Couples with a big age gap need more money — they have to plan for two retirements

When one partner is more than a decade older than the other, the couple’s financial life can play out differently than it does for partners of similar ages. Rather than sharing a single retirement window, the older spouse will generally reach traditional retirement age years before the younger one, which can create periods when household income, benefits and expenses shift unevenly.

Because retirement timing may be staggered, couples should treat planning as covering two retirement phases: the period when only one partner is retired and the later period when both are. That approach affects how much the household needs to save, the sequence of withdrawals from retirement accounts, and how income sources are coordinated over time.

Other practical considerations follow from different retirement timing: who will cover health-care costs before Medicare eligibility, how long savings must last if one partner lives longer, and whether one spouse will reduce work to provide caregiving. These realities mean that budgeting, insurance coverage, and contingency plans can look different than they would for couples retiring together.

Because the financial picture for age-discrepant couples can be more complex, starting conversations early and creating a flexible plan helps partners anticipate gaps in income and rising costs across both retirement phases. Couples may find it useful to map expected income and expenses at each stage, and to revisit the plan as circumstances — health, jobs, and benefits — change over time.