People who expect to do something at a certain point in their lives, but do little or nothing to make sure that happens, might be said to be living in an alternate reality. And if that's the case, millennials are right out there—but they have plenty of company.

So says a report from a Business Insider and Morning Consult survey, which finds that both millennials and GenXers are way behind on retirement saving, with a quarter of millennials not having a retirement savings account and 47 percent of surveyed GenXers saying they have no money saved toward retirement.

And of the GenXers who do have retirement savings, 48 percent have less than $50,000 set aside—nowhere near enough to retire on. And 10 percent of GenXers said they don't expect to retire at all; that's the highest share of any generation.

Millennials, meanwhile, aren't saving for the houses they hope to buy one day, either; 31 percent aren't even trying. That's different from earlier generations, when saving for a home was a Big Deal.

But millennials are different from their predecessors in other ways, too; while generally they're better educated, those who don't have a college education are way down the scale financially from those who do.

So says a report from the Pew Research Center, which finds that millennials are also stalling on getting married, some foregoing it altogether, and are more likely to be living with their parents than forming their own households. In addition, millennial women are more educated than millennial men.

Yet while those with college degrees are better off financially than those without, millennials without one are actually making less than their counterparts in earlier generations. Says the report, “Millennial workers with some college education reported making $36,000, lower than the $38,900 early Baby Boomer workers made at the same age in 1982. The pattern is similar for those young adults who never attended college.”

And it's not just singles; millennials in 2018 had a median household income, the report adds, amounting to approximately “$71,400, similar to that of Gen X young adults ($70,700) in 2001.”

The Morning Consult survey found that, of the 52 percent of millennials lacking a retirement savings account, 46 percent are still banking on a retirement between ages 56–75.

Even more surprising, 12 percent expect to retire early, before age 55. Yet nearly half of millennials who actually have retirement savings don't even have as much as $15,000.

Delusional, or cockeyed optimists?

Top 4 trends shaping retirement income products

3 conflicts millennials have about finances

Instant Insights /

Delusions of retirement?

More From HR Executive

Related Stories

Recommended For You