March 3, 2017

With financial burdens unique to their generation, which their parents couldn’t even imagine as young adults, many millennials struggle financially, even in a recovering economy. PopSugar Insights polled US female internet users ages 18 to 44 about how they managed their finances and planned their financial futures.

PopSugar’s survey found that while younger women are generally behind their older counterparts, they are more likely to use digital tools to help them with financial planning.

PopSugar found that adult women under the age of 30 are significantly less likely than older females to save money for retirement. When PopSugar asked respondents what percentage of their income they save annually for this purpose, nearly 30% said that they save nothing at all—twice the percentage of the 30- to 44-year-olds who said the same.

Those under 30 are also more likely to own at least three credit cards. On the other hand, these younger women are much less likely to carry credit card debt.

There are a number of digital platforms available to help consumers manage their money—assisting with investing, budgeting or keeping their credit in check. The majority of respondents under 30 are using such tools.

According to PopSugar, 57% of these younger women are turning to websites or mobile apps to help keep track of their money, compared with 45% of 30- to 44-year-olds.

Approximately 27% of younger women use a mobile app such as Mint to do so, vs. 20% of women 30 to 44. Mint is a money manager/financial tracker.

While most women—no matter what their age—do not use mobile apps to manage their finances on a frequent basis, those that do are likely to be under 30. PopSugar found that 18% of women 18 to 29 use Mint on their mobile devices often, compared with 8% of women 30 to 44.

These older women were more likely to frequently use the credit-improvement app Credit Karma than Mint, though only 22% of women 30 to 44 often used a mobile app for personal finance.

—Alison McCarthy