Tools Net Worth Percentile Calculator
Net worth percentile calculator by age
Enter your household’s net worth to see what percentile it puts you in among all U.S. households, and add your age to compare with households your age, including the median and average for your age group. The ranking comes from the Federal Reserve’s Survey of Consumer Finances, the most detailed survey of American wealth, restated in today’s dollars.
Your result
What to focus on next
Beyond net worth
Net worth tells you where you stand financially. But money is only one dimension of wealth.
What Is My Wealth Score measures eight dimensions of wealth, from your finances and retirement readiness to your health, relationships and free time. Each has its own free, two-minute assessment scored from 0 to 100, and your Wealth Score brings them together with prioritized next steps. No sign-up needed.
- Financial
- Retirement
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- Time
Curious how it works? Read how your Wealth Score is calculated, or start with what financial wealth really means.
Where the top 10% and top 1% start
Household net worth at each percentile, by age of the household head, in today’s dollars (rounded). Read across: half of households headed by someone 45 to 54 have less than the median shown, and one in ten has more than the top 10% figure.
| Age of head | Median | Top 25% | Top 10% | Top 1% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All households | $220,600 | $754,300 | $2.2 million | $15.6 million |
| Under 35 | $44,600 | $174,700 | $426,000 | $2.7 million |
| 35 to 44 | $154,900 | $475,000 | $1.2 million | $8.0 million |
| 45 to 54 | $282,400 | $915,700 | $2.3 million | $14.3 million |
| 55 to 64 | $417,000 | $1.3 million | $3.4 million | $20.2 million |
| 65 to 74 | $469,300 | $1.3 million | $3.4 million | $22.8 million |
| 75 and over | $383,100 | $1.1 million | $3.1 million | $20.3 million |
Median and average net worth by age
The median is the household in the middle: half have more, half have less. The average (mean) adds up every household’s net worth and divides by the number of households, so a small number of very wealthy families pull it far up. In every age group the average is roughly four to five times the median, which is why the median is the better guide to what is typical.
| Age of head | Median | Average | Below $0 |
|---|---|---|---|
| All households | $220,600 | $1.2 million | 7.5% |
| Under 35 | $44,600 | $209,900 | 16.9% |
| 35 to 44 | $154,900 | $627,400 | 9.0% |
| 45 to 54 | $282,400 | $1.1 million | 5.9% |
| 55 to 64 | $417,000 | $1.8 million | 4.4% |
| 65 to 74 | $469,300 | $2.0 million | 3.8% |
| 75 and over | $383,100 | $1.9 million | 2.0% |
In the survey’s own 2022 dollars, the median U.S. household had a net worth of $192,700 and the average was about $1.06 million.
What negative net worth means
Negative net worth means a household owes more than it owns. It is most common early in adult life, when student loans, a car loan or credit card balances are larger than savings: about one in six households headed by someone under 35 is below zero. It isn’t a permanent verdict. Paying down high-interest debt raises net worth dollar for dollar, and most households move above zero as debts shrink and retirement savings and home equity build.
How this calculator works
Percentile = share of U.S. households with a lower net worth than yours
Every three years the Federal Reserve’s Survey of Consumer Finances interviews thousands of families about everything they own and owe, and weights the answers to represent all U.S. households. It deliberately includes more wealthy families than a random sample would, so it measures the top of the distribution far better than other surveys. We ranked households in the Fed’s public 2022 data by net worth, using the survey’s own weights, to find the cut-off for every percentile, for all households and for six age groups. Our medians match the Fed’s published figures to within half a percent.
The survey reports values in 2022 dollars. To compare them with what you have today, the calculator raises them by consumer price inflation since then (the CPI-U from the Bureau of Labor Statistics). That keeps the buying power the same, but it does not capture how much stock and home prices have moved since 2022, so treat your percentile as a close estimate. Between two whole-percentile cut-offs, your percentile is interpolated in a straight line, except at zero, where many households cluster: there the calculator uses the survey’s exact share of households below zero.
How precise is it? The 2022 survey interviewed about 4,600 families, between roughly 500 and 1,000 in each age group. Using the 999 replicate weights the Fed publishes for measuring sampling error, we estimate the 95% margin of error on a rank at about ±1 to ±2 percentile points among all households and ±3 to ±5 points within one age group. So the calculator shows whole percentiles only, shows the margin of error next to your age-group rank, and ranks age-group results above the 95th or below the 5th percentile simply as top 5% or bottom 5%. Averages are computed from the same public data and land within 1% of the averages the Fed publishes.
A household is the Fed’s “family”: the single person or couple who dominate the household’s finances, plus anyone financially interdependent with them. Roommates and adult relatives who support themselves count as separate households. Age groups go by the age of the Fed’s “reference person”: the single person, the man in a mixed-sex couple, or the older partner in a same-sex couple.
Words you’ll see
- Net worth
- Everything a household owns, minus everything it owes.
- Percentile
- The share of households below you. At the 90th percentile, 90% of households have less and you are in the top 10%.
- Median
- The middle household: half have more, half have less. Unlike the average, a few billionaires don’t pull it up.
- Average (mean)
- Total net worth divided by the number of households. Because wealth is so concentrated at the top, the average is several times the median.
- Margin of error
- How far a survey estimate could plausibly be from the true figure for all households, here at 95% confidence.
- Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF)
- The Federal Reserve’s survey of U.S. household balance sheets, run every three years. The 2022 survey is the latest published.
- Today’s dollars
- Amounts adjusted for inflation since the survey, so they buy the same as the survey’s dollars did then.
Common questions
What net worth puts you in the top 10%?
A household net worth of about $2.2 million puts you in the top 10% of U.S. households, in today's dollars. The top 5% starts at about $4.3 million and the top 1% at about $15.6 million. These come from the Federal Reserve's 2022 Survey of Consumer Finances, where the top 10% started at about $1.94 million in 2022 dollars.
What is the median net worth in the U.S.?
The median U.S. household net worth was $192,900 in 2022, according to the Federal Reserve's Survey of Consumer Finances, the latest available. That is about $221,000 in today's dollars. Half of households have more and half have less.
What net worth is top 10% for my age?
In today's dollars, the top 10% starts at about $426,000 for households headed by someone under 35, $1.2 million at 35 to 44, $2.3 million at 45 to 54, $3.4 million at 55 to 64 and at 65 to 74, and $3.1 million at 75 and over. Net worth usually peaks around retirement age and then is slowly spent down.
What percentile is a $1 million net worth?
A $1 million net worth is around the 80th percentile of U.S. households, so roughly one household in five has more. Among households headed by someone under 35, it is in the top 5%.
What is the average net worth by age?
In today's dollars, the average (mean) household net worth is about $210,000 under 35, $627,000 at 35 to 44, $1.1 million at 45 to 54, $1.8 million at 55 to 64, $2.0 million at 65 to 74 and $1.9 million at 75 and over. The median, the household in the middle, is far lower: from about $45,000 under 35 to $469,000 at 65 to 74. A small number of very wealthy households pull the average to roughly four to five times the median, so the median is the better guide to what is typical. Figures are from the Federal Reserve's 2022 Survey of Consumer Finances, adjusted for inflation.
Is negative net worth normal?
It is more common than most people think. In the Federal Reserve's 2022 survey, about 7.5% of U.S. households owed more than they owned, including about 17% of households headed by someone under 35 and 9% of those 35 to 44. Negative net worth usually comes from student loans, car loans or credit card balances early in a career, and it typically turns positive as debts are paid down and savings grow. Any net worth below zero is in the bottom 7.5% or so of all U.S. households.
What counts toward net worth for this calculator?
Use the same definition as the Federal Reserve: everything your household owns minus everything it owes. Include home equity, retirement and investment accounts, cash, vehicles and business interests, and subtract mortgages, student loans, car loans and credit card balances. Couples should enter their combined figure, but leave out roommates and adult relatives who keep separate finances.
Sources
- Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF) — Federal Reserve Board
- Changes in U.S. Family Finances from 2019 to 2022: Evidence from the Survey of Consumer Finances — Federal Reserve Board, 2023
- Consumer Price Index (CPI) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
This tool is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not financial, tax, or legal advice. Consult a qualified professional for guidance specific to your situation.