62 percent confess that they’re saving less than they’d like to. The explanations are painfully recurrent: everyday needs, credit card repayments, and debt on the house. Many just can’t afford to put aside anything for the future.
Among active doers, the most popular approaches involve making higher retirement plans, reducing costs, and planning to work longer before retirement.
Prudent measures, though they may be, also indicate how far the average citizen’s faith in the conventional notion of the “retirement at 65” has diminished.
Experts Assert the Solution Lies in Strategy
Allianz Life’s vice president of consumer insights, Kelly LaVigne, describes the concern in broader terms than having sufficient funds to conserve.
“With Americans living longer in retirement and facing risks like market volatility, creating a financial strategy so that your money lasts your lifetime is a daunting task.”
He stressed the point that the successful retirement plan isn’t putting money aside, but developing a steady, dependable source you can count on for the long term. Without long-term planning, even a sound savings account disappears sooner than anticipated.
More Than a Money Problem
The notion Americans dread financial destruction more than death tells us everything we must comprehend regarding the nation’s economy and national psyche. Money to many equates to security, autonomy, and dignity.
The loss of all this is more than an economic loss; it’s an existential loss. Though death is inevitable, running out of funds seems like something that is preventable.
According to LaVigne, planning for retirement is about thinking beyond the balance in your bank account. It’s about creating a lasting financial life because for most Americans, the idea of outliving their savings is the one fear that refuses to go away.
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