Shock (Not)! Millennial Savers Say One Thing, Do Another

401k, retirement, millennials, financial literacy
Seriously? They are so annoying.

With screen time, videogames, Minecraft—is anyone at all surprised?

Fully 78% of millennials say they prefer online videos to learn about personal finance topics, according to a new study from the Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center (GFLEC).

The survey, titled “Millennials’ Engagement with Online Financial Education Resources and Tools: New Survey Insights and Recommendations,” explores gaps in millennial thinking, perceptions and actions.

Perception-Use of Financial Education Resources

  • There is a clear preference for online versus offline resources, with nearly eight in ten millennials saying that they prefer videos to learn about financial literacy.
  • However, 22% of millennials say they don’t trust online financial resources and another 27% are not sure whether they trust these resources.
  • 30% believe quality information is expensive and cannot be available for free.

Knowledge-Motivation Gap

  • Only 24% of millennials demonstrate comprehensive financial literacy and about 55% grasp very basic financial concepts.
  • However, 92% would like to increase their money management skills.
  • Some 60% of millennials rate their personal financial knowledge as “high” but only 55% could answer three financial literacy questions on basic concepts about interest, inflation and risk diversification correctly.

Intention-Action Gap

  • Although they spend much of their time connected to the digital world and are aware that there is a preponderance of online resources available, one in five millennials don’t know how or where to start learning about managing their finances.
  • Nearly 40% say they don’t have enough money to need information on managing it. Many only seek information when they immediately need it.
  • Further, more than 50% of millennials find it difficult to manage their money — even if they know what to do.
  • And despite good money management intentions, one-third admit to instant gratification impulse buying even when funds are limited and that they buy things they can’t afford as a reward for hard work.

The survey also found that even in an era of over-sharing, more than one-third of millennials believe personal finance is a private matter and 30% say that discussing personal finance with family and friends is as difficult as talking about weight loss and health issues.

And, in somewhat of a surprise, 42% of millennials model their financial behavior after their parents.

John Sullivan, former editor of 401(k) Specialist
Chief Content Officer at American Retirement Association |  + posts

With more than 20 years serving financial markets, John Sullivan is the former editor-in-chief of 401(k) Specialist and Investment Advisor magazine and retirement editor of ThinkAdvisor.com. Sullivan is also the former editor of Boomer Market Advisor and Bank Advisor magazines, and has a background in the insurance and investment industries in addition to his journalism roots. Experienced financial services content executive specializing in creative new media delivery. He joined the American Retirement Association in 2023 as Chief Content Officer, overseeing communications for the organization, as well as its sister organizations.

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