Roth Ira Ownership Statistics

In this post, we explore a comprehensive overview of Roth IRA ownership in the United States, backed by a collection of revealing statistics. Let’s dive into the numbers to gain insights into the demographics, trends, and behaviors surrounding this popular retirement savings vehicle.

Statistic 1

"About 33% of US households own an IRA."

Statistic 2

"Roughly 27% of these households also own a Roth IRA."

Statistic 3

"As of 2019, 22% of families held Roth IRAs."

Statistic 4

"In 2018, the average Roth IRA account size was around $39,108."

Statistic 5

"In 2016, 31% of Roth IRA owners were under the age of 40."

Statistic 6

"As of 2020, about 24 million US households have a Roth account."

Statistic 7

"Only 12% of 20-somethings own a Roth IRA."

Statistic 8

"Over 67% of Roth IRA owners are married."

Statistic 9

"Roth IRA ownership rate among African Americans and Hispanics is just 21% and 18.3% compared to 51.4% among whites."

Statistic 10

"As of 2020, 8% of those making under $25,000 annually owned a Roth IRA."

Statistic 11

"Roughly 40% of Roth IRA account owners contributed at least once during 2019."

Statistic 12

"More than 70% of Roth account balances held by those age 69 and younger are in equities."

Statistic 13

"More women than men own Roth IRAs (56% to 49%) as of 2019."

Statistic 14

"People in the age group 35-44 years are most likely to own Roth IRAs, accounting for around 27% of all owners."

Statistic 15

"From 1991 to 2016, Roth individual retirement account assets increased from $77.6 billion to more than $800 billion."

Statistic 16

"Approximately 48.9% of Roth IRA owners have a bachelor's degree or higher."

Statistic 17

"70% of Roth IRA owners are fully employed."

Statistic 18

"People under age 30 have the highest probability of contributing to a Roth IRA."

Statistic 19

"Roth IRA owners are more likely than traditional IRA owners to invest in “riskier” assets, with 63% having more than half of their IRA assets invested in equities."

The statistics reveal a mixed landscape of Roth IRA ownership in the United States. While there is a significant number of households holding IRAs, only a portion of them have Roth IRAs, with disparities in ownership rates across demographic groups such as age, income, and race. Despite this, there has been a notable increase in Roth IRA assets over the years, indicating a growing trend towards this retirement investment option. It is clear that there are opportunities to promote wider access and understanding of Roth IRAs, particularly among younger individuals and minority groups, as well as to address the differences in investment preferences and contribution behaviors among account holders.