YouGov Finds 73% Pick £50,000 Over 50-50 Shot at £1 Million
Updated
Updated · bbc.co.uk · Jul 26
YouGov Finds 73% Pick £50,000 Over 50-50 Shot at £1 Million
3 articles · Updated · bbc.co.uk · Jul 26
Summary
4,600 adults surveyed by YouGov broke heavily for certainty, with 73% choosing an immediate £50,000, 21% taking the coin-flip chance at £1 million and 6% undecided.
82% of women chose the guaranteed payout versus 63% of men, echoing broader evidence that women tend to favor cash savings while men are more likely to invest in stocks.
28% of 18-to-24-year-olds took the gamble, compared with 11% of over-65s, suggesting age shaped risk appetite more than income alone.
£50,000 already exceeds the UK's median full-time annual pay by about £10,000, while AJ Bell's Sarah Coles said turning that sum into £1 million through a typical global fund would have taken nearly 38 years.
Loss aversion helps explain the result: Coles said people feel the pain of giving up a sure £50,000 more sharply than the potential thrill of winning £1 million.