How Americans’ Views on Wealth and Retirement Differ

Overview

While Black and Hispanic families have seen increases in their wealth since 2013, these gains have not kept pace with the growth of wealth of White families. From 2019 to 2022, the median wealth gaps for Black and Hispanic families versus White families expanded by about $50,000. The result was that in 2022, the typical White family had $240,000 more wealth than the typical Black family and $223,000 more than the typical Hispanic family.¹ The wealth gap of Black and Hispanic families compared with White families has persisted over time and has been expanding since 2010.²

Wide differences also exist within these groups. For example, the median amount of wealth ($923,300) held by upper-income White households was almost 17 timesthat of lower-income White households ($55,400).³ By definition, upper-income households had a monthly income that was at least double the national median—in 2021, more than $14,300 per month for a household of three. Lower-income households made less than two-thirds the national median, or less than $4,800 a month for a three-person household.

One of the primary reasons for these differences in wealth is that the average White family has accumulated more retirement savings than have members of other racial and ethnic groups. That is true in large part because Black and Hispanic workers are less likely to have access to a workplace retirement plan, such as a pension or 401(k), than are White and Asian workers.⁴ And when they do save for retirement, Black and Hispanic workers have, on average, saved less than White workers have.⁵ Retirement savings represent the single greatest source of household wealth in the United States, surpassing even home equity. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. households in 2021 held 34.1% of their wealth in retirement accounts, while 28.5% came from equity in their homes.⁶

In 2024, researchers from The Pew Charitable Trusts conducted a nationally representative survey about perceptions of wealth among more than 1,100 Black, Hispanic, and White workers who did not have access to retirement savings plans in their workplaces. The survey found that workers struggle to build wealth when they don’t have access to retirement plans.⁷ Understanding how workers view wealth can help states to shape and improve policies designed to help these workers build wealth and financial security.

Before conducting the survey, Pew also undertook a series of online discussions in the summer of 2023 with separate groups of Black, Hispanic, Asian American/Pacific Islander, and Native American/Indigenous workers who did not have access to workplace retirement plans. While the findings from these discussions are not linked to the subsequent survey, they provide deeper insight into how workers of color perceive wealth, which is significant given the persistent racial wealth gap and the advent of new policies to address that gap.⁸

Over the past several years, states have addressed these differences in wealth and retirement savings by adopting automated savings programs, known as auto-IRAs, to address these gaps in opportunities to save.⁹ These programs disproportionately enroll Black and Hispanic workers, largely because they are less likely to have access to traditional workplace retirement savings plans.

Policies that are designed to help workers achieve financial security and build wealth will be more successful if policymakers understand how lower-income workers, including Asian American, Black, Hispanic, and Native American/Indigenous workers, view wealth building. Workers’ voices and perspectives are integral to ensuring that these policies are impactful. For example, auto-IRA programs typically enroll workers who do not have any long-term savings and who may be skeptical of these and similar programs. Such programs can more effectively reach and help lower-income workers if information is available about the workers’ motivations for wealth building.

Key findings:

• Many respondents did not think of wealth strictly in terms of the classic definition: assets minus debts. They prioritized financial security, which they saw as a more important goal than simply building wealth.
• The term “wealth” implies having financial resources beyond what is needed for day-to-day necessities and basic comfort. Many respondents in the online discussion boards appeared to lack the financial means to contemplate wealth building beyond meeting their day-to-day financial needs. They might want to build greater wealth, but first they needed to establish greater financial security.
• Conceptions of wealth and financial security were most often linked to the desire for a better quality of life for their families and to be able to retire comfortably.
• Another common theme in the online discussions was the desire to be financially independent and not to be a burden on family, especially children.
• For other respondents, wealth was seen as unattainable.

Financial security as a steppingstone to wealth

Respondents were asked first what they thought of when they heard the term “wealth.” A broad theme among many respondents was the desire for financial security and for freedom from the struggle to make ends meet. This concept was generally expressed in three main ways: not having to worry about expenses or bills; being able to support and take care of family and loved ones; and not having to worry about working later in life so that the participant could retire.

Many respondents said they were often more preoccupied with immediate financial concerns than with accumulating wealth. Asked to describe that was included in the term “wealth,” one Black respondent said simply, “Earning a modest salary and watching spending.” For a Hispanic respondent, building wealth was an opportunity to have “a good amount of money [and] not living paycheck to paycheck.” In these cases, respondents conceived of wealth as the ability to plan for the future instead of worrying about making ends meet day to day.

Other respondents were more concerned with immediate financial security. While respondents might have wanted to build greater wealth, that goal often felt out of reach compared with the priority of being able to take care of themselves. Some respondents described feeling as though they couldn’t build much wealth because of competing financial priorities, such as paying down debt and dealing with emergencies.

The experiences and feelings that respondents expressed align with findings from other research. In October 2023, for example, the Federal Reserve found that just under half (48%) of American adults spent less than they had earned in the previous month. Roughly one-third (32%) spent approximately what they had earned, while 19% of adults spent more. Unsurprisingly, lower-income adults were more likely to have spent more than they earned, compared with those who earned higher incomes.¹⁰

Additionally, recent research published by the Aspen Institute found that financial security is a precondition for wealth building. Those researchers found that financial stability (characterized by consistently having positive cash flow, limited harmful debt, emergency and liquid savings, and protection from financial shocks in the form of employer and government benefits and supports) enables wealth building.¹¹ These findings help to explain why so many respondents on Pew’s discussion boards prioritized financial security over wealth building. Many might desire to build greater wealth, but first they need to establish greater financial security.

In the United States, employers play a significant role in providing retirement savings plans, which could greatly benefit those who struggle to make ends meet. According to AARP, approximately 56 million U.S. workers do not have access to workplace retirement plans, highlighting the need for broader inclusion.¹² Workers without access to such plans, like those who participated in Pew’s discussion boards, are on average more likely to have a lower level of education and lower income than the general population.¹³ As a result, they are even more likely to struggle to make ends meet than were those who participated in the Federal Reserve’s October 2023 survey.

“It is more important for me to be secure financially than to build wealth. I don’t think I would find much joy in building wealth beyond what I need to lead a comfortable life. Once I reach that threshold, I would rather put my efforts into building or giving back to community than in building wealth.”—Asian American respondent

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“Building wealth is not important to me at all. I just want to be comfortable.”—Black respondent

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“I’m not concerned with wealth per se, but being able to pay bills and buy things I want from time to time would be nice.”—Black respondent

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“I’m honestly not too concerned right now with building wealth as I am concerned with keeping what we have. I’d like to dedicate more time and money to building wealth, but I just can’t. Emergencies pop up constantly: The roof is leaking, we need new tires, etc. I have to make sure right now, in the present, I have the money to take care of my family.”—Hispanic respondent

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“Wealth is not important to me. Just being able to pay my bills, and being semi-comfortable, is fine enough for me.”—Hispanic respondent

Wealth as financial security

While some respondents preferred to focus on financial security and a sense of financial comfort over direct wealth building, for others these ideas were more directly connected to their own conceptions of wealth. These respondents identified wealth as a means for being comfortable and not having to worry as much about money.

“I want to just have comforts in life. I experience some, but I want to experience [them] often. Not worrying about where the money is going to come from to cover some bills. Being able to take annual family vacations, things of [that] sort.”
—Black respondent

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“When I think of wealth, I think of being secure. Not worrying about anything. I think overall you can obtain wealth through money or through life experiences. Wealthy people lead happier lives, in my opinion. Wealth can also be abundant and not warranted in some cases as well.”
—Native American/Indigenous respondent

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“Wealth includes being financially comfortable, i.e., being able to handle all financial needs or desires with ease. Wealth gives one options. The person can travel to the destinations that they choose.”—Black respondent

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“Besides money, I would say wealth is financial security. To be able to enjoy the good life without any worries. To pass on properties to the next of kin.”—Black respondent

Wealth as a means of achieving independence

Many participants in the online discussions associated wealth with gaining financial freedom. Central to this concept was the desire to avoid relying on or burdening others. In some ways, this sense of financial independence is directly linked to identifying wealth in terms of being able to lead a comfortable life and reducing financial worry. But for these respondents, freedom and independence were closely associated with a desire not to count on others for financial assistance.

“It’s very important for me to build wealth, because it provides me with a sense of freedom and security.”
—Asian American respondent

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“Of course I want to build wealth, but the most important thing for me is to reach financial independence without needing financial assistance in the future.”
—Hispanic respondent

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“It is very important to build wealth to be able to live worry free and comfortable. I do not want to be a financial burden for anybody, and I want to be able to cover my expenses and not depend on anybody in the future. I want to have enough money to enjoy life and live comfortable.”
—Asian American respondent

Wealth as a means to support one’s family

For many participants, building wealth meant they could provide for their family. Some were also concerned about not requiring support from family, especially their children. While many wanted to build wealth for their families, some felt that goal was not achievable.

“It is very necessary for a person to build wealth, because this will ensure a better quality of life for the family, including education, health care, good housing, and enough food.”—Hispanic respondent

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“It is very important that my children not have to be responsible for my debt or large expenses to take care of me, so it is important that I build up some extra savings for the future. I have seen when my parents had to take care of my grandparents and even cover the expenses of their funerals because they had no savings.”—Asian American respondent

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“I wish I was able to build wealth for me and my kids, but currently it’s not even an option to think about. As long as I have everything I need and some of the things I want and same for my daughter, that’s all that really matters right now.”—Hispanic respondent

Wealth as inheritance—and as something unachievable

Some respondents, however, saw wealth not as something that might potentially be used to improve their families’ circumstances but as something inherited from relatives, often suggesting that they felt left out or excluded from this process. These responses illustrate how building wealth can feel unattainable for some respondents, and why many of their goals are focused on financial security.

“Wealth is a generational term. Being wealthy is someone who is born into [it] and lives in a financially comfortable situation. Wealth is inherited through things like assets, trust funds, and familial money.”—Black respondent

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“I picture wealth as something that occurs as a result of an inheritance. For me, I don’t count on that at all. I certainly don’t make a tremendous salary, so that doesn’t occur to me either. Truly, I imagine being wealthy is something I equate with old money or a totally fantastic job where money is rolling in left and right.”
—Native American/Indigenous respondent

Wealth as a tool for retiring comfortably

Another major motivation behind building wealth was the desire to be able to retire. Participants wanted not only to retire, but also to be able to live comfortably in retirement, without having to worry constantly about where money was coming from or how bills would be paid. Many respondents also hoped simply to have time to enjoy family and loved ones.

Other participants weren’t sure that they would ever be able to retire. People’s conceptions of retirement and their desire for it fit broadly into the more general themes of wanting financial security.

Research has shown that Americans face challenges in trying to save money and prepare for retirement. Many lack access to workplace retirement plans, the easiest and most efficient way to save for retirement.¹⁴ According to a 2022 survey by the Federal Reserve, while about three-fourths of nonretired Americans had some retirement savings, only 31% believed they were on track for retirement.¹⁵

“I need to be able to live a comfortable retirement and leave something behind for my relatives when the time comes.”
—Asian American respondent

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“It is important to build wealth, because I need to save money for when I cannot continue to work and need money for my expenses.”—Asian American respondent

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“Right now, we are just budgeting and trying to put some extra money aside for retirement. It’s hard, and we aren’t saving as much as we should for the future as we’d like to. Of course, we’d love to invest and buy property, but what middle-class family can really afford to do that?”
—Hispanic respondent

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“I don’t need to be crazy wealthy, but I don’t want to have needs as I get older because I am unable to afford them. I think wealth will provide that security, that I will be okay and taken care of as I retire.”—Hispanic respondent

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“I am more interested in being financially secure and to not need any kind of financial support after retirement.”
—Hispanic respondent

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“I want to build wealth so I can retire sooner instead of keep working after the age of 65.”—Black respondent

Financial components of wealth

Although many respondents expressed the desire to secure a more comfortable financial future, others viewed wealth in terms of traditional financial measures, such as savings, investments, real estate, and other assets—examples of affluence and luxury. Often, they wanted a higher quality of life and a sense of financial freedom.

“Wealth to me is a collective total of all your assets: cash, savings, investments, stocks, bonds, real estate, etc.”
—Asian American respondent

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“Wealth includes all assets, such as investments, savings, businesses, and anything that generates revenue.”
—Black respondent

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“When I think of wealth, I think of being wealthy, which, to me, is having plenty of money to live comfortably. It’s a person/family’s income, liquidity, and assets such as cars, houses, boats, and collections. It also brings to mind luxury, vacations, designer brands, top-of-the-line stuff. People can also be wealthy in love, health, and family/friends, but that’s not what I think of first when thinking [about] the word ‘wealth.’”—Hispanic respondent

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“To be wealthy to me means to financially have more than is needed to live comfortably. Having lots of assets, high income, plenty of savings for retirement and still having left over to pursue any luxuries.”—Asian American respondent

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“I think of being in abundance when I hear wealth. Wealth of finances, meaning the individual never runs out of money.”
—Black respondent

Conclusion

While many respondents in the discussions thought of wealth in terms of owning assets and achieving affluence, a more nuanced story emerges. People have different perceptions about wealth and view it in many dimensions. For some, what mattered was being financially comfortable and having greater security, not strictly building assets. These respondents viewed wealth as a tool for greater financial independence, freedom from worrying about paying bills, and an ability to retire comfortably.

Given the strong desire for financial security and to live a comfortable life free from worry, respondents across the discussion boards expressed a desire to build greater wealth, but that often wasn’t the top priority among their financial goals. Even workers who were more explicitly motivated to build greater wealth viewed it as a vehicle to achieve a better quality of life for themselves and their families. Their emphasis on financial security and greater financial comfort was connected to the ability to support and enjoy time with family, and also their aspirations to be able to retire comfortably. This emphasizes the importance of financial security as a critical foundation to enable greater wealth-building.

Given the persistent racial wealth gap in the United States, understanding how Asian American, Black, Hispanic, and Native American/Indigenous workers view the concept of wealth, and their motivations for building wealth, could help inform and improve public policy and market-based initiatives for wealth building. These workers’ perspectives and voices are integral to ensuring that policies have a positive impact on people’s lives. For example, state auto-IRAs enroll many workers who have no long-term savings and who may be skeptical of these and similar programs. If legislators are more informed about people’s motivations for building wealth, they can design programs that more effectively reach and help these workers.

Future work from Pew, including results from a survey, will further examine the relationship that workers of color have with wealth and wealth building as well as how they view the path to accumulating assets and achieving a secure retirement.

Endnotes

1. “Greater Wealth, Greater Uncertainty: Changes in Racial Inequality in the Survey of Consumer Finances,” Board of Governors of the  Federal Reserve System, Oct. 18, 2023, https://www.federalreserve.gov/econres/notes/feds-notes/greater-wealth-greater-uncertainty-changes-in-racial-inequality-in-the-survey-of-consumer-finances-20231018.html.
2. “Black Wealth Is Increasing, but So Is the Racial Wealth Gap,” Brookings, Jan. 9, 2024, https://www.brookings.edu/articles/black-wealth-is-increasing-but-so-is-the-racial-wealth-gap/.
3. Rakesh Kochhar and Mohamad Moslimani, “Wealth Surged in the Pandemic, but Debt Endures for Poorer Black and Hispanic Families,” Pew Research Center, 2023, https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/12/RE_2023.12.04_Race-Wealth_Report.pdf. “Middle-income” households are those with an income that is two-thirds to double the national median income. This was about $4,800 to $14,300 monthly in December 2021 for a household of three. “Lower-income” households had incomes of less than $4,800, and “upper-income” households had incomes greater than $14,300. (Dollar amounts are expressed in December 2021 prices.)
4. The Pew Charitable Trusts, “Who’s In, Who’s Out: A Look at Access to Employer-Based Retirement Plans and Participation in the States,” 2016, https://www.pew.org/-/media/assets/2016/01/retirement_savings_report_jan16.pdf. John Sabelhaus, “The Current State of U.S. Workplace Retirement Plan Coverage,” Pension Research Council, The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, 2022, https://repository.upenn.edu/server/api/core/bitstreams/53f6523d-7c37-4052-add0-676774a6181a/content.
5. “Nine Charts About Wealth Inequality in America,” Urban Institute, April 25, 2024, https://apps.urban.org/features/wealth-inequality-charts/.
6. Briana Sullivan, Donald Hays, and Neil Bennett, “The Wealth of Households: 2021,” U.S. Census Bureau, 2023, https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/publications/2023/demo/p70br-183.pdf.
7. The Pew Charitable Trusts, “Workers Without Access to Retirement Benefits Struggle to Build Wealth,” 2025, https://www.pew.org/en/research-and-analysis/issue-briefs/2025/06/workers-without-access-to-retirement-benefits-struggle-to-build-wealth.
8. Online discussions were conducted in July and August 2023 by Ipsos, a market and public opinion research firm, with private sector workers age 18 or older who did not currently have access to workplace retirement plans and were not enrolled in automated savings programs. Four separate discussions were conducted simultaneously, one each with non-Hispanic Black respondents, Hispanic respondents, Asian American/Pacific Islander respondents, and Native American/ Indigenous respondents.
9. “1 Million Workers Have Saved $2 Billion in State Automated Retirement Savings Programs,” Kim Olson, The Pew Charitable Trusts, 2025, https://www.pew.org/en/research-and-analysis/articles/2025/08/14/1-million-workers-have-saved-2-billion-in-state-automated-retirement-savings-programs.
10. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, “Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households in 2023,” 2024, https://www.federalreserve.gov/publications/files/2023-report-economic-well-being-us-households-202405.pdf.
11. Sheida Elmi and Bianca Lopez, “Foundations of a New Wealth Agenda,” Aspen Institute, 2021, https://www.aspeninstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/ASP-FSW_FoundationsNew-WealthAgenda_120121.pdf.
12. David John, Manita Rao, and Gary Koenig, “Payroll Deduction Retirement Programs Build Economic Security,” AARP Public Policy Institute, 2024, https://www.aarp.org/content/dam/aarp/ppi/topics/work-finances-retirement/financial-security-retirement/2024-payroll-deduction-retirement-fact-sheets/payroll-deduction-retirement-programs-build-economic-security.doi.10.26419-2fppi.00164.001.pdf.
13. The Pew Charitable Trusts, “Who’s In, Who’s Out.”
14. The Pew Charitable Trusts, “Who’s In, Who’s Out.” John Sabelhaus, “The Current State of U.S. Workplace Retirement Plan Coverage.”
15. Board of Governors of the  Federal Reserve System, “Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households in 2022,” 2023, https://www.federalreserve.gov/publications/files/2022-report-economic-well-being-us-households-202305.pdf.