Our Research
Commonwealth conducts original qualitative and quantitative research with financially vulnerable people—including Black, Latinx, and women-led households who disproportionately experience financial insecurity. We also interview industry experts and academics. We take what we learn and translate findings into actionable insights and practical solutions designed to change systems to work better for financially vulnerable people. We work with community groups, employers, financial services firms, fintechs, policymakers, and workplace solution providers to design and test real-world, practical solutions that not only work for individuals and families, but are also scalable and address the business needs of our partners.
We share the results of our work to provide you with innovative ideas, practical insights, and the tools you need to act. Explore our publications below.
Advancing Your Business Through Worker Financial Security Strategies
Employee financial insecurity is pervasive, intense, and distracting. Both employers and employees stand to benefit from financial security tools and strategies offered through the workplace.
Short-Term Financial Stability: A Foundation for Security and Well-Being
The Aspen Institute Financial Security Program convenes the Consumer Insights Collaborative, an effort across nine leading nonprofits (including Commonwealth) to collectively understand and amplify data for the public good, specifically about the financial lives of low- to moderate-income households. The…
Illuminating a Hidden Safety Net: Lessons from Research into Employee Hardship Funds
Financial insecurity is increasingly common among households in the United States (US). Over a quarter of families in the US report that it is difficult to get by, or they feel they are just getting by. In 2014, almost 60%…
Prize-Linked Savings in Credit Unions: 2018
In 2018, Prize-Linked Savings (PLS) products continued to expand and reach more people. All of the PLS products highlighted in this piece saw growth, from the flagship Save to Win (STW) product to the new products from 2018; Lucky Lagniappe,…
Product Spotlight: Reading Cooperative Bank’s Employee Emergency Loan
Inspired by the pervasive lack of personal savings nationwide, Reading Cooperative Bank in Massachusetts mobilized to add an “Employee Emergency Loan” to their suite of employee benefits. The loan allows full and part-time Reading Cooperative employees same-day access to up…
Commonwealth 2018 Highlights
In 2018, we developed new ideas, tested innovative solutions, and worked with partners to improve the lives of financially vulnerable Americans at scale. Here are just a few examples of the work we’re proud of from 2018.
Scratch & Save: Engaging Digital Experiences Build Financial Security
Commonwealth and EARN tested a digital prize-linked saving campaign called Scratch & Save to motivate weekly small-dollar savings on EARN’s SaverLife platform. This report provides an overview of Scratch & Save and highlights key takeaways that can inspire and inform…
Fulfilling the Promise of FinTech: The Case for a Nonprofit Vision and Leadership
nLIFT, or Nonprofit Leaders in Financial Technology, is a new consortium of leaders from nonprofit organizations around the country. We come from different regions and have different operating models but two things unite us. First, we are committed to working…
Savers Win at Tax Time: Testing Digital Strategies to Promote Tax Time Saving
Commonwealth and EARN tested a pledge and prize campaign to promote tax-time saving among the digital community of low-income people on EARN’s SaverLife platform. Our goals were to better understand the behavior of financially vulnerable people at tax time, explore…
Tax Time and Beyond: Future Directions for Advancing Financial Security
Tax time is a unique and critical opportunity for financially vulnerable people to build financial security. While there have been some efforts to build financial security at tax time, more can be done to help people take advantage of the…