--- title: Most Millennial and Gen Z Investors Say Crypto Is Part of Their Retirement Strategy description: More than half of Gen Z and millennials are investing in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin as part of their retirement planning strategy. authors: - name: Javier Simon url: https://money.com/author/javier-simon/ bio: Javier is a personal finance reporter covering retirement, investing, crypto and more. His work has appeared on leading financial websites including NerdWallet, Bankrate and SmartAsset. He’s also written for newspapers, magazines and video. at_money_since: 2021 articles: 39 covers: - Investing - Banking - Business - Career Advice - Credit - Economy and Politics - Housing - Loans - Personal Finance - Retirement - Shopping - Taxes - Technology former_staff: true published: '2022-01-21T21:17:44.000Z' modified: '2024-01-10T13:08:48.000Z' section: Investing tags: - Bitcoin - Cryptocurrency word_count: 638 canonical: https://money.com/gen-z-millennials-invest-crypto-retirement/ type: Article source: structured-blocks --- > **Disclosure:** We research all brands listed and may earn a fee from our partners. Research and financial considerations may influence how brands are displayed. Not all brands are included. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/). ![Collage of three millennials using their smart phones with cryptocurrency coins in the background](https://img.money.com/2022/01/News-Millennials-Gen-Z-Invest-Cryptocurrency-For-Retirement.jpg) Cryptocurrencies like [Bitcoin](https://money.com/what-is-bitcoin/) and Ether are making their way into young investors’ retirement plans. According to a recent survey by [Capitalize](https://www.hicapitalize.com/resources/perceptions-of-retirement-survey/), an IRA rollover service, 56% of [Gen Z adults](https://money.com/gen-z-rewriting-personal-finance-rules-real-time/) (18+) and 54% of millennials say they are including [cryptocurrency](https://money.com/what-is-cryptocurrency/) or [NFTs](https://money.com/what-are-nfts/) as part of their retirement strategy. That’s compared to only 20% of Gen X and 14% of baby boomer survey respondents who said they are investing in crypto to help them save for retirement. (How reliable is this survey data? Capitalize noted that respondents were gathered through the Amazon Mechanical Turk survey platform, and that their answers were "self-reported and are subject to issues, such as exaggeration, recency bias, and telescoping." For the sake of comparison, a [Pipslay survey](https://piplsay.com/the-great-crypto-rush-how-are-americans-investing-in-it/) from May 2021 reported that 49% of millennials and only 13% of Gen Z own cryptocurrencies.) Beyond retirement strategies, younger people are more likely to be comfortable betting on cryptocurrency in general. In a 2021 study by the personal loan company [Stilt](https://www.stilt.com/blog/2021/03/vast-majority-crypto-buyers-millennials-gen-z/), more than 94% of people who own crypto were millennials or members of [Gen Z](https://money.com/gen-z-rewriting-personal-finance-rules-real-time/). Moreover, 59% of Gen Z and 46% of millennials believe they can become millionaires by investing in cryptocurrencies, according to a survey by the research company [Engine Insights](https://engine-insights.com/blog/the-pulse-of-the-american-consumer-2021-pt-42/). Younger people also have a lot more time to wait before they're going to retire. As a result, they presumably can take on more risk with their investment strategies. This may be another reason why crypto is more popular among younger investors' retirement saving plans. But considering its volatility, is it safe to devote any portion of your retirement portfolio to crypto? ## Risks of investing in crypto for retirement Tales about people cashing in big after investing in crypto are all over social media. But it’s important to note these success stories cover but a sliver of the population. Many investors lose money chasing easy profits in the immensely volatile environment that is the [crypto world](https://money.com/bitcoin-crypto-crash-fed-omicron/). Let’s look at Bitcoin, the most popular cryptocurrency today. Bitcoin was launched in 2008 when it was worth less than a penny. In April 2011, it climbed to $1. In November 2021, its price breached the $68,000 mark. But in January 2022, the price of Bitcoin is closer to $42,000. Some are predicting that [Bitcoin will hit $100,000](https://money.com/bitcoin-price-predictions-100000/) in the near future, but no one really knows where prices are heading. By contrast, the stock market hasn’t been nearly as volatile — and traditionally has climbed upward for investors over the long haul. Between 2000 and 2019, the S&P 500’s annual return was an average of about 8.87%. Between 2010 and 2020, the S&P 500 delivered an average annual return of 13.6%. More recently, the [S&P rose 100%](https://money.com/stock-market-doubled-pandemic-low/) from the time stocks bottomed out in March 2020 to August 2021. That’s not to say cryptocurrency doesn’t deserve a place in a well-executed and diversified retirement strategy — especially because [Social Security likely won't fund your retirement](https://money.com/social-security-benefits-run-out-of-money/) on its own. But most experts suggest you shouldn't devote more than 5% of your net worth to [high-risk investments](https://money.com/buy-the-dip-stock-crypto-strategy/) like crypto. If you’re ready to invest in crypto for retirement, bear in mind that most companies limit 401(k) account options to a menu of investments that typically doesn’t include cryptocurrency. However, you may be able to open a self-directed IRA that provides access to crypto. More of these so-called [crypto IRA](https://money.com/bitcoin-ira-risks/) providers have been popping up. Some examples include Bitcoin IRA, Rocket Dollar and iTrust Capital. These self-directed IRA accounts provide the same tax benefits as IRAs, but some let you incorporate cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, [Ethereum](https://money.com/what-is-ethereum-everything-know-cryptocurrency/) and [Dogecoin](https://money.com/what-is-dogecoin/) into your retirement strategy. 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