Ray Dalio says nothing matters more than choosing the right partner — do you match on these 3 crucial money principles?

There are a lot of qualities we might look for in a life partner: trustworthiness, shared values, maybe a sense of humour. One that might not be top of mind is whether you have a similar money mindset — but it’s an important factor to consider.

There’s “no more important decision” than picking the right life partner, Ray Dalio, founder of Bridgewater Associates, said in a recent post (1).

Indeed, if he had to choose between meaningful work or meaningful relationships, he’d choose meaningful relationships, and “the most meaningful one is with a great life partner.”

The payoff isn’t just emotional; it’s “practical,” he says.

And when it comes to practicalities, a shared money mindset — when purchasing major assets, paying the bills, saving for the future or spending for fun — can potentially reduce conflict down the road.

Do you align with your partner on these three fundamental financial values?

1. Financial budgets

The 2025 Love and Money survey issued by Money Mentors found that almost half (47%) of Canadians have had financial disagreements with their partner that impacted their relationship negatively. Of those, 48% disagree over day-to-day spending and 27% disagree about the overuse of credit (2).

Most troubling is that more than one in 10 (11%) couples considered breaking up, separating or divorcing as a result of financial stress, particularly amongst millennials and Gen X.

Overcoming these challenges starts by creating a shared budget. Consider your combined income and all of your shared and individual expenses, then decide on how to split those expenses. There are a number of budgeting strategies to choose from, such as the 50/30/20 rule (50% for household expenses, 30% for ‘wants’ and 20% for savings and debt).

A budget should also set spending limits, especially if one partner is a saver and the other is a spender. It’s also a good time to strategize on paying off existing debts and saving for future goals, such as buying a home, raising children or retirement.

You’ll also have to fund that budget, which means deciding if you’ll have one joint bank account, or if you’ll take the ‘me, you, ours’ approach and have both separate accounts and a joint one.

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2. Financial infidelity

Having separate accounts is one thing; having secret accounts is another. Financial infidelity — where one partner lies about their finances — could involve anything from hiding frivolous purchases you’re embarrassed about to lying about major gambling debt.

Whatever the case, for many partners, it’s just as bad as physical infidelity.

More than one in three (34%) of Canadians have admitted to keeping financial secrets from their partner, according to a survey by Credit Canada and the Financial Planning Standards Council (FPSC). And slightly more (36%) have lied about a financial matter to a partner (3).

Another study found that, of Canadians in a relationship who have a financial secret, 23% have two or more skeletons in their closet, such as hiding purchases (31%), hiding a poor credit score (28%), hiding cash (21%), hiding bank accounts (14%) and hiding a secret line of credit or loan (10%) (4).

To recover from financial infidelity, a couple may want to seek out help from a financial counsellor or advisor. Whatever the case, it will require openness and transparency.

3. Financial risk tolerance

When it comes to investing for the future, one partner may be more risk-averse than the other, which could impact how they choose to save for retirement. In general, some studies have found that men are more risk tolerant with their finances than women, though previous investment experience also tends to play a role (5).

Risk tolerance can impact both your spending decisions and your portfolio allocation. Maybe one partner is more willing to take risks to maximize the couple’s future retirement income, while the other prefers a slow and steady approach — smaller returns but less risk overall.

If you can’t come to an agreement on how to invest your money, it could help to bring in a financial advisor.

For example, an advisor could help a couple calculate the rate of return required to achieve specific goals. Risk tolerance could be different if you’re talking about a shorter-term goal like buying a house or a longer-term goal like retirement.

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Increasing your net worth

Picking the ‘right’ partner could even increase your net worth over time. One study published in Journal of Sociology found that married respondents experienced per person net worth increases of 77% over single respondents — and their wealth increased 16% for each year of marriage (6).

If both partners work, you have two incomes instead of one, and you can combine and share costs. And, if each partner dedicates a portion of their income to savings and investments, then the couple benefits from economies of scale.

But consider what happens if you’re not on the same page: If one partner invests 15% of their income while the other spends it, the couple could be out hundreds of thousands of dollars when they retire compared to having both partners invest 15% over several decade. That could also breed resentment.

Communication is key. Consider scheduling money ‘dates’ — say, every month — to see if you’re on track with your budget and how you’re progressing on long-term goals.

Article sources

We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our editorial ethics and guidelines.

Reddit (1); The Canadian Press (2); Credit Canada (3); Rates.ca (4); Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization (5); Journal of Sociology (6)