Similar salaries dont necessarily mean similar savings rates, a maddening quirk of human behavior EBRI and J.P Morgan Asset Management set out to study.

The organizations find that, despite having similar salaries, the middle 50% of the research population save about 3% more of their salary at all ages than the bottom 25% of savers.

This 3% difference in savings behavior, if sustained over time, could ultimately explain some of the meaningful gaps between the current retirement plan account balances of middle and low savers.

The study also suggests that for most households, a 401k appears to be their primary retirement savings vehicle, underscoring the importance of the employers role in savings.

Importantly:

The study is part of a new collaboration between the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) and J.P. Morgan Asset Management, which was announced on Wednesday. The project will leverage 22 million Chase households and 27 million 401(k) plan participant records, offering the first truly holistic view of how U.S. households spend and save.

EBRI has been analyzing 401k participant behavior for decades based on the EBRI/ICI Participant-Directed Retirement Plan Data Collection database, Lori Lucas, President and CEO of EBRI, said in a statement. This new collaboration with J.P. Morgan takes this analysis to another level as we can now gain insight into both the spending and the saving sides of the equation to better understand peoples full financial picture.

This collaboration is a significant milestone for the retirement industry, harnessing Chases relationship with nearly half of American households and EBRIs strong pedigree in the employee benefit space, added Katherine Roy, Chief Retirement Strategist, J.P. Morgan Asset Management.

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4 Reasons for Higher Retirement Savings Rates - The 401(k) Specialist