What is the distribution of household wealth in the US?
The top 1% holds $38.7 trillion in wealth. That's more than the combined wealth of America's middle class, a group many economists define as the middle 60% of households by income. Those households hold about 26% of all wealth. Low-income Americans, representing the bottom 20% by income, own about 3% of the wealth.
The top 3.65%, with incomes over $200,000, earned 17.5%. Households with annual incomes from $50,000 to $75,000, 18.2% of households, earned 16.5% of all income. Households with annual incomes from $50,000 to $95,000, 28.1% of households, earned 28.8% of all income. The bottom 10.3% earned 1.06% of all income.
Average Net Worth of an American Family
Both median and average family net worth surged between 2019 and 2022, according to the U.S. Federal Reserve. Average net worth increased by 23% to $1,063,700, the Fed reported in October 2023, the most recent year it published the data.
Americans held roughly $137.6 trillion in wealth in 2022, according to the Federal Reserve. For the top 20%, that equaled about $97.9 trillion. The middle class combined held $35.7 trillion. And the bottom quintile had $4.1 trillion in total wealth.
Household total net worth represents the total value of assets (financial as well as non-financial) minus the total value of outstanding liabilities of households (including non-profit institutions serving households).
If it was meant to feed 10 people, an equal distribution would be one slice per person. However, that's not what happens. A small number of families hold most of the wealth, and many families have relatively little or no wealth at all, based on the most recent Survey of Consumer Finances data.
Family income. Note: Among all adults. Labor earnings were the most common source of income, but many people had other sources of income. Nearly two-thirds of adults and their spouse or partner received wages, salaries, or self-employment income (collectively referred to here as labor income) (table 3).
Income distribution definition
Income distribution is defined as how the nation's total income is distributed amongst its population.
According to Schwab's 2023 Modern Wealth Survey, Americans perceive an average net worth of $2.2 million as wealthy. Knight Frank's research indicates that a net worth of $4.4 million is required to be in the top 1% in America, a figure much higher than in countries like Japan, the U.K. and Australia.
Median wealth (the amount held by a typical family, shown in the top panel) among White families was $285,000 in 2022.
What is the average wealth of a white family in the US?
In 2022, median wealth was approximately $62,000 for non-white Latino or Hispanic households; $285,000 for white households; and $536,000 for Asian American households.
The pyramid shows that: half of the world's net wealth belongs to the top 1%, top 10% of adults hold 85%, while the bottom 90% hold the remaining 15% of the world's total wealth, top 30% of adults hold 97% of the total wealth.
The estimated total wealth in the United States equals roughly $135 trillion. If that wealth was redistributed to every adult American it would equal $523,255. The average couple would then have a net worth of $1,046,511. We would all be millionaires.
In one influential study, for instance, researchers asked a representative sample of 5500 Americans about their ideal distribution of wealth in the US. On average, people said that the richest 20 per cent should hold 30 per cent of the wealth, and the bottom 20 per cent just 10 per cent.
For 2022, the average wage for working Americans was $61,136. The average wages of those in the top 1 percent of wage earners were $785,968 that year. In the rarefied top 0.1 percent, the average earnings were more than $2.8 million in 2022.
How much do you need to earn to be in the top 1% income bracket? To be in the top 1% of earners, you're looking at an average annual income of $819,324. The top 0.1% of Americans earn an average of $3,312,693.
Some sources define the upper middle class as anyone making a lot of money but haven't crossed the threshold to become truly wealthy. These individuals often have a net worth of at least $500,000 to $2 million.
Household wealth percentile is the dollar amount below which a given percentage of households fall. The 50th percentile is also referred to as the median. Table 1. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2022 Survey of Income and Program Participation, public- use data.
| Age Range | Top 10% | Top 5% |
|---|---|---|
| 20-24 | $64,855 | $86,473 |
| 25-29 | $142,680 | $210,778 |
| 30-34 | $188,079 | $276,713 |
| 35-39 | $230,234 | $370,753 |
The ratio of the 90th- to 10th-percentile (inequality between the top and bottom of the income distribution) decreased from 13.53 in 2021 to 12.63 in 2022. That means income at the top of the income distribution was 12.63 times higher than income at the bottom, a 6.7% decrease from 2021.
Which race makes the most money in America?
| Race/Ethnicity of Household Head | 2021 Median Household Income (2022 dollars) | 2022 Median Household Income |
|---|---|---|
| Asian* | $109,400 | $108,700 |
| White, not Hispanic | $84,110 | $81,060 |
| Hispanic (any race)* | $62,520 | $62,800 |
| Black* | $52,080 | $52,860 |
Asian Americans, with a population of around 1.8 crore, are the highest-earning ethnic group in the USA. The median household income for Asian-Americans stands at $87,243. However, Indians are the leading ethnic group among Asian-Americans.
Middle class: Those in the 40th to 60th percentile of household income, ranging from $55,001 to $89,744. Upper middle class: Households in the 60th to 80th percentile, with incomes between $89,745 and $149,131. Upper class: The top 20% of earners, with household incomes of $149,132 or more.
distribution of wealth and income, the way in which the wealth and income of a nation are divided among its population, or the way in which the wealth and income of the world are divided among nations.
Equitable distribution of income means that income is distributed in a way that ensures fairness and allows everyone to have the same opportunities. Equitable distribution of income doesn't mean that income is distributed equally; it just means that income is distributed in a fair way.
