A study by Perceptive Research showed 41 per cent of women reported being kept awake at night occasionally or often by money worries, compared to 35 per cent of men.

The research shows most Kiwi women (67 per cent) are eager to learn more about their personal finances, and 76 per cent say they have good or excellent finances.

Hazel Phillips, the spokeswoman from Creditsimple.co.nz, the company that commissioned the research, says in a press release the trick is for women to build on their position now so their long-term financial outlook is rosy.

“Women have traditionally been good at short-term financial planning – managing the household budget and making sure the bills are paid on time,” Phillips says.

“However, they’ve not been so great at planning for the long term. Small steps, taken early, can make a huge difference over time. Things like sacrificing one takeaway coffee a day and putting the money in a high-interest account will all add up.”

Lynda Moore, accountant and co-founder of the Money Mentalist, says that in relationships, money and finances should be a shared role.

She wasn’t surprised at the results that more women were kept awake at night by money worries than men.

“Generally, it’s the woman who is worried about it. Part of that is because they have the perception they either don’t know or aren’t good with money.”

They could also be busy focusing on their children and family, and don’t think about whether they have enough money saved for retirement, Moore says.

However, there were a lot of women who were “incredibly confident and competent with money”.

Her best advice for a woman wanting to learn more about her finances was to “take a deep breath, open up internet banking, and look at the numbers”.

Analyse your transactions for a month, and calculate if you were spending more than you earn, she says.

“That’s a really good starting point, because that will give you the confidence to either say, ‘I’m overspending’, or ‘I’ve got some surplus’.”

The study surveyed 1005 people in February.

By Claire Connell

First Published 5 March 2018

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