Would you choose £50,000 over the chance of £1m?

You have the option to win £50,000 instantly or toss a coin for a 50/50 chance of £1 million.

Which one would you choose?

According to YouGov’s survey of thousands of people, the vast majority decide to receive £50,000. Women voted 82% in favor of guaranteed cash.

The survey has sparked a debate about why Britons are more risk averse than people in the US.

So why are the results so clear and what are the financial and psychological factors at play?

Unfortunately, we have little chance of having such an option, but there are still some interesting lessons about how we manage our money.

Do you agree with the majority?

Almost three-quarters (73%) of the 4,600 adults asked in the survey said they would receive the £50,000 now.

Just over a fifth (21%) tried their hand at £1 million and 6% of those asked couldn’t decide.

The gender gap in the results is striking. Around 82% of women preferred £50,000, while 63% of men did.

This is men’s Twice as likely as women to invest in stocks and sharesAnd women more likely than men to subscribe to cash ISAs.

Does the choice depend on how much you earn?

Many people may opt for the £50,000 guarantee and decide that this in itself is a life-changing sum of money.

All in all, this is £10,000 more than the average earnings of full-time workers in the UK over the course of a year. according to official statistics.

However, young people often earn less but still according to this survey18 to 24 year olds are more willing to bet over £1 million than other age groups.

About 28% prefer to flip a coin, compared to just 11% among those over 65 (their grandparents’ generation).

There is a different turning point for everyone. Repeat the survey but instead guarantee £5 or take a 50/50 chance for £100; most people will probably prefer the £100 bet. After all, many people bet at least £2 a week on the National Lottery in the hope of winning.

As these amounts increase, your risk appetite becomes clearer.

Why not just invest £50k?

One option is to take the guaranteed £50,000 and hope it increases over time.

Saving money will help by: the magic of compound interest.

Alternatively, by investing the money you can take more risk but potentially get a bigger reward.

When it comes to investments, what happened in the past will not have to happen in the future.

But according to Sarah Coles of investment firm AJ Bell, you would have to have invested £50,000 in a typical global fund some 38 years ago for it to be worth £1 million today.