Your net worth — everything you own minus everything you owe — is the single most important number in your financial life. Most women have never calculated it. Even fewer track it year over year. This is the financial equivalent of stepping on the scale at your annual physical: uncomfortable, essential, and far more useful than you think.

• List all assets: checking, savings, investments, retirement accounts, home equity, car value
• List all liabilities: mortgage balance, car loans, credit card balances, student loans, any other debt
• Subtract liabilities from assets — that’s your net worth
• Compare to last year — is it growing? By how much?

An emergency fund is your financial immune system — it’s what keeps a bad month from becoming a financial crisis. For women over 40, the standard “3 months of expenses” advice is often insufficient given higher healthcare costs, potential job market vulnerability, and the possibility of caregiving responsibilities emerging.

• Calculate your current monthly essential expenses (housing, food, utilities, insurance, minimum debt payments)
• Multiply by 6 — that’s your target for this life stage
• Check your current emergency fund balance
• Confirm it’s in a high-yield savings account earning at least 4%+

Your retirement savings rate is how much of your income you’re directing toward retirement each month. This is the most time-sensitive number on this entire list — every year you delay increasing it costs more than the year before, because compounding works exponentially.

• Find your current 401k or IRA contribution amount
• Divide by your gross monthly income — that’s your savings rate
• Target: 15% of gross income for women starting in their 40s
• If below 15%, increase by 1% today — you likely won’t notice the difference in your paycheck
• Confirm you’re capturing your full employer match — that’s free money

Insurance is the most underreviewed area of most women’s finances. Policies get set up once and then forgotten — while your life, your assets, and your risks change significantly over the years. An annual review takes 20 minutes and can save tens of thousands of dollars when something goes wrong.

• Health insurance: review your deductible, out-of-pocket max, and whether your current providers are in-network
• Life insurance: is your coverage amount still appropriate for your dependents and liabilities?
• Disability insurance: do you have it? Most women don’t — and it’s the most likely insurance you’ll actually use
• Homeowner/renter insurance: when did you last update your coverage amount?
• Long-term care insurance: worth researching at 45+ before premiums climb steeply

Beneficiary designations on your retirement accounts, life insurance, and bank accounts override your will. That means if your beneficiary list is out of date — if it still lists an ex-spouse, a deceased parent, or someone who’s no longer in your life — that’s who gets your money, regardless of what your will says.

• Log into every retirement account and confirm primary and contingent beneficiaries
• Check life insurance policy beneficiaries
• Review any “transfer on death” designations on bank or investment accounts
• Update immediately if there’s been a marriage, divorce, birth, or death in your family

Your credit score affects your mortgage rate, your insurance premiums, your ability to rent an apartment, and in some states even your job prospects. Most women check it only when they’re applying for something — by which point it’s too late to fix any issues before the decision is made.

• Pull your free annual credit report at AnnualCreditReport.com (the only federally authorized free source)
• Check all three bureaus: Equifax, Experian, TransUnion
• Review for errors, unfamiliar accounts, or signs of identity theft
• Note your score — target 740+ for the best rates on any future borrowing
• Dispute any errors immediately through the bureau’s online portal

Not all debt is equally urgent, but all debt has a cost — and many women don’t know exactly what interest rates they’re paying on what balances. An annual debt review gives you the full picture so you can make strategic decisions rather than reactive ones.

• List every debt: balance, interest rate, minimum payment, and payoff timeline
• Identify any debt above 7% interest — that’s your priority payoff target
• Check whether any rates can be reduced: balance transfer, refinance, or negotiation
• Calculate your debt-to-income ratio (total monthly debt payments ÷ gross monthly income) — target below 36%

Healthcare is consistently the largest unplanned expense for women in their 40s and 50s — and it only grows in retirement. Fidelity estimates the average woman will need $157,000 in today’s dollars for healthcare costs in retirement alone. That number requires planning that almost no one is doing in their 40s.

• Review your current out-of-pocket menopause-related spending
• Maximize HSA contributions if you have a high-deductible health plan — triple tax advantage
• Check your FSA balance — use it before year-end or lose it
• Research what Medicare will and won’t cover so you can plan the gap
• Add a “healthcare” line to your retirement savings goal

Estate planning sounds like something for wealthy people or old people. It’s actually for anyone who has assets, dependents, or opinions about what happens to them when they can’t speak for themselves. At 40+, every woman should have these four documents in place — and review them annually.

• Will: do you have one? Is it current?
• Healthcare proxy / medical power of attorney: who makes medical decisions if you can’t?
• Financial power of attorney: who manages your finances if you’re incapacitated?
• Living will / advance directive: have you documented your wishes for end-of-life care?
• Confirm these documents are stored somewhere your trusted person can actually find them

Your annual financial checkup isn’t complete without an honest check-in on how you’re feeling about your finances — not just how they look on paper. Financial stress is one of the leading contributors to poor health outcomes for women over 40, and it’s entirely invisible in a spreadsheet.

• On a scale of 1–10, how anxious do you feel about your financial situation?
• Are there specific financial areas you’ve been avoiding thinking about?
• Do you feel more or less financially confident than a year ago?
• Is there one financial action you’ve been putting off that would significantly reduce your stress?
• Note your answers — and take that one avoided action this week