A new analysis from Bank of America shows that the average 401(k) account balance among men is $89,000 while the average account balance for women was $59,000. The report is based on data across Bank of America’s proprietary employee benefits programs, which serve more than 25,000 companies and more than 6 million employees
Members of Gen X (ages 43-57) continue to have the highest 401(k) participation rate at 65 percent, followed by 57 percent of Baby Boomers (ages 58-76) and 55 percent of Millennials (ages 28-42).
Baby Boomer and Gen X men have significantly greater account balances than women in their generations. For Baby Boomers, men have an average balance of $179, 688. For women Baby Boomers, the average balance is $95,839. However, the gap between Millennial (ages 28-42) men and women is only 23 percent.
For all generation levels, women contribute a smaller share of their pretax incomes than men to their retirement plan. The biggest gap is for Baby Boomers where men contribute 8.9 percent of their pretax income, compared to 7.9 percent for women. Some 10 percent of men across generations contribute the maximum amount allowable to their retirement plans. Only 7 percent of all women contribute the maximum amount. Some 86 percent of women contributed less than $10,000 to their plans, compared to 78 percent of men.
“The gender savings gap is an issue we can and must address. It carries personal implications for many, as well as macroeconomic implications for us all,” said Lorna Sabbia, head of Retirement and Personal Wealth Solutions at Bank of America.
Bank of America’s 2023 Financial Life Benefits® Impact Report may be downloaded by clicking here.