fbpx

A Quarter of Aussies Save $250 or Less Per Month 

Learn how much Australians are saving and where they prefer to keep their money
  Written by 
Adrian Edlington
Adrian Edlington is PR & Communications Manager at Savvy. With a keen interest in personal finance, car loans, the mortgage industry, cost of living pressures, electric vehicles and renewable technology, Adrian's research includes conducting primary data surveys and analysis of up-to-the-minute secondary Australian data sources. His work on behalf of Savvy has been featured on ABC.net.au The Conversation, the Sydney Morning Herald, AFR, News.com.au, The Age, Herald Sun, Adelaide Now, SBS On The Money, 7News, Car Expert, Which Car, Drive.com.au, Auto Talk, CleanTechnica, The Latch, Newcastle Herald, The Examiner, Illawarra Mercury, Professional Planner, New Idea, Canberra Times, Bendigo Advertiser, The Courier, Evee.com.au, MSN, The Australian, Stockhead, Yahoo Lifestyle, Smart Company, Yahoo Finance, Money Management, Proactive Investors, Glam Adelaide, Your Life Choices, Investor Daily, Real Estate Business, Homely.com.au, Money Mag, Yahoo News, Elite Agent, The West, Crikey.com.au, Yahoo Sports, AIB.edu.au, Domain.com.au, Nine.com.au, Mortgage Business, The New Daily, MPAMag, and NestEgg.com.au. In his spare time, Adrian enjoys mountain biking and business podcasts.
Our authors

Published on September 20th, 2022

Last updated on March 15th, 2024



Fact checked

At Savvy, we are committed to providing accurate information. Our content undergoes a rigorous process of fact-checking before it is published. Learn more about our editorial policy.
Australian woman saving money

At Savvy, our mission is to empower you to make informed financial choices. While we maintain stringent editorial standards, this article may include mentions of products offered by our partners. Here’s how we generate income.

In this article

Savvy’s new personal finance survey of 1002 Australians discovers people's average monthly savings, where they put their money and how they feel about inflation.  

  • 24% of Aussies save $250 or less each month
  • 32.5% save $750 or over per month  
  • 78% rely on savings accounts, followed by super contributions (24%), then stocks & shares (19%)
  • 21% of Australians “not confident at all” investment returns will continue to outpace inflation

A new survey commissioned by Savvy into the savings and investment habits of Australians (n=1,002) shows that saving rates among significant portions of the population are low, with 19% reporting that they did not save any money regularly.

How much are Australians saving?

24% of respondents said they saved at least $250 per month, with 15% saying they save between $251 and $500. More than 32% responded that they were saving over $750 a month, however.

Australian saving habits infographic

Bill Tsouvalas, Savvy Managing Director;

Bill Tsouvalas, Savvy’s resident money expert, says that even in times of rising cost of living, paying oneself first and putting money aside is as important as ever,

“Though everything seems to be getting more expensive, now isn’t the time to stop putting money away for the future. When inflation is high, you should be looking for easy investment options that will protect your savings, like term deposits, savings accounts, shares and managed or indexed funds; all of which can provide a better return on investment and help you save for big ticket items, such as a house deposit.”

How are people currently investing their savings?

The top three places where Australians place their savings are savings accounts (78%), superannuation (24%) and shares (19%).

When given an opportunity to identify all preferred saving and investment vehicles, the vast majority of respondents, some 782 of a total 1002, use a savings account. This figure was slightly higher for females (80%) than males (76%). The division between sexes was more pronounced when it came to stocks and shares, which were chosen by 23% of males, compared with only 14% of females. Similarly, more men than women were contributing to their superannuation; 26% vs 21% respectively.   

How do you currently invest your savings - Graph
How confident are you that your investments will outpace inflation - question graph

How confident are people about investment returns keeping up with inflation?

When it comes to returns on savings and investments, compared to rising prices, 43% of Australians are “not confident” that their investment returns will continue to outpace inflation in the near future.

While 37% of total respondents expressed a “neutral” sentiment, 22% of the 1002 total respondents were “unconfident”, while a further 21% were less optimistic again, answering “not confident at all”. Female survey participants were the least confident, with 25% choosing “not confident at all”, compared to 18% of their male counterparts.  

For more information, contact Adrian Edlington – [email protected]

Savvy 2022 Savings Survey; n=1002

Nationally representative survey of 1002 adult Australians, aged 18 and over. Conducted by Octopus Group, on behalf of Savvy.

Completion date: 1/09/2022

Age groups:18-24, 25-34, 35-44, 45-54, 55-64, 65+

Gender breakdown: male n=499, female n=495, non-binary /prefer not to say n=6

Representative of state and territory populations:

NSW n=323 (32.3%), Vic n=248 (25.1%), Qld n=203 (20.2%), SA n=73 (7.2%), WA n=105 (10.6%) NT n=8 (0.7%), Tas n=23 (2.2%), ACT n=19 (1.7%)

Did you find this page helpful?

Yes
No
Thanks for your feedback!
  Written by 
Adrian Edlington
Adrian Edlington is PR & Communications Manager at Savvy. With a keen interest in personal finance, car loans, the mortgage industry, cost of living pressures, electric vehicles and renewable technology, Adrian's research includes conducting primary data surveys and analysis of up-to-the-minute secondary Australian data sources. His work on behalf of Savvy has been featured on ABC.net.au The Conversation, the Sydney Morning Herald, AFR, News.com.au, The Age, Herald Sun, Adelaide Now, SBS On The Money, 7News, Car Expert, Which Car, Drive.com.au, Auto Talk, CleanTechnica, The Latch, Newcastle Herald, The Examiner, Illawarra Mercury, Professional Planner, New Idea, Canberra Times, Bendigo Advertiser, The Courier, Evee.com.au, MSN, The Australian, Stockhead, Yahoo Lifestyle, Smart Company, Yahoo Finance, Money Management, Proactive Investors, Glam Adelaide, Your Life Choices, Investor Daily, Real Estate Business, Homely.com.au, Money Mag, Yahoo News, Elite Agent, The West, Crikey.com.au, Yahoo Sports, AIB.edu.au, Domain.com.au, Nine.com.au, Mortgage Business, The New Daily, MPAMag, and NestEgg.com.au. In his spare time, Adrian enjoys mountain biking and business podcasts.
Our authors

Published on September 20th, 2022

Last updated on March 15th, 2024



Fact checked

At Savvy, we are committed to providing accurate information. Our content undergoes a rigorous process of fact-checking before it is published. Learn more about our editorial policy.

This guide provides general information and does not consider your individual needs, finances or objectives. We do not make any recommendation or suggestion about which product is best for you based on your specific situation and we do not compare all companies in the market, or all products offered by all companies. It’s always important to consider whether professional financial, legal or taxation advice is appropriate for you before choosing or purchasing a financial product.

The content on our website is produced by experts in the field of finance and reviewed as part of our editorial guidelines. We endeavour to keep all information across our site updated with accurate information.

In this article

Share this article

Share on facebook
Share on twitter
Share on linkedin
Share on email
Share on pinterest

Smart money saving tips

Subscribe to our newsletter.

By subscribing you agree to our privacy policy

About Savvy

Savvy is one of Australia’s largest online financial brokers, focusing on personal and commercial financial products. Founded in 2010, the firm has seen rapid growth, a testament to their provision of market leading rates and reaching customers with the latest in media and technology. Savvy is a proud supporter of Kids Under Cover, a charity assisting homeless and at-risk youth to strengthen their bonds to community and education. Savvy was named one of BRW’s fastest growing companies in 2015.

Latest media releases

Want to receive offers, deals and finance tips from Savvy?
Sign up below
Australian woman saving money

We'd love to chat, how can we help?

By clicking "Submit", you agree to be contacted by a Savvy Agency Owner and to receive communications from Savvy which you can unsubscribe from at any time. Read our Privacy Policy.