Several financial companies, including life insurance company Northwestern Mutual, are saying there's a "magic number" that you'll need in addition to Social Security benefits in order to have a comfortable retirement, and that sweet spot is $1.5 million.
It sounds like a nice tidy sum, but as with everything else about money, it depends on how you use it, as financial advisor Bill Dendy puts it.
Where you spend your retirement can be more important than how much you have to finance your retirement, for instance, he says.
"So those people who are retiring to California, with the cost of housing they end up with a box for what they got for their five-bedroom home in Texas."
Texas has no state income tax, and that's a big plus -- meaning your money will go further if you're in the Lone Star State.
"And the cost of living as it applies to retirees is going the be the property tax."
Property Taxes can be high, especially in cities, but one can always take the more carefree route of renting a place to live, and of course there's the dream some have of buying that RV and hitting the road.
So "$1.5 million may be a great national number, but that depends on what resources you have to work with."
That's when it's time to look closely at the details of what you might want in retirement: Some people want to travel the world, some want to just stay at home. Some people have barely been able to save enough for retirement, others have his-and-hers Social Security, pensions and inheritances in addition to work with.
"It requires careful thought," Dendy says. Reaching the goal, whatever the number, is just a starting point.