For Gen Z, saving for vacation tops retirement: JPM study
Kerry Hannon· Senior Columnist
Sat, July 18, 2026 at 8:39 PM GMT+5:30
5 min read
An astonishing number of Gen Zers aged 18 to 29 are opting to save for a vacation rather than for retirement.
Nearly half of Gen Z folks are prioritizing vacations over their retirement savings, the highest of any age cohort, according to a newreport from JPMorgan Asset Management.
Paying off student loans and cobbling together emergency funds are also far more important to them than saving for their future golden years
“This may be due to limited understanding of the benefits of starting early (especially compounding) and more immediate financial pressures — debt feels urgent, and retirement can seem distant, making it easier to defer saving,” Alyson Frost, head of retirement insights at JPMorgan Asset Management, told Yahoo Finance
In January, the firm conducted online surveys with more than 2000 people who had contributed to their defined contribution retirement plans
But before we shame these younger workers, know this problem runs deep for people of all ages
A majority of those surveyed aren’t kicking in as much as they should to their employer-provided retirement plans and know they should be doing more, according to the research
When forced to make trade-offs between retirement savings and other goals, more than half of workers of all ages put building emergency savings over saving for retirement
Roughly 3 in 10 place a higher priority on paying off education debt or general debt, while a similar share save for vacations more than for their golden years, the researchers found
And 1 in 10 say higher living expenses have led to reduced retirement contributions — or none at all
“This reflects both an intention gap and real-world constraints,” Frost said. “Higher prices and inflation appear to be creating a real ‘budget squeeze’ effect that is spilling over from day‑to‑day spending into retirement behavior.”
Retirement account leakage ‘remains high’
Not investing in your retirement account is troubling, but withdrawing money from it is potentially worse.
“Plan leakage remains high: 1 in 4 have taken a loan and/or early withdrawal, with another 19% planning to do so,” Frost said.
“The persistence of loans/early withdrawals suggests many participants are using their retirement plan as a”
The primary reason people are tapping their retirement savings is to cover unexpected expenses, followed by a home purchase, reducing credit card debt, helping a family member, and healthcare costs.
