Americans are feeling more confident about their money management skills, yet the data paints a starkly different picture. According to the TIAA Institute and Stanford University’s Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center, U.S. adults correctly answered just 47% of questions on the Personal Finance Index this year — the lowest score recorded since the survey launched in 2017. The 28-question test covers foundational concepts including budgeting, borrowing, inflation, and retirement planning.
A Decade of Stagnation Turns Into Decline
Scores on the index have never exceeded 52% across its entire 10-year history, suggesting that financial literacy in America was already fragile before this latest drop. Experts point to pandemic-era financial strain and the overwhelming surge of social media financial influencers as key contributors to the deterioration. “It may be that financial stress is crowding out our cognitive ability to learn,” said Surya Kolluri, head of the TIAA Institute. “We have not enough time and too much information.”
Risk and Retirement: The Biggest Knowledge Gaps
The weakest areas involve risk and retirement. Fewer than one-third of respondents correctly answered questions about investment risk, diversification, and the dangers of concentrating savings in a single company. On retirement-related questions covering Social Security and Medicare, Americans averaged only 37% correct.
Meanwhile, a 2024 Pew Research Center survey found roughly half of U.S. adults believe they are knowledgeable about personal finance — a confidence gap that experts warn is itself dangerous. When people overestimate their abilities, they are less likely to seek guidance, potentially locking themselves into costly financial mistakes like carrying high-interest debt for years.