In recent years, there has been a growing concern about the gender wealth divide in Australia.
Despite significant progress in gender equality, women continue to face significant economic disadvantages that prevent them from achieving financial security and stability.
The issue of the gender wealth divide is complex and multifaceted, and it affects women of all ages and backgrounds, but its impact is particularly pronounced among women who belong to minority groups or who have lower socioeconomic status.
Gender-based personal finance differences in Australia
Finder conducted a study to identify where financial disparities between men and women still exist.
| Data point | 2022 (Average man) | 2022 (Average woman) | 2022 Gap | 2023 (Average man) | 2023 (Average woman) | 2023 Gap*** |
| Amount in savings | $38,932 | $21,233 | 83% | $43,441 | $21,499 | 102% |
| Monthly savings | $948 | $622 | 52% | $783 | $564 | 39% |
| Amount in shares owned | $22,449 | $10,434 | 110% | $28,897 | $10,171 | 184% |
| Credit card debt* | $1,741 | $1,499 | 16% | $1,615 | $1,684 | -4% |
| Could manage their finances without a credit card* | 80% | 74% | 6 pp | 77% | 73% | 4pp |
| Time needed to pay off credit card debt* | 6.0 months | 6.7 months | 0.7 months | 5.9 months | 7.6 months | 1.7 months |
| Buy now pay later debt | $473 | $347 | 33% | $1,200 | $1,014 | 18% |
| Have paid late fees in the past 12 months | 31% | 28% | 3 pp | 29% | 28% | 1pp |
| Have been rejected for financial products | 28% | 18% | 10 pp | 23% | 20% | 3pp |
| Report being happy | 79% | 76% | 3 pp | 78% | 77% | 1pp |
Some key findings are:
- Women have less than half the cash in the bank that men do, according to Finder’s Consumer Sentiment Tracker.
- The average Aussie woman has $21,499 in savings, compared to $43,441 for men.
- The gap (102%) is greater compared to 2022 (83%) when the average woman had $21,233 in savings, while the average man had $38,932 stashed away.
- The average Australian woman ($564) is saving significantly less money each month than the average Aussie male ($783).
- Men have almost triple ($28,897) the amount of money invested in shares compared to women ($10,171) which could lead to an even greater wealth divide later in life.
The bottom line...
There’s a stark difference in the average amount of money saved up between men and women in Australia which is a major concern, especially during periods of economic uncertainty.
What’s upsetting is that we seem to be going backwards with the gap in overall savings balance widening in recent times.
This means women are less likely to be able to handle unexpected expenses or have cash on hand for potential emergencies leaving them more vulnerable.
Clearly, there is still a long way to go in so many areas.
It’s not just about achieving pay equality, it’s also about overall workplace equality and pushing back on entrenched misogyny and sexism.
International Women’s Day is an important time to pause and reflect and appreciate and celebrate how far we’ve come.
But there’s so much more to be done.
The Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) shows the national gender pay gap is 14.1%.
Finder’s data also shows a huge difference in the average amount of savings between men and women.
All of this points to the fact that the more we can educate and inspire women to actively participate in their finances, the better.
