The typical advice is that you should aim to replace 70% to 90% of your annual pre-retirement income through savings and Social Security. For example, a retiree who earns an average of $63,000 per year before retirement should expect to need $44,000 to $57,000 per year in retirement.

"As much as you can" is the standard advice. Many financial planners recommend that you save 10% to 15% of your income for retirement, starting in your 20s. But that's just a general guideline. This is your retirement we're talking about, so it pays to get a little more specific by doing your homework up front.

A retirement savings account is a type of retirement plan account that is envisioned to replace all three different types of individual retirement accounts that are currently used in the United States: traditional IRA, Roth IRA and Simple IRA. Contributions would be made on an after-tax basis.