Millennial men tend to be happier than women—68 percent of male respondents indicated that they were while only 48 percent of the female respondents said the same. Millennial women in general report lower levels of income than men. While men employed full time enjoyed a $63,000 median annual income, their female counterparts reported median annual incomes of just $43,000. As a result, the study’s female respondents reported $200 in monthly savings, while millennial men are socking away an average of $500 each month.
When asked, most millennials don’t link success with financial advancement. In the survey, 88 percent of respondents argued that success had more to do with “being happy” than with “material property.” According to the survey, the top three drivers of millennial happiness were time spent with family, time spent with friends and time spent helping others. A quarter of the respondents said that they did not care about money at all.
Wells Fargo’s report does link millennials’ happiness with financial wellness, however. Respondents tended to be happier if they agreed with these statements:
- I have enough money to be able to save for future needs.
- I am saving enough for retirement.
- I feel in control of my financial life.
- I take an active role in setting and achieving goals for my financial life
- I am able to pay for my monthly expenses.
While majorities of the millennials agreed with these statements, only 36 percent of the respondents were able to say yes to all five. That pool of respondents skewed toward older millennials; 55 percent were men and 45 percent were women, and overall, 79 percent of them reported being generally happy, compared to 62 percent of the respondents at large.
Most of the study’s respondents, 74 percent, reported less than $100,000 in net worth. The median annual income for those respondents was $43,000 at the time of the study. For those respondents with more than $100,000 in net worth, the median income was approximately $88,000 per year. Respondents who were able to agree with the study’s five statements reported a $63,000 median income.
For the report, Wells Fargo surveyed 1,771 millennials aged 20 to 36 between June 16 and June 29, 2017.