How Many Americans Own Stock? The Answer Might Surprise You: 58% and Rising.

Many people might assume that only rich people own stocks, or that the stock market is only important for "big money" institutional investors like banks, endowments, and pension funds. That's not true. More people own stock than you might expect.

How many Americans own stock? According to Motley Fool research and Gallup polls, 58% of American adults own stock as of April 2026. That's a slight decline since 2025, when 62% of Americans held stock. But the long-term trend points to a larger numbers of Americans owning stocks. In 2013, only 52% of Americans owned stocks. That number has been consistently rising in the past 13 years and has nearly doubled since the 1980s.

Let's look at why it's important to understand how many Americans own stocks, and why more everyday people might want to keep buying stocks as part of their long-term financial goals.

Continue reading