Money diminishes as a concern when couples communicate with each other about their finances, according to research by Fidelity Investments.
The 2024 Fidelity Investments Couples & Money Study, which focused on 1,794 couples, found that of partners who say they communicate well, 78% said that money is not their number one relationship challenge.
That contrasts with 51% of partners who say they do not communicate well.
“Couples who communicate well are more likely to say that money is not their greatest relationship challenge,” said Anand Sekhar, vice president of practice management and consulting at Fidelity Investments.
The survey also found that of those who communicated well, 78% said they discussed finances together at least monthly. That compared with 57% of those who do not communicate well.
The survey found several areas of disagreement among couples when it comes to planning for retirement. For instance, 53% of couples did not agree on how much savings they needed to retire, while 47% of couples disagreed on how much risk they were comfortable taking on in their investments.
Those who work with an advisor were also less likely to be worried about their finances, according to the study. Forty percent of couples who have an advisor said that they are worried about having enough money to save for retirement, compared with t59% of couples who do not work with an advisor.
In addition, only 26% of couples who work with an advisor were worried about building up enough emergency savings, compared with 47% of couples who do not work with a financial advisor.
The study found that there are still worries that divide the two sexes. For instance, 38% of men said that they are worried about making sure their partners will be financially secure should they pass away, compared with 22% of women who worry about that issue.
Meanwhile, 30% of women said they were worried about not being financially prepared should their husband pass away, compared with 19% of men who shared the same fear.