Average Net Worth by age plus median, top 1% and all percentiles

By Bill Jackson December 8, 2023 4 mins read 99 Views

Below are estimated United States net worth brackets by age in 2023. It's the newest data until 2026.

You'll also find the average, median, and top 1% net worth for selected age groups.

Net Worth Benchmarks by Age in 2023

Elsewhere, we looked at average household net worth.

While overall net worth is a useful benchmark, time in a career or job makes a huge difference to wealth. By adjusting net worth statistics for age groups – a decent proxy for experience and time in career – we can work around the effects of the United States's demographics.

Net Worth Percentile by Age in 2023 in the United States. Selected percentiles and average.

Note: This data comes from the Federal Reserve's 2022 SCF. It is comprised of interviews mainly from 2022, with 25% conducted in 2023.

What was the median net worth by age?

In 2023, overall median household net worth was $192,084 (up from $121,411 in 2020).

Age	Median Net Worth
18-24	$10,222
25-29	$31,470
30-34	$88,631
35-39	$138,588
40-44	$134,382
45-49	$213,586
50-54	$266,140
55-59	$321,074
60-64	$392,860
65-69	$393,480
70-74	$438,700
75-79	$338,180
80+	$327,200

What was the average net worth by age?

The overall average household net worth in 2023 was $1,059,470, well up from 2020's $746,821.

Age	Average Net Worth
18-24	$112,104
25-29	$120,183
30-34	$258,075
35-39	$501,295
40-44	$590,710
45-49	$781,936
50-54	$1,132,497
55-59	$1,441,987
60-64	$1,675,294
65-69	$1,836,884
70-74	$1,714,085
75-79	$1,629,275
80+	$1,611,984

What is the top 1% household net worth by age?

Warning: please be skeptical; read this chart as "the top 1% is around this amount". A longer discussion is below.

To be top 1% in 2023, a household needed a net worth of $13,666,778. $11,099,166 was the 1% threshold in 2020.

Age	Top 1% Net Worth
18-24	$653,224
25-29	$2,121,910
30-34	$2,636,882
35-39	$4,741,320
40-44	$7,835,420
45-49	$8,701,500
50-54	$13,231,940
55-59	$15,371,684
60-64	$17,869,960
65-69	$22,102,660
70-74	$18,761,580
75-79	$19,868,894
80+	$16,229,800

Household Net Worth Percentiles by Age for the United States in 2023

Below is every household net worth percentile in 2020 for selected percentiles and age groups. It's dense, I know – there is a more convenient presentation (with every percentile!) in the net worth by age calculator.

Net Worth By Age Brackets

Here are the net worth brackets by age in 2023 including the value of a primary residence.

Age	Average	Median	25%	75%	90%	Top 1%
18-24	$112,104	$10,222	$88	$33,898	$184,516	$653,224
25-29	$120,183	$31,470	$3,784	$130,606	$296,830	$2,121,910
30-34	$258,075	$88,631	$11,016	$186,140	$538,750	$2,636,882
35-39	$501,295	$138,588	$16,548	$389,432	$864,340	$4,741,320
40-44	$590,710	$134,382	$23,812	$436,892	$1,182,580	$7,835,420
45-49	$781,936	$213,586	$47,668	$680,298	$1,428,714	$8,701,500
50-54	$1,132,497	$266,140	$54,414	$913,012	$2,576,540	$13,231,940
55-59	$1,441,987	$321,074	$84,977	$1,137,318	$2,672,160	$15,371,684
60-64	$1,675,294	$392,860	$80,372	$1,131,122	$3,042,280	$17,869,960
65-69	$1,836,884	$393,480	$68,972	$1,154,552	$2,961,060	$22,102,660
70-74	$1,714,085	$438,700	$124,757	$1,234,946	$2,999,396	$18,761,580
75-79	$1,629,275	$338,180	$89,504	$991,520	$2,914,188	$19,868,894
80+	$1,611,984	$327,200	$95,230	$944,334	$2,540,500	$16,229,800

Net Worth By Age Brackets (No House)

I know some people prefer this measure, so here are the net worth brackets by age in 2023 ignoring the value of a primary residence:

Age	Average	Median	25%	75%	90%	Top 1%
18-24	$83,365	$9,774	$74	$22,616	$74,184	$553,224
25-29	$84,699	$19,270	$1,218	$71,680	$191,604	$1,877,120
30-34	$182,198	$36,178	$2,530	$100,248	$291,262	$2,403,902
35-39	$380,972	$43,416	$8,070	$208,930	$645,320	$4,556,660
40-44	$436,408	$57,668	$8,699	$245,586	$818,830	$6,702,740
45-49	$575,097	$92,370	$15,144	$408,002	$1,000,826	$7,661,420
50-54	$861,235	$94,923	$13,406	$531,484	$1,971,490	$11,897,166
55-59	$1,148,392	$131,460	$15,108	$709,824	$2,013,360	$14,054,100
60-64	$1,364,736	$143,640	$12,202	$751,586	$2,489,008	$15,620,874
65-69	$1,512,595	$132,290	$11,780	$784,100	$2,302,160	$18,992,040
70-74	$1,380,172	$237,692	$28,440	$770,944	$2,456,520	$16,459,620
75-79	$1,308,408	$112,106	$12,818	$527,860	$2,384,808	$17,971,150
80+	$1,284,384	$88,049	$17,284	$524,526	$1,860,666	$15,590,600

Note: you should include a house in your net worth – it has real value, and at minimum offsets rent you'd be paying.

Methodology on 2023 United States Household Income Brackets

Data is sourced from the Federal Reserve's 2022 SCF, released October 2023. Find the Federal Reserve's summary reports here, and the data descriptions here.

Is this household net worth data?

This is not technically household data but primary economic unit data.

They are very close, but:

..."the PEU consists of an economically dominant single individual or couple (married or living as partners) in a household and all other individuals in the household who are financially interdependent with that individual or couple. For example, in the case of a household composed of a married couple who own their home, a minor child, a dependent adult child, and a financially independent parent of one of the members of the couple, the PEU would be the couple and the two children. Summary information is collected at the end of the interview for all household members who are not included in the PEU. The only variables collected separately for the respondent and the spouse or partner of the respondent are those concerning employment, pension, and demographic characteristics. The great majority of the time, the PEU and the household are identical."
Federal Reserve SCF Data Codebook, 2022

How many PEU samples are in 2023 wealth data by age?

2023: 4,602 surveys with 7 redactions. Estimated PEUs of 131,306,390
2020: 5,783 surveys with 6 redactions. Estimated PEUs of 128,642,430.

Samples and Estimates by Age

Broken down by age, here are the number of data points in the set (and the number of households/PEUs they map onto):

Age	Samples	Estimated PEUs
18-24	111	5,919,125
25-29	211	7,983,895
30-34	291	12,401,730
35-39	352	10,625,525
40-44	411	11,656,460
45-49	396	9,908,830
50-54	424	11,635,075
55-59	490	11,546,170
60-64	536	12,673,860
65-69	492	11,487,525
70-74	374	9,684,020
75-79	256	7,403,470
80+	251	8,380,695

To head off the inevitable questions about individual ages, they don't particularly make sense with this data set. There just aren't that many data points to go around – and net worth is not a normal distribution (or well-behaved at all, really).

There are only rules of thumb here: I'd prefer to use 3 samples per percentile.

For good survey design oversampling the poorly-behaved top (like in the SCF!), we can push it a bit – and I do in 18-24, 25-29, 75-79, 80+ age groups. But, please, you need to be skeptical. Particularly of the top 2-3%, in age groups like 18-24 and 25-29.

Does net worth include the capitalized value of defined benefit plans?

It's an important question – and no, it does not. For a longer discussion please see the average net worth article.

Basically, there is no secondary market for selling a defined benefit plan. I could build some sort of an overlay into the tools, but it's not a 'real' number (although recent scholarship is pretty good).

Are the younger age groups accurate?

Yes, with caveats – read this section to the end. Remember, per the net worth research, you're looking at Primary Economic Units not households.

The SCF isn't necessarily good at capturing the debt of adult children not dependent on a parent's assets in a PEU (see this paper for more, 4.2 Liabilities). For an obvious example, the SCF's sample doesn't include adults in institutional settings... or dormitories.

So: as you read, note that the younger households you see – especially in the 18-24 year old age group – are financially independent or emancipated households.

The post Average Net Worth by Age plus Median, Top 1%, and All Percentiles appeared first on DQYDJ – Don't Quit Your Day Job....

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By: PK
Title: Average Net Worth by Age plus Median, Top 1%, and All Percentiles
Sourced From: dqydj.com/net-worth-percentiles-by-age/
Published Date: Thu, 19 Oct 2023 02:17:47 +0000

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