Background: From the beginning to the end of the 20th century, nearly 30 years were added to life expectancy in the U.S., from 47 years in 1900 to nearly 77 years in 2000. Today, a woman who reaches 65 can expect to live an additional 20 years, and one in every three 65-year-olds today will live past 90 (Stanford Center on Longevity). This week’s Research Minute highlights the unique challenges facing women across longer lifespans and is a complement to the latest RRC Pod podcast on the topic of women and longevity.

Findings: Americans are experiencing longer lifespans, and the life expectancy for women is projected to reach their mid-to-late eighties (see Figure 1 from the current Census Population Report).

Half of the babies born today can anticipate living to the age of 100, leading to the emergence of the terms “100-year lives” or "century-long lives" (Stanford Center on Longevity). The advent of 100-year lifespans underscores the need for women to carefully strategize their retirement finances due to their distinct challenges. Today, women retire with about 30% less wealth than men (World Economic Forum). Increased longevity emphasizes the importance of adequate retirement savings, with only half of Americans having access to employer-sponsored retirement savings plans (AARP).

Bottom Line: In the span of a century, we have witnessed a remarkable increase in longevity. Gender-based wage gaps, interrupted career trajectories due to caregiving responsibilities, and disparities in wealth accumulation underscore the unique implications of longer lifespans for women. Women need to strategize their financial planning to account for these factors and to ensure that they will have financial security in a retirement that could last for 10, 20, or 30 or more years.

Listen to the latest RRC Pod featuring Ashwini Apte, BlackRock, and Dominika Turkcan, DCIIA RRC, to learn more about the topic. You can also join the conversation on LinkedIn.