Find a retirement coach

Retirement coaching is about a life transition, not a portfolio. The right coach depends on where you are in that transition and what's pulling at you most.

Match the coach to your stage. Planning your exit from a career, adjusting in the first year, and feeling stuck three years in are different problems. Ask which stage a coach mostly works with.

Ask what they focus on. Some retirement coaches center on purpose and identity, some on daily structure and routine, some on relationships and how couples handle one or both partners retiring. Pick the emphasis that matches what keeps you up at night.

Listen for real curiosity about your work life. A career shapes identity more than most people expect. A good coach wants to understand what your work gave you, because that's exactly what the next chapter has to replace.

Be clear about what they're not. A retirement coach is not a financial advisor. Pension, investment, and drawdown decisions belong with a licensed financial professional. A good coach will say so themselves.

Ask for a short intro call before you commit. Describe where you are, whether that's two years out or two years in, and listen for how they'd structure your first month. Specific beats inspirational.

Take these into your intro call. The answers will show you quickly whether a coach understands the transition you're in.

• Do you mostly work with people before or after they retire?
• What does a typical engagement with you look like?
• How do you help someone rebuild structure and purpose?
• Do you work with couples, or just individuals?
• Have you worked with someone leaving a career like mine?
• How will we know the coaching is working?

There are no right answers here. You're listening for someone who treats retirement as a beginning to design, not an ending to manage.

A first message doesn't need to have it all figured out. That's the coach's job to help with. Borrow one of these:

Hi [name], I'm planning to retire in [timeframe] and I realize I've planned the finances but not the life. Do you work with people at this stage, and what does working with you look like?

Hi [name], I retired [timeframe] ago and I'm finding it harder than expected to fill the days with things that matter to me. Could you tell me how you'd approach the first month of working together?

Swap in your own situation and send it to two or three coaches. Comparing their answers is the fastest way to find your fit.

A retirement coach helps you design the non-financial side of retirement: purpose, structure, identity, and relationships. They are not financial advisors, and nothing on this page is financial advice. For pension, investment, or tax decisions, work with a licensed financial professional.

And if this season has brought more than restlessness, such as persistent low mood or grief that isn't lifting, a licensed mental health professional is the right first stop. Coaching can sit alongside that care, but it doesn't replace it.

You're browsing CoachCompare's retirement coach directory. Coaches create their own profiles and choose their own specialties, and everyone on this page lists retirement coaching as one of theirs. Profiles are written by the coaches themselves. The list shows the newest profiles first unless you change the sort, and coaches don't pay for placement in these results.