The Blubber

A majority of Americans are feeling behind when it comes to emergency savings, according to Bankrate’s latest Emergency Savings survey. Nearly two-thirds (62%) say they’re not where they’d like to be, while only 1 in 5 (20%) report having more saved now than they did at the beginning of 2024.

The survey, conducted in September and based on responses from around 2,500 U.S. adults, found that inflation and rising expenses remain key obstacles to building emergency savings.

“Expenses — and the fact that those expenses have gone up — have been a major headwind this year, especially for households that now have less in emergency savings than they did at the start of 2024,” said Greg McBride, CFA, Bankrate’s chief financial analyst.

Key Findings from the Emergency Savings Survey

• One-third of Americans have less saved than earlier this year.
  About 33% say their emergency savings have decreased since the beginning of 2024.
• Inflation and high expenses are top barriers.
  Among respondents who haven’t increased their savings, 53% point to rising prices as the reason, and 43% cite having too many expenses.
• Most people feel behind.
  A combined 62% of Americans say they’re behind on saving for emergencies — 37% feel significantly behind, while 26% feel slightly behind. Only 23% say they’re right on track, and just 15% feel ahead.
• A notable portion still has no emergency savings.
  Nearly 1 in 5 (17%) said they had no emergency savings at the beginning of the year — and still don’t.

Generational and Income Breakdown

Older generations are more likely than younger ones to say they feel behind on savings. Conversely, younger generations are more likely to report feeling on track.

Across income levels, households overwhelmingly feel behind rather than ahead:

Few Have Boosted Their Savings in 2024

Only 20% of Americans have increased their emergency savings since the year began — 16% say they have somewhat more, and 4% report much more. Meanwhile, 30% say their savings haven’t changed.

At the same time, 33% say they now have less emergency savings, with 15% reporting somewhat less and 18% much less. Notably, 17% say they still have no emergency savings — just as they didn’t at the start of the year.