According to a new study by a consumer financial services company Bankrate, American investors, in an environment filled with concerns about inflation and low-interest rates, said that they would prefer to buy gold rather than bitcoin in the next decade.

Of those surveyed, 13% said they would prefer to buy gold and precious metals as a way to invest their unnecessary money over the next ten or more years. According to last year's survey, there were 14% of such statements. The percentage has shifted in a smaller direction, but so far, it has remained in the same range as in the previous eight years.

On the other hand, only 9% said that they prefer to buy bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies, compared with 4% in 2019 and 2% in 2018.

Despite the increase in the percentage of those who want to invest in cryptocurrencies, the majority of Americans said that it is still inconvenient for them to do this.

This year's largest investment choice was real estate, which was chosen by 28%. Cash savings came in second place. Stocks are in third place, which was chosen by only 16% of American investors against 28% last year. Gold is in fourth place, followed by Bitcoin and bonds.

It's not surprising that Americans are now choosing real estate investments due to low-interest rates and the popular real estate market.

Cash was a very unexpected choice. According to Greg McBride, Bankrate's Chief Financial Analyst, such a high preference for cash, with low-interest rates, and renewed concern about inflation, is paradoxical. And it is even more destructive when inflation exceeds the profitability of monetary investments.

In any case, fears about inflation have not yet affected how Americans choose to invest their money, with about 58% of respondents saying that the way they invest will not change over the next ten years, even with inflationary pressures rising.

Throughout the previous month, Bankrate surveyed 1,008 American adults.