Disclosures
Projections
$100/Month Projection
For investing, we assume this person makes a $1,200 contribution a year for 40 years into a taxable investment portfolio. We assume this portfolio starts with a 91% allocation to the stock market, which gradually shift over time from more stocks to more bonds. Then we used a Monte Carlo simulation — a forward-looking, computer-based calculation in which we run portfolios through hundreds of different economic scenarios to determine a range of possible outcomes. The results reflect a 70% likelihood of achieving the amounts shown or better, and include the impact of the Ellevest annual plan fee ($129 per year) and taxes on interest, dividends, and forecast gains. This project assumes a constant rate of contribution, while the Ellevest portfolio projections are dynamic over time based on a salary curve.
For saving, we assume a $1,200 contribution a year for 40 years into a money market account with a constant after-tax interest rate of 3%.
The displayed returns are model outcomes, which means they do not depict the trading results of real Ellevest client assets. Forecasts or projections of investment outcomes are just estimates based upon assumptions about future capital market returns and economic factors, including the assumptions detailed above. These hypothetical performance estimates are limited by our ability to predict the inherently unpredictable market, and cannot guarantee future results.
$300/Month Projection
For investing, we assume this person makes a $3,600 contribution a year for 40 years into a taxable investment portfolio. We assume this portfolio starts with a 91% allocation to the stock market, which gradually shift over time from more stocks to more bonds. Then we used a Monte Carlo simulation — a forward-looking, computer-based calculation in which we run portfolios through hundreds of different economic scenarios to determine a range of possible outcomes. The results reflect a 70% likelihood of achieving the amounts shown or better, and include the impact of the Ellevest annual plan fee ($129 per year) and taxes on interest, dividends, and forecast gains. This project assumes a constant rate of contribution, while the Ellevest portfolio projections are dynamic over time based on a salary curve.
For saving, we assume a $3,600 contribution a year for 40 years into a money market account with a constant after-tax interest rate of 3%.
The displayed returns are model outcomes, which means they do not depict the trading results of real Ellevest client assets. Forecasts or projections of investment outcomes are just estimates based upon assumptions about future capital market returns and economic factors, including the assumptions detailed above. These hypothetical performance estimates are limited by our ability to predict the inherently unpredictable market, and cannot guarantee future results.
$500/Month Projection
For investing, we assume this person makes a $6,000 contribution a year for 40 years into a taxable investment portfolio. We assume this portfolio starts with a 91% allocation to the stock market, which gradually shift over time from more stocks to more bonds. Then we used a Monte Carlo simulation — a forward-looking, computer-based calculation in which we run portfolios through hundreds of different economic scenarios to determine a range of possible outcomes. The results reflect a 70% likelihood of achieving the amounts shown or better, and include the impact of the Ellevest annual plan fee ($129 per year) and taxes on interest, dividends, and forecast gains. This project assumes a constant rate of contribution, while the Ellevest portfolio projections are dynamic over time based on a salary curve.
For saving, we assume a $6,000 contribution a year for 40 years into a money market account with a constant after-tax interest rate of 3%.
The displayed returns are model outcomes, which means they do not depict the trading results of real Ellevest client assets. Forecasts or projections of investment outcomes are just estimates based upon assumptions about future capital market returns and economic factors, including the assumptions detailed above. These hypothetical performance estimates are limited by our ability to predict the inherently unpredictable market, and cannot guarantee future results.
RATINGS AND REVIEWS
Nerdwallet Rating as of October 2023.
All investing is subject to risk, including possible loss of the money invested.
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References
Missing out on $100 a day by saving:
Source Ellevest. To calculate “about $100,” we compared the wealth outcomes for a woman who begins investing at age 30 with one who began investing at age 40 after having saved in a bank for 10 years. Both women begin with an $85,000 salary at age 30 and all salaries were projected using a women-specific salary curve from Morningstar Investment Management LLC, a registered investment adviser and subsidiary of Morningstar, Inc., which includes the impact of inflation. We assume savings of 20% of salary each year. The bank savings account assumes an average annual yield of 1% and a 22% tax rate on the interest earned, with no account fees. The investment account assumes an investment with Ellevest using a low-cost diversified portfolio of ETFs beginning at 91% equity and gradually becoming more conservative during the last 20 years, settling at 56% equity by the end of the 50-year horizon. These results are determined using a Monte Carlo simulation—a forward-looking, computer-based calculation in which we run portfolios and savings rates through hundreds of different economic scenarios to determine a range of possible outcomes. The results reflect a 70% likelihood of achieving the amounts shown or better, and include the impact of Ellevest fees, inflation, and taxes on interest, dividends, and realized capital gains. We divided the calculated cost of waiting 10 years to invest, $341,181, by 3,650 (the number of days in 10 years). The resulting cost per day is about $93.47. Dividing that result by 24 hours results in $3.89 per hour.
To translate that result into pay rates, we assume a 30-day month, resulting in a cost per month of $2,843. We then assume the average number of hours worked per month is 160 (40 hours per week multiplied by 4 weeks), resulting in an hourly cost of $17.77.
The results presented are hypothetical, and do not reflect actual investment results, the performance of any Ellevest product, or any account of any Ellevest client, which may vary materially from the results portrayed for various reasons.
Lack of financial knowledge could cost you $5,059/year:
Source: Investment News. A recently released Allianz study showed that almost a third of Americans lack sufficient skills and knowledge to make sound financial decisions and that this ignorance costs the average household as much as $5,059 a year. Over a decade, this lack of awareness could amount to a deficit of $84,458 compared to households led by people who understand financial basics.
“Women earn 83 cents for every dollar earned by men. That’s a $900k disparity (or more) over a lifetime” as of January 2023. Over a 40-year career where wage growth is assumed to be 3% annually, lifetime earnings come to $5.2 million for the average male worker and $4.3 million for the average female worker when compensable factors are uncontrolled. The difference amounts to roughly $900K as a result of gendered opportunity barriers to holding higher-level, higher-paying jobs. This estimate does not account for lost benefits, investments, promotions, or other compounding factors on lifetime wealth.
“Sixty-two percent of women said they have unique investment needs” as of August 2020.
“74% of women die single” as of July 2018.