The Magic Number For Wealth Went Up $300,000 From Last Year — Here's Why The bar keeps getting higher.
By Sherin Shibu Edited by Melissa Malamut
Key Takeaways
- According to a new survey from Charles Schwab, Americans think it takes $2.5 million to be considered wealthy in 2024, a $300,000 increase from last year.
- The cause could be a higher cost of living as well as emotionally driven views of wealth, said Charles Schwab financial planning director Rob Williams.
- The number for financial comfort is down to $778,000, a decrease from the $1 million indicated by participants last year.
The average American thinks being rich means a $2.5 million net worth.
A Wednesday survey from Charles Schwab tracked the bar for wealth by generation, from Gen Z to Boomers. Each group gave a different number as the threshold to be rich; the older the group, the larger the magic number for wealth.
Gen Z (which Charles Schwab defined as born from 1997 to 2002) thinks it takes $1.2 million to be wealthy, while millennials (1981 to 1996) put the number at $2.2 million, Gen X (1965 to 1980) at $2.7 million, and boomers (1948 to 1964) at $2.8 million.
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The new $2.5 million average is $300,000 higher than the $2.2 million average survey participants gave last year. The higher number could reflect rising inflation and economic fears.
"The notion of wealth combines both numbers and emotions," Charles Schwab managing director of financial planning Rob Williams told Bloomberg. "The jump from $2.2 million to $2.5 million demonstrates both sides — the cost of living is rising, as are, it's likely, most Americans' more emotion-fueled views of what it takes to be wealthy."
Wealth aside, the survey also looked at the average net worth Americans think it takes to be "financially comfortable."
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Once again, the numbers were divided among younger and older generations. Gen Z's financial comfort number was $406,000 while millennials pinpointed it at $725,000, Gen X at $873,000, and Boomers at $780,000.
The average net worth to be financially comfortable is $778,000, which is down from the $1 million average recorded last year.
The survey was based on responses from 1,200 Americans aged 21 to 75 and was conducted in March.
