Retirement Savings Plan Gains Popularity Among Young People

Based on the results of the 2024 Amphitéa/Cercle de l’Épargne survey titled “The French, Savings, and Retirement,” conducted by IFOP and CECOP, the Cercle de l’Épargne has published a study focusing on how people under 35 view retirement and aging, their expectations, and how they plan for their own transition to retirement.
 

18- to 34-Year-Olds Worried About Their Standard of Living in Retirement
62% of 18- to 34-year-olds believe their pension will be insufficient to allow them to live comfortably in retirement. Only 21% of this generation rely on pensions provided by retirement plans (basic and supplemental) to maintain their standard of living in retirement, while 37% of all respondents cited this source.
 

Is Saving for Retirement Second Nature for Young People?
61% of respondents aged 25 to 34 say they are saving for retirement (compared to 58% of all non-retirees and 53% of the general population). Despite seemingly limited savings capacity, more than one in two young adults aged 18–24 (52% to be exact) do the same.
When it comes to their future retirement, 25- to 34-year-olds prefer financial savings other than life insurance (44% of responses), while 18- to 24-year-olds struggle to choose between financial savings and real estate investment.
 

The Retirement Savings Plan is highly popular among young people
: 62% of 18- to 24-year-olds and 56% of 25- to 34-year-olds consider this investment attractive (57% for the general population). 58% of 18- to 24-year-olds have either already opened a PER (13%) or are considering doing so (45%). Among their older peers, aged 25 to 34, 24% say they have already opened a PER and 39% are considering doing so. Young people prefer receiving a pension payout over a lump-sum payout. Their distance from retirement and fears of low pensions explain this choice, which is not shared by those over 50, who prefer a lump-sum payout.
 

Health Is the Top Priority for Young People When It Comes to “Aging Well”
For 55% of respondents under the age of 35, the concept of “aging well” is primarily about health. “Aging well” also involves financial security, which includes “owning one’s primary residence.”
 

Nearly 60% of respondents in this generation say they are concerned about the issue of long-term care. While they prefer public funding for care in old age, they share their elders’ conviction that, just as with retirement, they will need to draw on their savings. The youngest respondents stand out in that more of them than their elders are considering drawing on family assets.
 

The aging population and a series of pension reforms are causing young French people to worry about the size of their pensions. Concerned about their standard of living when they begin receiving their pension benefits, they support retirement savings and are willing to set up a Retirement Savings Plan as soon as possible.

(Analysis by Sarah Le Gouez, Secretary General of the Cercle de l’Épargne)