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Spouses who don’t ask one question \u2014 “your 401(k)<\/a> or mine?” \u2014 could be losing out on retirement money, research finds.<\/p>\n By failing to allocate retirement savings to the spouse with the employer that provides the highest match rate<\/a>, couples may be leaving money on the table, according to 2025 research published in the American Economic Review<\/a>.<\/p>\n By switching retirement contributions to the account with the higher match rate, 1 in 5 couples could increase their savings by an estimated $750 per year, note the research authors: Taha Choukhmane, assistant professor of finance at MIT Sloan School of Management; Lucas Goodman, an economist at the Treasury Department; and Cormac O’Dea, assistant professor of economics at Yale University. <\/p>\n More from Women and Wealth:<\/p>\n Here’s a look at more coverage in CNBC’s Women & Wealth special report, which highlights success stories and strategies for women to grow long-term wealth and make informed financial decisions.<\/p>\n By not focusing on the highest match, couples may sacrifice an average of $14,000 in retirement wealth over their lifetime, which may climb to as high as $40,000 in additional wealth at retirement for 10% of couples, according to the research.<\/p>\n “The absence of coordination can be a choice, but it’s a costly choice,” Choukhmane said.<\/p>\n Couples who don’t sit down and talk about their finances are likely missing gaps like this that\u00a0they could address, said Kate Winget, chief revenue officer at Morgan Stanley at Work, a provider of equity compensation plans for public and private companies.<\/p>\n Which couples tend to coordinate best<\/p>\n Choukmane said the research aims to gauge whether couples coordinate their finances as a household or instead manage their money individually. <\/p>\n In the latter case, a couple is like roommates living under the same roof, yet make their financial decisions independently, prioritizing each individual, he said. In the former, couples coordinate household financial decision-making so they optimize their decisions together, Choukmane said.<\/p>\n Retirement plans are one example, but there are\u00a0many\u00a0other opportunities for couples to coordinate their financial decisions and, therefore, realize financial gains, he said.<\/p>\n Another example: One spouse may have credit card debt with annual interest rates ranging from 20% to 30%, while the other spouse has cash sitting in a checking account earning nothing, Choukmane said.<\/p>\n “They could save a lot of money by moving money from the checking account to repay the credit card,” Choukmane said. “But that requires a certain level of trust, of coordination, of agreeing on things, of giving up some independence.”<\/p>\n Couples who tend to do a better job at coordinating their finances often have been married for longer and shared a bank account before getting married, according to Choukmane.<\/p>\n