How to start saving for retirement 🧓🏽

a step-by-step guide for freelancers and small business owners 🧮

This guide was written in collaboration with Freelancers Union. This post was originally published on the Freelancers Union blog on November 10, 2025.

With the cost of living, health insurance and taxes all rising, saving for retirement as a freelancer can feel impossible.

In part, that’s because as a freelancer or small business owner, you’re wholly responsible for creating your own retirement savings. Workers at large companies have some notable advantages in this area: many employers offer 401(k) or 403(b) accounts to full-time workers. This lets employees automatically contribute portions of every paycheck before that money hits their account. These contributions are often tax-free, and some match workers’ contributions up to a certain amount, too. The ‘set it and forget it’ elements of this process make it much easier for workers to invest in their future retirements.

Partly because of these obstacles, a 2019 study by the Pew Charitable Trust found that only 13% of self-employed workers in single-person businesses put money in their retirement accounts, compared to 72% of workers in companies that offer retirement plans. But freelancers need retirement savings, too.

The good news is the first few steps are the hardest, and after those are out of the way, freelancers can save for retirement in ways that are similar to corporate employees. If you’re a freelancer and you’re ready to begin saving for retirement today, here are five tips to help you get started:

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Microinvesting

Apps like Acorns and Qapital help you invest small amounts of money from your account into a Roth IRA (individual retirement account).Picture yourself back in the day, paying for a $4.25 coffee with $5 in cash instead of your phone or a card. The barista gives you 75 cents in change. When you got home, you’d drop your coins in a piggy bank that you used to gradually save up your change.

Microinvesting apps apply the same logic to digital payments. The automation makes retirement investing easier, similar to having money deducted from your corporate paycheck — plus, it’s satisfying to watch the small deposits pile up over time.One caveat: Acorns and Qapital will add up the small deposits and deduct them from your account once a week. As a financial coach who serves queer and trans people across the U.S., I have seen that many people who live paycheck to paycheck are at risk of overdrawing their accounts if Acorns takes an unexpected amount under $15 automatically. If you choose this method, make sure you have a solid buffer in your checking account to prevent overdraft fees. Check if the app is connected to a bank that is FDIC-insured, so that your deposits up to $250,000 are protected in case the app goes out of business. Most major banks are FDIC-insured.

Enroll in a state-sponsored IRA

If you’re self-employed or run a small business, you can open your own individual retirement account (IRA), which is a tax-advantaged account—meaning most contributions and investment gains are tax-deductible. Some states have auto-IRAs that allow workers who don’t have access to 401(k) through their employer to open state-sponsored retirement accounts.

As of October 2025,12 state-sponsored IRAs include freelancers and solopreneurs:

• California: CalSavers

• Colorado: SecureSavings

• Delaware: EARNS

• Illinois: Secure Choice

• Maine: The Maine Retirement Investment Trust (MERIT)

• Maryland: MarylandSaves

• New Jersey: RetireReady

• Nevada: Nevada Employee Savings Trust (NEST)

• New York: New York Secure Choice Savings Program

• Oregon: OregonSaves

• Vermont: Vermont Saves

• Virginia: RetirePath

Most of these states allow you to set up automated transfers from your checking account to your retirement account. As an added plus, you won’t need to roll over your benefits into a different IRA if you change jobs or gigs.

Open an IRA or a 401(k) using a brokerage account

A brokerage account allows people to invest in stocks, bonds, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and other investment vehicles. Some brokerages also allow you to open different types of IRAs:

• A traditional IRA lets you contribute and invest pre-tax dollars,. A traditional IRA is also tax-advantaged, which means contributing to a traditional IRA now may lower your taxable income. However, you’ll have to pay taxes when you make withdrawals in retirement, and any withdrawals you make if you are younger than 59 ½ are subject to an additional 10% federal tax. You also must take out specified amounts (called required minimum distributions, or RMDs) starting at age 72 even if you are still working.

• A Roth IRA lets you contribute and invest post-tax dollars, but you won’t have to pay taxes when you withdraw money in retirement. Unlike a traditional IRA, investing in a Roth IRA won’t lower your taxable income. Additionally, there are no RMDs with Roth IRAs.

• A rollover IRA is where people typically roll over their 401(k) balances from previous employers

• A SEP IRA allows you (as a sole proprietor or your own employer) to contribute up to 25% of your salary into your retirement account.

• A SIMPLE IRA is for employers with up to 100 employees — including freelancers and solo business owners. Unlike a SEP IRA, a SIMPLE IRA allows you (as your own employer) to match your own retirement contributions.

You can open your own IRA anytime through brokerage firms including:

• Charles Schwab

• Fidelity

• Vanguard

• Wealthfront

Freelancers and solopreneurs can also open their own 401(k)s:

• A solo 401(k) lets you contribute up to $70,000 annually (up to $77,500 if you’re over the age of 50) with tax advantages as a freelancer or solo business owner.

• Similar to a SIMPLE IRA, a SIMPLE 401(k) is for employers with up to 100 employees — including freelancers and solo business owners.

Talk to your accountant to find out which plan is best for you. Your accountant can also help you submit the right forms to the IRS when you’re ready to open an account.

Match your own 401(k) and IRA contributions

As we’ve mentioned, when you work for a company that offers a 401(k) match, the company may double your retirement contribution up to a certain percentage. For example, if your salary is $100,000 per year and you contribute 3%, you’ll deposit $3,000 in your retirement account over the course of the year. If your company matches your contribution, they’ll deposit an extra $3,000.

Freelancers can’t do this as easily, since we work for ourselves. But as a sole proprietor or single-owner LLC, you can set up your retirement accounts so that you, as your own employer, set up a company match for yourself as an employee.

Typically, freelancers take this step after paying off personal and business debts, building up ample savings for emergencies, and paying other contractors who support their business. It takes time to get to this point. Don’t rush yourself into using this option right now if you aren’t able to afford it. But consider it as a goal you can achieve down the line, and know that you can have a company match your retirement contributions as a freelancer.

Use the IRS contribution limits as a goalposts

There are a lot of retirement calculators that help you understand how much you need to invest annually to retire comfortably. Spoiler alert: It’s a high number, especially if you’re only getting started to invest in retirement in your 40’s and 50’s.

In my financial coaching practice, I see how overwhelming that big number can be for people. Instead of focusing on that, I suggest that folks use the IRS contribution limits as goalposts. For example, the Roth IRA contribution limit for 2026 is $7,500 per year for people under the age of 50. That’s a contribution of $625 per month.

If it feels like too much, try committing to 25% or 50% of the contribution limit. For example, 50% of the Roth IRA contribution limit for 2026 is $312.50 per month. You could even split this up into twice-a-month deposits of $156.25.

When it comes to saving and investing, forming the habit is more important than depositing a large amount upfront. Start small, try to go bigger, and watch your contributions grow. Before long, you’ll look back and be glad you took these first steps.