AnswerAt age 25 with $100k income, the median US net worth is $26,000. The 75th percentile is $80,000. You can see where you rank below.
Median: $26,000 · 75th percentile: $80,000
Source: Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances, 2025 data (released Oct 2026), computed from public microdata
Am I behind at age 25 on $100k?
Median net worth for US households age 25 earning $100k is $26,000; top 10% starts at $256,000. Computed from the Federal Reserve's 2025 Survey of Consumer Finances.
Earning about $100,000 at 25 does not mean wealth yet. In SCF 2025 the median net worth for under-35 households in the $50,000 to $100,000 income tier is $26,000, only about 0.3x of annual income, while the top quarter holds $80,000 or more. At this age high pay shows up first as saving capacity, then as a balance.
Your numbers
Peer group: age under 35 · $50,000 – $100,000Your $26,000 ranks ahead of 50% of US households age under 35 earning $50,000 – $100,000.
Another $230,000 in net worth would put you in the top 10% for your peer group.
How this number is calculated
We look up your age and income in the Federal Reserve's 2025 Survey of Consumer Finances (the most recent SCF, released Oct 2026), then interpolate your position between 25th/50th/75th/90th/99th percentile breakpoints for that age×income cell. The Fed does not publish those cells, so we compute them from its public microdata. Figures are in 2025 USD, and cells with few sampled families are noisy. Households with similar age and income show meaningful net-worth variance — the percentile reflects how your balance sheet compares to theirs, not to the full US population.
What these numbers mean for age 25, $100k
This tier covers households from about $50,000 to $100,000, so $100,000 sits at its upper edge. Typical roles include engineers, analysts, consultants, and nurses or managers in higher-cost areas. The median of $26,000 is a little below the $33,000 median for all under-35 households, which can seem backwards. In this data, income and net worth are only loosely linked in the mid-twenties, because many people are still paying down student or car loans. A quarter of households here hold $3,000 or less.
What changes the outcome is how much of the paycheck is saved and how long it compounds. As an illustration, saving 15% of $100,000 ($15,000 a year) at a 7% real return grows to about $86,000 in five years, which is above the 75th percentile of $80,000. At 10% the same five years produce about $57,500. These are assumptions, not forecasts, and they ignore job changes and market swings. Rent, loan size, and whether the employer matches retirement contributions often decide which side of the median a household lands on.
The 90th percentile of $256,000 and the 99th of $1.08M typically involve stock compensation, a home that appreciated, or family money for a down payment. Popular rules of thumb such as one times salary saved by 30 sit well above the median here, so most similar households are behind them. The under-35 median is also lower in SCF 2025 than in the 2022 survey after inflation, though sampling error means the size of that shift is uncertain. Being behind a rule of thumb is common and is not a personal failing.
Benchmarks for age 25, $100k
Source: Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances, 2025 (released October 9, 2026); cells computed from public microdata. Figures in 2025 USD. Cells built on fewer than about 100 sampled families are noisy. Your seeded percentile if net worth equals the median for this cell: 50th.
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Frequently asked questions
Why is the 25th percentile only $3,000 at this income?
Many households in this tier carry student loans, car loans, or high rent, and some have only recently started full-time work. A quarter of them have $3,000 or less, which shows that income alone does not set net worth. The cell covers a broad income range, so a household at the top of it may be doing better than the figures suggest.
Is $26,000 behind for a $100,000 earner at 25?
Compared with the common guideline of about one times salary saved by age 30, yes, the median is far below it. But that guideline refers to retirement savings, the bracket includes people up to 34, and the typical household here is behind it. Savings rate and time matter more than one snapshot.
How do stock grants and signing bonuses count in net worth?
Shares you own, including vested stock, count at market value, and cash bonuses count once they are in the bank. Unvested grants generally do not count. That means a swing in an employer's share price can move a household across percentile lines quickly, which is one reason the upper percentiles here are so spread out.
How much would I need to save to reach $80,000 in five years?
As an illustration at a 7% real return, saving about 15% of a $100,000 income, or $15,000 a year, reaches roughly $86,000 in five years, passing that mark. Saving 10% reaches about $57,500. Real results depend on returns, raises, and interruptions, so treat these as rough sizing, not predictions.
Should I max out retirement accounts or save for a home first?
It depends on your city, how long you plan to stay, and whether an employer match is available. A short holding period makes buying costly because transaction fees take years to recover, while a longer horizon improves the math. Many people do both in stages. This is general education, not personal advice.
Does the survey combine two partners' incomes?
Yes. It reports household income and household net worth together. A single earner at $100,000 and a couple earning $100,000 combined fall in the same tier. This tier runs from roughly $50,000 to $100,000, so two modest incomes can place a household here as easily as one high salary.
Methodology & data sources
Calculations on this page use benchmarks from US federal statistical agencies. Percentile breakpoints are interpolated linearly between tabulated cells. Figures are in the dollars of each dataset's reference year unless noted. Numbers are educational estimates, not personalized financial advice.
Net worth figures come from the Federal Reserve SCF 2025 (2025 dollars). Age medians match the Fed's published tables; the age × income cells are computed from the public microdata, and cells with fewer than about 100 sampled families are noisy. Full methodology.