Written by Tanza Loudenback
2019-08-21T14:31:00Z
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- The typical American household has a net worth of about $97,300.
- To be in the richest 20% of the US population, you need a household net worth of nearly $500,000.
- It can be helpful to see how your net worth compares with others', broken down by age. For example, the richest 20% of 41- to 45-year-olds are worth at least $379,000.
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The journey to building wealth is a highly personal one, but it may be helpful to know how you compare with others along the way.
To find out the median net worth of Americans at every age, Harness Wealth, a firm that matches financial advisers with clients, used household-wealth data from the Federal Reserve's 2016 Survey of Consumer Finances and developed a proprietary classification of ages and ranges of net worth.
The typical American family had a net worth of $97,290 in 2016, which is the most recent data available. In other words, 50% of the population has a net worth below that threshold, and 50% has a net worth above it.
People in the richest 20% are worth at least $500,000, according to Harness Wealth's data. You can compare your net worth using its net-worth calculator.
Read more: How much money you need to retire at every age and comfortably live on investment income
It's important to understand the difference between income and net worth. Net worth is what you're left with after subtracting your liabilities (what you owe) from your assets (what you own), whereas income is what you earn each year and what's reported on an income-tax return. A high income doesn't necessarily translate to a high net worth, which is why the latter is often a better benchmark for measuring wealth.
Keep reading to find out what it takes to be in the richest 20% of US households, according to Harness Wealth's calculations, as well as what it takes to be in top 50% and the top 10%.
18 to 25 years old: $22,750
To be in the top 50%, you need a net worth of at least $4,000.
To be in the top 10%, you need a net worth of at least $65,510.
26 to 30 years old: $82,500
To be in the top 50%, you need a net worth of at least $12,000.
To be in the top 10%, you need a net worth of at least $142,710.
31 to 35 years old: $144,950
To be in the top 50%, you need a net worth of at least $30,400.
To be in the top 10%, you need a net worth of at least $259,780.
36 to 40 years old: $218,400
To be in the top 50%, you need a net worth of at least $47,700.
To be in the top 10%, you need a net worth of at least $464,100.
41 to 45 years old: $379,000
To be in the top 50%, you need a net worth of at least $85,600.
To be in the top 10%, you need a net worth of at least $721,800.
46 to 50 years old: $546,200
To be in the top 50%, you need a net worth of at least $131,590.
To be in the top 10%, you need a net worth of at least $1,173,100.
51 to 55 years old: $586,470
To be in the top 50%, you need a net worth of at least $134,920.
To be in the top 10%, you need a net worth of at least $1,224,500.
56 to 60 years old: $998,100
To be in the top 50%, you need a net worth of at least $188,250.
To be in the top 10%, you need a net worth of at least $2,456,300.
61 to 65 years old: $1,015,350
To be in the top 50%, you need a net worth of at least $209,700.
To be in the top 10%, you need a net worth of at least $1,957,700.
66 to 70 years old: $852,300
To be in the top 50%, you need a net worth of at least $218,500.
To be in the top 10%, you need a net worth of at least $1,712,000.
71 to 75 years old: $990,500
To be in the top 50%, you need a net worth of at least $255,900.
To be in the top 10%, you need a net worth of at least $2,118,600.
76 to 99 years old: $1,003,800
To be in the top 50%, you need a net worth of at least $259,900.
To be in the top 10%, you need a net worth of at least $2,079,069.
Editor's note: An earlier version of this story mislabeled the net worth it takes to be in the top percent of each age group. These figures represent the minimum net worth you need, not the median.
Tanza is a CFP® professional and former correspondent for Personal Finance Insider. She broke down personal finance news and wrote about taxes, investing, retirement, wealth building, and debt management. She helmed a biweekly newsletter and a column answering reader questions about money.Tanza is the author of two ebooks, A Guide to Financial Planners and "The One-Month Plan to Master your Money."In 2020, Tanza was the editorial lead on Master Your Money, a yearlong original series providing financial tools, advice, and inspiration to millennials.Tanza joined Business Insider in June 2015 and is an alumna of Elon University, where she studied journalism and Italian. She is based in Los Angeles.
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