Research – Gender parity clarity: New Zealand’s deepest dive into KiwiSaver balances reveals crucial demographic insights

Results from the largest analysis of KiwiSaver, encompassing more than 3.2 million members, reveal no progress has been made on closing the gender retirement savings gap.  

With shades of the recent estimate by the World Economic Forum that at the existing rate of progress, full gender parity won’t be achieved until the year 2158, the report released today by Te Ara Ahunga Ora Retirement Commission shows the average gender KiwiSaver retirement savings gap remains at 25%. It also delivers essential insights into KiwiSaver balances, trends and opportunities. 

The Retirement Commission secured the services of Melville Jessup Weaver (MJW) actuaries to obtain the country’s most comprehensive current age and gender-related KiwiSaver stats. The results update an annual analysis that began in 2021 – then the first study of its kind, collecting previously unknown data about balances across these demographics. The new report provides a snapshot as at 31 December 2024 that – importantly – represents approximately 97% of Aotearoa’s KiwiSaver members.   

 
In a country in which more women (51%) than men are members of KiwiSaver, the research shows that despite efforts towards its reduction, the average gender KiwiSaver retirement savings gap has remained static at 25% since 2022 – and, in fact, has increased slightly for those aged 61-65. The gap generally increases across the age groups, rising above 25% after the age of 35 and peaking at around 37% for those aged 56-65. This translates into women having on average around $20,000 less in their KiwiSaver account than men as they approach retirement age.  

 
Of particular interest is where the gap is widest: between women and men in their 40s, 50s and 60s.  

“This pivotal information shows the combined long-term effect of factors such as the gender pay gap, time out of paid work, and the higher percentage of women than men who work part-time,” says Te Ara Ahunga Ora Policy Lead Dr Michelle Reyers.  

“It tells us that at an age when many women may be returning to the full-time paid workforce after years of unpaid caregiving and necessary part-time work, the effect comes more starkly into focus. 

“Also of significant interest is that as at 30 June 2024, the gender pay gap is 8.2% and trending downwards, yet we’re not seeing that decrease reflected in the average gender KiwiSaver retirement savings gap. The impact of compounding interest on balances informs some of this, as money invested earlier has time to grow, but if women’s balances are lower than men’s in younger life, they will likely remain lower.”

  
Also notable among the new demographic data is that women continue to have lower average balances than men across all groups, with the exception of those aged over 80. In almost all age groups, women are overrepresented among those with low balances and men are overrepresented among those with the highest balances. 

Retirement Commissioner Jane Wrightson says: “Thanks to the gender pay gap and other factors, women tend to earn less, which leads to saving less. Women tend to spend longer periods in unpaid work, and get hit harder by life shocks like unemployment and divorce.  

“This unchanged KiwiSaver retirement savings gap is one of several reasons why we’re advocating to get New Zealanders contributing more to KiwiSaver across the board. We’re arguing for system change, and one opportunity we’ve identified is to increase the default contribution rate of all individuals to at least 4%, with employers matching it at this level or contributing more. 

“KiwiSaver has been instrumental in promoting retirement savings in New Zealand, but it’s not working as well as it could for everyone. Changes made to the settings now will improve outcomes for all who contribute, and since women live longer on average than men and therefore have longer retirement periods to fund, for this demographic, a rethink is especially critical.” 

The Retirement Commissioner welcomes the recent changes made by the Government to paid parental leave by making matching contributions for those who continue to make their employee contribution, and would encourage that this be extended to all those on paid parental leave, not just those who can continue to make their own contributions.  

Key insights

• According to a survey of approximately 97% of Aotearoa’s KiwiSaver members (3,286, 614 people), the average KiwiSaver gender retirement savings gap remains 25%, as at 31 December 2024. 
• It has increased marginally for those aged 61-65 (from 35 to 36%). 
• The average KiwiSaver balance is $37,079, an increase of 16.5% from 2023 that likely reflects the strong performance of financial markets over the 2024 year. 
• Women’s average balance is $34,185 (an increase of 16.7%); men’s average balance is $42,664 (an increase of 16.6%). 
• The widest gaps are between women and men in their 40s and 50s, and those approaching age 65.  
• On average, men in their 40s have about $12,000 (or 30%) more invested in KiwiSaver than women; men in their 50s have about $20,000 (or 36%) more; and men aged 61-65 have approximately $21,500 (or 36%) more. 
• Although there’s still a relatively large number of members with KiwiSaver balances below $10,000, this has trended downwards, declining from 41% of members in 2021 to about a third of members in 2024. 
• There are more women than men with balances lower than $10,000 across almost all age brackets. 
• 61% of the people with balances below $10,000 are aged 35 and younger. 
• 17% of members aged 51 to 65 have less than $10,000 in KiwiSaver (note that these members have not had access to KiwiSaver for their full working lives). 
• 12% of KiwiSaver members have a balance over $80,000. There are fewer women than men with balances above $80,000 across almost all age brackets. 
• Only 22% of women aged 51-65 have balances greater than $80,000, whereas 32% of men in this age group have balances greater than $80,000.