The data indicate that it is quite rare to have $1MM at (roughly) the retirement age (fewer than 20% of those aged 65 have that amount[1]). It may seem like 20%

The data indicate that it is quite rare to have $1MM at (roughly) the retirement age (fewer than 20% of those aged 65 have that amount[1]). It may seem like 20% is "common" or even "infrequent," but it's not: it's rare. Moreover, the median SE salary is just below $100k/year[2]. It's uncommon (certainly not rare but uncommon) for a SE to be able to have a sustained savings rate necessary to achieve $1MM by retirement. So maybe "peddling a fantasy" is a bit strong, but it's not exactly wrong. For most software engineers (over 50%) it simply is not a realistic scenario. [1] https://personalfinancedata.com/networth-percentile-calculator/?min_age=67&max_age=&networth=1000000#results https://personalfinancedata.com/networth-percentile-calculat... [2] https://personalfinancedata.com/income-percentiles-by-occupation-and-education-level/Software-Developers-Applications-and-Systems-Software/ https://personalfinancedata.com/income-percentiles-by-occupa...