50 Money-Related Questions to Ask Your Partner

Highlights:

• Talking about money with your partner can help you define shared financial goals and develop strategies to reach them. It can also help you identify and resolve financial disagreements.
• Check in with your partner about a variety of financial topics, including their budget, spending and saving habits, credit health and plans for retirement.
• Regularly touch base with your partner about money, as your financial goals may change throughout the course of your relationship.

Money can be a source of conflict in even the most solid relationships — so much so that some couples avoid talking about their finances altogether. These 50 money-related questions can help you start the conversation.

Why should you talk to your partner about money?

Whether your relationship is new or you've been together for years, it's important to understand how your partner handles money. Are they a spender or a saver? Do they prefer to make purchases with cash or credit? What long-term retirement goals are they working toward?

The answers to these and other questions can help you define shared financial goals and develop strategies to reach them. They can also help you identify areas of conflict and resolve them before they escalate into full-blown arguments.

To get on the same page as your partner, make time to talk openly about a variety of money-related topics, from daily budgeting to debt management to retirement savings and more. Also, be sure to identify which financial goals are individual and which ones are shared.

Spending, saving and budgeting questions

These financial questions can help you and your partner establish a household budget, agree on how to split bills and identify weak spots in your saving and spending habits.

1. Are you more of a spender or a saver?
2. Do you keep a monthly budget?
3. What is your annual income?
4. How much money do you typically spend each month?
5. How do you typically spend your disposable income?
6. What's the most money you've ever spent at one time?
7. Do you feel it's important to ask for my permission before making a large purchase?
8. Which expenses would you cut to reduce your total spending?
9. Would you prefer to split utilities and other expenses equally or according to our income?
10. Should we open a joint bank account or keep our money separate?
11. How much do you save on a monthly basis?
12. Do you keep an emergency savings fund?
13. How do you maintain your long-term savings?
14. What are your long-term financial goals?
15. What would you do if you received lottery winnings, an inheritance or any other unexpected windfall?

Debt and credit questions

In a relationship, each partner's debt and credit scores can have an impact on their shared financial future. To better understand how your partner navigates the world of credit, begin with these questions.

1. What are your credit scores?
2. Do you regularly check your credit reports and credit scores?
3. Do you know how your credit habits impact your credit reports and credit scores?
4. How frequently do you pay for things using credit?
5. How many credit cards do you have?
6. Do you know the outstanding balance of each of your credit cards?
7. Do you know when your credit card billing cycles end?
8. How much do you pay in interest each month?
9. How much debt do you currently have?
10. Do you owe money to friends or family?
11. Do you have a plan to pay off your debt?
12. Have you ever fallen behind on payments for a loan or line of credit?
13. Have you ever defaulted on a loan?
14. Have you ever had to deal with debt collectors?
15. Have you ever filed for bankruptcy?

Children and family questions

Family-related finance topics can be intimidating, but they're particularly critical if you plan to maintain a healthy long-term relationship.

1. Do you owe alimony or child support to a previous partner?
2. How do you plan to teach your children about money?
3. Do you plan to contribute to your children's secondary education?
4. Do you plan to pursue secondary or post-secondary education for yourself — either now or in the future?
5. Would you accept a loan from a friend or relative?
6. Would you lend money to a friend or relative in need?
7. Do you plan to support your parents or other relatives as they age?
8. How much financial assistance would you offer your sick or elderly parents?
9. When you were growing up, did your parents discuss their financial challenges with you?
10. Did your parents teach you any important lessons about money?

Retirement and investing questions

If you and your partner hope to spend your golden years together, you'll also need to make sure you agree on your expectations leading up to and during retirement.

1. How do you hope to spend your retirement?
2. Where are you hoping to retire?
3. What is your ideal retirement age?
4. Do you expect to retire when your spouse does or at different times?
5. Do you have a long-term retirement savings strategy?
6. What retirement accounts do you have and how often do you contribute to them?
7. When can you afford to retire based on your current savings?
8. Do you expect to work at all during retirement?
9. What are your current investments?
10. What investments do you hope to make in the future?

While these questions can help guide important financial conversations, they are by no means exhaustive. Regularly touch base with your partner about money, as your financial goals may change throughout the course of your relationship. Remember, honest communication and compromise can help lay the foundation for shared financial success.