A new report from personal finance website GOBankingRates revealed that 32 percent of Americans – nearly a third of respondents – have no money in their savings accounts.
GOBankingRates conducts this survey each year to better understand Americans’ personal financial standing. Since 2015, the results have shown that the majority of Americans have less than $1,000 in savings — and that trend continues into 2018. To view the full survey results, visit: https://www.gobankingrates.com/saving-money/savings-advice/average-american-savings-account-balance.
Although the survey revealed a slight decrease in the percentage of Americans with no money saved – from 39 percent to 32 percent in 2018 – experts still express concern over the mass of Americans with no financial backup plan. GOBankingRates spoke to Jason Thacker, head of consumer deposits and payments at TD Bank, on why this is a serious concern for more than just your wallet.
“It’s always concerning when a large part of the population is seemingly living paycheck to paycheck because when unexpected personal or financial hardships occur, it can be challenging to recover without adequate savings,” Thacker said.
The survey also showed a six point increase in the percentage of Americans with $10,000 or more. Some experts suggest that this points to a disappearing middle class in the U.S.
See the full data visualization here.
Additional Insights
- The survey suggests that millennials are better savers than older generations. Aside from adults 65 and older, millennials have the smallest percentage of respondents with less than $1,000 saved.
- 29 percent of adults reported that they do not keep track of how often they deposit money into a savings account. Gen Xers ages 35 to 44 were the largest group to report that they do not keep track of finances, at 32 percent.
- Thirty-one percent of respondents reported that living paycheck to paycheck was the biggest obstacle to saving. Gen Xers ages 45 to 54 and Baby Boomers ages 55 to 65 — adults who supposedly are in their prime earning years — were more likely than any other age group to claim this.
Methodology
This GOBankingRates survey asked 5,002 adults the following six questions: 1) How much money do you have saved in your savings account? 2) What are you primarily saving for? 3) What obstacle(s) are keeping you from saving more money each month? 4) Of the following, which (or who) has proven most helpful for managing your savings? 5) How often do you deposit money in your savings? 6) What would you do or sacrifice if it meant achieving your savings goals? For question No. 2, respondents could choose more than one response.
Responses were collected through a Survata survey from Aug. 27, 2018 to Sept. 4, 2018, and are representative of the U.S. online population.
