Morgan Stanley Sustainable Signals: Individual Investors Remain Positive on Sustainable Investing Despite Small Dip in Allocations

Individual investor interest in sustainable investing continues to rise even as allocations slightly decline, according to a new “Sustainable Signals” report by the Morgan Stanley Institute for Sustainable Investing. The survey polled 2,250 active individual investors across North America, Europe and Asia Pacific (APAC) between February and March of this year to assess attitudes toward sustainable investing and where investors see the greatest opportunities and challenges.

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Globally, 92% of respondents say they are very or somewhat interested in sustainable investing, up from 88% in 2025. Three quarters already have some portfolio exposure to sustainable investments, 50% of whom first included sustainable options more than five years ago. Still, the average allocation in 2026 is down slightly from 2025 (31% versus 33%), pointing to a potential disconnect between sentiment and behavior.

“Our latest Sustainable Signals survey shows that performance continues to be the top driver of individual investors’ interest in sustainable investing as they look to achieve both market-rate returns and real-world impacts,” said Jessica Alsford, Chief Sustainability Officer and Chair of the Institute for Sustainable Investing at Morgan Stanley. “Looking ahead, a majority of individual investors see greater opportunity for sustainable investments in private markets, especially for portfolio diversification and investing in innovation.”

Notable survey findings include:

• Financial returns – For those interested in sustainable investing, 85% say the top reason is either support for real-world outcomes alongside market-rate returns or the expectation that sustainable investments may offer stronger returns than traditional peers. Expectations about returns also drive decision-making. Among the 64% planning to increase their allocation to sustainable investments over the next year, confidence in performance is the most common reason. Conversely, the 5% planning to decrease their allocation cite weaker returns as the primary reason.
• Private markets – 64% of respondents see greater opportunity for sustainable investments in private versus public markets, as a way to diversify portfolios, invest in new technologies or business models, and add exposure to high-growth investments. While three-quarters of global respondents either currently invest in private markets or plan to, those with the most portfolio exposure to sustainable investments (>30%) are more likely to invest in private markets today (55%).
• Priorities and concerns – Globally, investors cite broad-based sustainability as their top investment theme (25%), followed by economic empowerment, and health and wellness (both 15%). Compared to 2025, more respondents rate barriers to sustainable investing as “very significant” (25% versus 21%), with greenwashing topping the list (32%), followed by lack of transparency in data (30%) and limited knowledge (27%).
• Financial advisors – The majority of respondents (79%) indicate that they would select a financial advisor or investment platform based on their sustainable investing offerings – making it a differentiating factor for wealth mangers.

For the first time, Sustainable Signals polled individual investors in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). While not included in global totals to maintain comparability to the 2025 survey, MENA respondents share similar views to those in other regions. The majority are very or somewhat interested in sustainable investing (over 90%), want to support real-world outcomes alongside market-rate returns (56%), and rank broad-based sustainability and greenwashing as their top priority and concern, respectively.

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