Total US retirement assets climbed to $49.1 trillion at the end of December 31, rising 2.1% from the end of September and up 11.2% for the year, according to new data from the Investment Company Institute.
Retirement assets represented a third of all household financial assets in the US at the end of December 2025, the institute said, reflecting how closely market performance and contributions can shape the retirement balance sheet that advisors monitor across client households.
ICI's Q4 2025 data snapshot showed individual retirement accounts were still the largest bucket, totaling $19.2 trillion at the end of the fourth quarter, a 1.7% increase from the end of the third quarter. Defined contribution plan assets also rose 1.7% over the quarter to $14.2 trillion.
Government defined benefit plans – including federal, state and local plans – held $10.0 trillion, up 4.5% from Sept. 30. Private-sector DB plans held $3.1 trillion, and annuity reserves outside retirement accounts accounted for another $2.6 trillion.
A separate data release by LIMRA confirmed a new high bar in annuity sales last year, with $117.2 billion of the $464.1 billion annual haul coming in the fourth quarter – the ninth straight quarter of sales exceeding $100 billion.
“Favorable economic conditions, expanded distribution, and growing investor demand for protected lifetime income have propelled the annuity market in recent years," said Bryan Hodgens, senior vice president and head of LIMRA research, pointing to the ongoing trend of 4.1 million Americans turning 65 each year.
Within employer-based defined contribution plans, Americans held $14.2 trillion on Dec. 31, including $10.1 trillion in 401(k) plans, ICI said.
Other slices of the defined contribution market included $880 billion in other private-sector defined contribution plans, $1.5 trillion in 403(b) plans, $550 billion in 457 plans and $1.1 trillion in the Federal Employees Retirement System’s Thrift Savings Plan.
The report also underscored how heavily 401(k) lineups continue to lean on mutual funds. Mutual funds managed $5.8 trillion, or 57%, of 401(k) assets at the end of December 2025. By fund type, equity funds held $3.4 trillion, followed by $1.6 trillion in hybrid funds, including target-date funds.
Joint research by the Investment Company Institute and ISS Market Intelligence earlier this month pointed to employer behavior as a key variable in 401(k) outcomes. More than 90% of large plans, generally defined as those with 100 participants or more, offer employer contributions, and large plans offer 29 investment options on average, the report said.
“American companies are empowering their workers to save for retirement with employer contributions, diverse investment options, and falling plan fees,” said Shelly Antoniewicz, ICI chief economist. “401(k) plans are crucial for private-sector workers’ retirement security, with about 70 million active participants and millions of retirees benefiting.”
IRA assets stood at $19.2 trillion, with 39% of that total invested in mutual funds. Equity funds accounted for $4.3 trillion of IRA mutual fund holdings, followed by $1.2 trillion in hybrid funds.
Across IRAs and defined contribution plans, mutual funds represented $14.7 trillion, or 44%, of assets. Mutual funds were also held through variable annuities, with mutual fund assets in variable annuities outside retirement plans totalling $1.4 trillion at the end of December.
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