AnswerTo be in the top 10% of US households by net worth you need about $2,540,000. The national median is $216,100.
Top 10% starts at $2,540,000 · up 20% since the 2022 survey
Source: Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances 2025 (released October 9, 2026), household net worth in 2025 dollars
How Much Net Worth to Be in the Top 10%?
The cutoff for the top 10% of US households, how it changes with age, who is in that group and how it moved since 2022.
The top 10% cutoff
In the SCF 2025, a household at the 90th percentile has a net worth of $2,540,000. Everyone above that line is in the top 10%. The average (mean) is $1,232,000, much higher than the median because a small number of very wealthy households pull it up. Net worth is assets (home, retirement accounts, investments, business interests, vehicles and other property) minus debts such as mortgages, loans and credit cards.
Top 10% by age
Net worth rises with age, so the cutoff for the top 10% within each age group is far lower for young households than for people near retirement. The cutoff for all households combined is $2,540,000.
| Age group | Top 10% starts at | Compared with all households |
|---|---|---|
| Under 35 | $351,000 | 14% of the overall cutoff |
| 35 to 44 | $1,230,000 | 49% of the overall cutoff |
| 45 to 54 | $2,560,000 | 1.0× the overall cutoff |
| 55 to 64 | $3,460,000 | 1.4× the overall cutoff |
| 65 to 74 | $3,660,000 | 1.4× the overall cutoff |
| 75 and over | $4,190,000 | 1.6× the overall cutoff |
For example, households under 35 need $351,000 to be in the top 10% of their age group, while the highest cutoff, $4,190,000, is for 75 and over. Age groups are the standard SCF brackets and each estimate rests on a few hundred sample families, so it is approximate.
How the top 10% cutoff changed since 2022
In the previous survey (SCF 2022), the top 10% cutoff was about $2,120,000 in 2025 dollars. In the SCF 2025 it is $2,540,000, higher by about 20% after adjusting for inflation. Survey estimates carry sampling error, so read this as the direction and rough size of the change rather than a precise number; the survey does not say why it moved.
Who is in the top 10%?
The survey includes 1,140 sample families with a net worth of $2,540,000 or more. A typical one is headed by someone aged 64 with a household income of about $309,000. 9% are under 45, 42% are 45 to 64 and 49% are 65 or older.
- 96% own their home
- 89% have a retirement account
- 41% own a business
- 53% hold individual stocks directly
Where their assets are
- Primary home14%
- Retirement accounts17%
- Stocks, funds and bonds24%
- Business interests24%
- Other real estate9%
- Cash and CDs5%
- Vehicles and other assets7%
Shares are of total assets (before subtracting debt). Debt averages 3% of assets for these households. These describe everyone at or above the cutoff, so the very wealthy at the top pull the averages.
What $2.54 million can support
A common rule of thumb says a portfolio can fund withdrawals of about 4% of its starting value in the first year, adjusted for inflation afterwards. On $2.54 million that is about $101,600 a year ($8,467 a month) before taxes. It comes from historical US returns and is not a guarantee. To build $2.54 million from zero at an assumed 7% real return takes about $4,880 a month for 20 years or $2,080 a month for 30 years; the table on the $2.5 million net worth page shows more horizons, and the safe withdrawal rate calculator stress-tests the rule.
Frequently asked questions
- How much net worth do you need to be in the top 10% in the US?
- About $2,540,000. In the Federal Reserve's SCF 2025, a household needs a net worth of roughly $2,540,000 to be in the top 10% of US households, compared with a national median of $216,100.
- How much net worth do you need to be in the top 10% for your age?
- It depends heavily on age because net worth builds over a lifetime. Within each age group the top 10% starts at $351,000 for households under 35, $2,560,000 for ages 45 to 54 and $4,190,000 for the group with the highest cutoff (75 and over).
- Is the top 10% by net worth the same as the top 10% by income?
- No. Net worth is assets minus debts, and income is what a household earns in a year. Households in the top 10% by net worth have a median household income of about $309,000, so many earn far less or far more than that. Use the income percentile calculator to see where an income ranks.
- How long does it take to reach $2.54 million?
- At an assumed 7% real (after inflation) return, starting from zero, you would need to save about $4,880 a month for 20 years or about $2,080 a month for 30 years to reach $2.54 million. That is an illustration, not a forecast; returns vary and are not guaranteed.
Check your own numbers
See your exact percentile for your age and income in the net worth percentile calculator, browse the full table by age and income, or look at the net worth charts. For income, use the income percentile calculator.
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.
Not financial advice. Cutoffs are estimates from a sample survey and carry sampling error, which is larger further up the distribution and for small age groups. The survey does not include the wealthiest households on published billionaire lists. Figures are household net worth (assets minus debts) in 2025 dollars from the Federal Reserve SCF 2025, released October 9, 2026. Cutoffs by age, household profiles, the comparison with 2022 and the savings illustrations are our own calculations from the public data.