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203 articles on TSP rules, benchmarks, strategy, pensions and taxes, plus a daily TSP market recap.
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15 articles
Demographics & Benchmarks
Average TSP Balance in Your 20s: Where Most People Start
Maya was 26, three years into a job at a federal agency, when a coworker mentioned his TSP balance over lunch. She went back to her desk, logged in for the first time in a year, and saw $14,200. Her first reaction was a ...
5 min · 2026-08-16
Demographics & Benchmarks
TSP Balances in Your 30s: The Decade Compounding Starts to Show
Maya is 34, a GS-11 in a regional office, and she only logs into her TSP account because a coworker mentioned his balance over lunch. His number made her curious. Hers is $52,000. She opens a retirement calculator, sees ...
5 min · 2026-08-12
Demographics & Benchmarks
What a Typical TSP Looks Like in Your 40s
Dana is 44, a GS-12 at a regional office, and she opened her TSP statement last weekend for the first time in about two years. The balance read $138,000. She stared at it, did some rough math in her head, and then texted...
5 min · 2026-08-10
Demographics & Benchmarks
TSP Balances in Your 50s: Catch-Up Season
Dana is 53, a GS-13 at a federal agency, and she just opened her TSP statement for the first time in over a year. The balance reads $310,000. Her first reaction is relief. Her second, about thirty seconds later, is a nag...
5 min · 2026-08-07
Demographics & Benchmarks
TSP in Your 60s: Benchmarks on the Edge of Retirement
Marcus is 61, a GS-13 with 29 years of service, and he has just opened his TSP statement. The balance reads $612,000. A coworker told him over lunch that he needs a million to retire. Another said half that is plenty. By...
5 min · 2026-08-02
Demographics & Benchmarks
Civilian vs. Uniformed Services TSP Balances Compared
Two neighbors, both 38, both at the same backyard cookout. One is a GS-12 with a Defense Department agency. The other is a Master Sergeant with 18 years in. The conversation drifts to retirement accounts, and the sergean...
5 min · 2026-08-01
Demographics & Benchmarks
How Many TSP Millionaires Are There, Really?
Somebody at the retirement party always says it. A GS-14 with 32 years in is cutting the sheet cake, and a coworker leans over and whispers, "I heard she's a TSP millionaire." Nobody knows if it's true. Everybody does th...
5 min · 2026-07-28
Demographics & Benchmarks
Median vs. Average TSP Balance: Why the Gap Matters
A few years back, I sat in the back of an agency retirement seminar while a presenter put up a slide with the average TSP balance on it. A woman two rows ahead of me, maybe 48, went quiet. Afterward I heard her tell a co...
5 min · 2026-07-24
Demographics & Benchmarks
Participation Rates Across Federal Agencies
A benefits specialist at a regional federal office pulls her annual enrollment report and notices something odd. On the second floor, the investigators and analysts are almost all contributing, and most are putting in 6%...
5 min · 2026-07-21
Demographics & Benchmarks
How Federal Savers Stack Up Against Private 401(k) Savers
Two neighbors, both 58, both earning about $95,000, sat on a back deck last summer comparing notes. Dana works for a federal agency. Marcus is a project manager at a mid-sized manufacturer. Marcus mentioned his 401(k) ba...
5 min · 2026-07-20
Demographics & Benchmarks
Contribution Rate Trends: Who Gets the Full Match
Dana started her first federal job at 27, as a budget analyst. Her onboarding packet included a TSP form she barely read. She was auto-enrolled at 3 percent, which felt reasonable, and she moved on to the harder problem ...
5 min · 2026-07-16
Demographics & Benchmarks
Allocation Habits by Age: What Federal Employees Actually Hold
Dana is 58 and works for the Social Security Administration. In early 2009, she moved her entire TSP balance into the G Fund and never moved it back. She isn't careless. She's careful, and she's been burned once. Her bal...
6 min · 2026-07-13