People often dream of the ability to work for themselves — setting their own hours, choosing projects they enjoy, working from anywhere, and pursuing other passions on the side. For many, this working arrangement leads to a much better work-life balance and less stress than they typically experience in traditional careers. However, despite having more control over their personal and professional lives, one thing doesn’t change — retirement planning.
Investing in your future financial well-being is critical no matter what you do for a living or how you work. For freelancers, pursuing multiple wealth management options is essential to ensure a comfortable, safe, and worry-free retirement.
If you’re transitioning to the freelance economy from the corporate world, you’ll miss out on employer-sponsored benefits like 401(k) matching — something you may feel uneasy about. Nevertheless, while you may be solely responsible for growing your retirement fund, you’ll have far more opportunities to invest and contribute to various accounts.
The State of Retirement in America
According to the Alliance for Lifetime Income, 4.1 million Americans will turn 65 annually through 2027 — about 11,200 daily. Historically, this milestone age marked retirement — the day when you could log out of your computer, pack your belongings, and sit back and relax on a beach somewhere. For many freelancers, 65 often comes and goes without fanfare.
Lower birth rates, demographic shifts, job shortages, and the continued fallout from the 2008 recession and COVID-19 pandemic have changed when and how people retire. However, the country’s 76 million Baby Boomers are retiring in droves — 10,000 daily. This has resulted in a 5%–10% labor gap, which, interestingly enough, has had a negative trickle-down effect on freelancers.
Self-employed individuals depend on a stable economy — a fluctuating workforce can change consumer behaviors, project demands, and rates and services, limiting opportunities for freelancers in niche industries. As a result, you must be doubly proactive in setting up and adjusting your retirement plans to remain financially secure.
Consider the costs of living as a retired individual in America. A 2022 Employee Benefit Research Institute brief finds nearly 50% of retirees spend under $2,000 monthly, while one in three spends $2,000 to $3,999. One-third of their savings usually go toward housing, followed by food expenses. Additionally, 27% of retirees admitted they spend more than they can afford. You must ask yourself whether you’ll be able to maintain your lifestyle, and if not, start creating and expanding your retirement portfolio.
What Challenges Do Freelancers Face When Retirement Planning?
Retirement has become somewhat of an unattainable luxury in the United States. Freelancers must strategize their financial futures carefully to enjoy their golden years rather than continue working through them. Of course, this is not without unique challenges along the way.
Aside from missing out on a 401(k), you’ll often contend with varying revenue streams. For example, a self-employed copywriter or editor may take project-based payments from clients. Seasonal work may be even more erratic — these jobs could include tax preparation services, content creation during the holiday season, or wedding photography.
The irregular income can make it difficult to save for retirement, let alone pay for essentials and debts. Financial planning for the future may require you to put away money only during high-earning periods. Likewise, you can add retirement savings to your monthly budget using a wealth management app with automatic transfers. Just be sure never to allocate more than you can afford — otherwise, you may be in a sticky monetary situation.
How to Evaluate Your Financial Health
Do you have a comprehensive understanding of your financial health? This requires assessing your income sources, monthly gains, and expenditures. Housing, health, and food costs are expected during your evaluation. However, you’ll likely notice areas to improve in saving money.
For example, you could be paying for subscription services you don’t use. Perhaps you don’t need multiple streaming services at all. You may also consider cutting back if you frequently buy coffee or go out to dinner.
Devise a plan to manage your cash flow. Your first allotment should go toward the essentials. Paying off credit cards, loans, and other debts is equally nonnegotiable, and you should aim to reduce these balances over time. Experts also recommend setting aside six months to a year’s funds for emergencies and unforeseen situations. Once you’ve considered everything, you’ll see how much you have left over for retirement contributions.
Setting Retirement Goals
Knowing where you stand financially will enable you to set long-term and short-term goals for your retirement journey. Freelancers must regularly reevaluate and budget themselves carefully to know where they stand.
Think about what you want your wealth to look like in the coming years and decades. Then, create contribution targets to get you where you want to be. Ideally, you’ll want to invest the maximum contribution amount annually and take advantage of as many tax benefits to freelancers as possible.
Like all goals, building a retirement plan is meant to be fluid. A financial consultant can help you adapt your economic strategy to your income and timeline as a self-employed person and advise you on wise investments.
These 9 Strategies Can Help You Save for Retirement
Saving for retirement might seem overwhelming when investments fall entirely on you. Fortunately, opportunities to build your wealth are boundless. These nine strategies can help you perch on a comfortable nest egg when you’re ready to enjoy the next chapter of your life.
1. Diversify Your Portfolio
Jump into retirement planning with the mindset of making multiple investments in varying assets. Diversifying your portfolio allows you to account for risks, boost performance, avoid economic unpredictability, and maintain long-term financial maturation. If one class of investments slumps, you can offset it with the others.
The earlier you start widening your retirement investment portfolio, the better. As a young freelancer, you can worry less when taking on more risk because there’s a chance it’ll return, meaning you can still reach your final destination. Conversely, you’ll want to step away from riskier pursuits so your savings will last you until the end of your life.
2. Contribute to an IRA or Roth IRA
Traditional individual retirement accounts (IRAs) and Roth IRAs are excellent retirement options for freelance workers.
Contributions to a traditional IRA account are tax-deductible, with accrued investments remaining tax-deferred until you withdraw them. The money will then be taxed at your income rate. A Roth IRA involves after-tax contributions for tax-free growth and withdrawals. This may offer more prospects for freelancers in higher tax brackets.
Both plans have annual contribution limits, which typically increase year-over-year. In 2024, the limit was $7,000, or $8,000 for those over 50. However, this is just the maximum — you can decide how much you want to contribute monthly based on what you feel comfortable putting away. A traditional IRA and a Roth IRA aren’t the only types of accounts you can open. Freelancers may also consider a simplified employee pension (SEP-IRA) and self-directed IRA to maximize their retirement earning potential.
SEP-IRA
Self-employed people and small business owners should look into a SEP-IRA, allowing higher contributions than other IRAs. The SEP-IRA is based on your annual income, in which you can put aside up to 25% — the ceiling limit for 2024 was $69,000.
These contributions are tax-deductible and tax-deferred, meaning you’ll pay taxes on withdrawals during retirement, similar to a traditional IRA.
Self-Directed IRA
A self-directed IRA follows the same contribution limitations and tax advantages as traditional or Roth IRAs, depending on how you set it up. However, you can use a self-directed IRA to invest in other buys, such as real estate, cryptocurrencies, and precious metals.
Although there are several benefits to this type of IRA, the guidelines are often complicated. As such, you’ll need to ensure you understand all tax constraints and implications set by the IRS. People who pursue a self-directed IRA should work alongside an adept financial advisor to make the soundest investment decisions.
3. Invest in Real Estate
Real estate has long been considered the gold standard of retirement investments. Freelancers may purchase a property and earn passive income by renting it out. Additionally, you’ll build equity the longer you hold onto it, giving you even more significant financial health and security when you retire.
The real estate market is unpredictable, especially amid today’s high interest rates. By August 2023, interest rates rose to 5.25% as the Federal Reserve aimed to reduce inflation. This also affected buyers’ mortgage payments, forcing them to pay back more monthly. Unfortunately, rates haven’t come down. As of January 2025, a 30-year fixed rate remained above 7%, mostly unchanged since October 2024.
Does this mean you should avoid real estate altogether? It’s still an excellent opportunity to diversify your portfolio. You need to time it well in terms of market conditions.
4. Purchase Annuities
Freelancers won’t receive a traditional pension when they work for themselves, so they might want to look into annuities. Annuities are steady income streams when you retire and are unmoved by market fluctuations.
You can customize annuities to your financial needs and wants during retirement. Available annuities — fixed, variable, indexed, immediate, and deferred — each have different benefits and risks for you to consider, including payout arrangements and flexible investment possibilities.
For example, fixed annuities are a guaranteed fixed interest rate. Conversely, deferred annuities allow you to put off payments until later on for monetary growth to occur tax-deferred.
5. Opt for an HSA
You may already know about health savings accounts (HSAs) if you have a high-deductible health plan. HSAs roll over each year, accumulating gains when they aren’t spent.
These plans deliver tax-deductible contributions and tax-free growth and withdrawals. Freelancers with HSAs can actually withdraw funds on any grounds after they turn 65 — a critical advantage for paying out-of-pocket health care costs. If you remove the funds before 65, you could be subject to income taxes and other penalties.
6. Open Taxable Investment Accounts
Taxable investment accounts for self-employed people range from individual stocks to mutual funds, bonds, and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Mutual funds and ETFs are similar in allowing you to buy into mixed assets with a single investment. The real difference is ETFs trade on stock exchanges.
Taxable investment accounts can help supplement emergency funds and other financial needs in retirement. They also provide liquidity, enabling access to the money without limitations and fines.
7. Delay Social Security Benefits
Freelancers who reach retirement age can begin collecting social security but can also delay it. Delaying your social security benefits could be a strategic advantage to increase your retirement income. The longer you put off collecting, the more sufficient your financial cushion will be later on.
According to the Social Security Administration, you can delay receiving social security payments until you turn 70, but you should stay updated on new laws and regulations around these rules. This will help you make more informed decisions about when to start claiming the money.
8. Consider Passive Income
When you retire, you may still find ways to earn passive income from your passions. For instance, you may begin crafting as a hobby and sell your creations. These side hustles can boost your retirement savings and enhance your financial standing.
If you’re a freelance writer, a blog could present opportunities to make money through monetization, like affiliate marketing. It’s an excellent way to keep your skills sharp and tap into your creativity even after you’ve stopped freelancing full-time.
9. Revisit and Reassess Your Retirement Plan
Different circumstances may arise throughout your career, forcing you to reassess your retirement plan. If freelance jobs are hard to come by or an injury has kept you out of work, you may need to pause your contributions to your accounts.
There will also be certain times in your life when big life purchases are unavoidable. For instance, in your 30s, you may buy your first house or car or have student loans to pay off. Many people also raise their children at this age, which costs about $17,000 annually per child.
Reviewing your wealth management plan is essential to your future financial well-being. Even the nuances of your investment strategy—revenue sources, spending habits, goals, and portfolio overall—may need adjusting to maximize your savings.
Hiring a Financial Advisor: Should You Do It?
A financial advisor can be pricey if you’re on a tight budget, but if you can afford their fees, it would benefit you to visit one. Advisors give expert financial advice, allowing you to easily overcome complications, make wise investments, and navigate confusing tax regulations. They have access to tools and resources to help you optimize your approach to protecting your funds for the future.
Professionals will customize a comprehensive retirement plan based on your financial situation as a freelancer, your retirement objectives, and the associated risks. These plans can also pertain to current financial situations and goals, such as saving for a house or paying for school.
Most importantly, financial advisors have invaluable knowledge about market volatility, the latest investment options, and changing policies. Even if you cannot consult with a financial advisor early in your career, you should make an appointment with one as you near retirement. They can then review where you stand and help you get where you need to be.
Online Platforms and Other Alternatives
If you can’t afford a financial advisor, the next best thing is to utilize online platforms for retirement planning. There are endless applications and online resources for budgeting expenses, setting aside assets for later, and analyzing available investment opportunities.
Knowing what you’ll need to live comfortably after your working years is a good place to start. A retirement calculator allows you to input your current income, age, monthly contributions, and more to determine your monthly budget post-career. Revisit this calculator as your income and investments change to see if you remain on track.
Robo advisors are another option for freelance investors. These platforms typically cost less than traditional advisors and provide automated portfolio management. It’s essential to weigh the pros and cons of each robo advisor you’re considering to determine which is best. Some may offer automated investments, customizable plans, cryptocurrency options, and low investment expense ratios. Others could require an account minimum and lack tax-loss harvesting, which may not appeal to you.
Read about retirement plans and investments online and attend personal finance workshops. Your community may also offer low-cost in-person seminars or financial planning assistance. Freelancer forums are another great place to connect with your peers and learn how they are readying their finances for the future.
Retire With Financial Reassurance as a Freelancer
Freelancing is vastly different from working for someone else, and with it comes a different approach to saving for retirement. You should prioritize building a comfortable nest egg as you prepare for your next life stage. Save as much money as possible and direct your income to retirement accounts so you have something to fall back on.
Featured Image Credit: Photo by Pixabay; Pexels
