Money statistics: what the data actually shows

What is the average net worth by age?

The Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances 2022 is the most comprehensive source of US household wealth data. The key distinction to understand first is mean versus median. The SCF 2022 shows mean household net worth at $1,059,470, while the median is $192,084. That gap exists because the top 10% of US households hold 67.2% of total household wealth, pulling the mean far above what a typical family holds. For personal benchmarking, the median is the honest comparison point.

Wealth accumulates steadily through working years and peaks just before retirement. Among households under 35, half have net worth below $39,000. By the 55 to 64 bracket, that median rises to $336,100. The spread within each age group is dramatic: a 55 to 64 year old at the 90th percentile has $2,961,000, nearly nine times the median for the same age group. For a personalised figure, use the net worth by age calculator. For the income side of the equation, see the income class calculator.

What is the average salary by age?

The Bureau of Labor Statistics Current Population Survey publishes quarterly earnings data for full-time wage and salary workers in the United States. Median earnings peak in the 45 to 54 age bracket before a gradual decline in the late 50s, driven by voluntary hours reductions, early retirement among higher earners, and skill obsolescence in some sectors. In the UK, ONS ASHE 2024 data shows peak earnings in the 40 to 49 age group for both men and women.

The gender pay gap widens materially with age. At 16 to 24, women earn approximately 90% of male median earnings. By 45 to 54, that ratio drops to around 79.5%. The motherhood penalty and caregiving interruptions are the largest drivers of this widening. For a personalised percentile comparison, use the salary age curve calculator.

How much savings should I have by age?

The Federal Reserve SCF 2022 separates liquid savings (checking, savings, money market accounts) from retirement account balances. The medians for each are substantially lower than popular benchmarks suggest. The Fidelity guideline of one times your salary saved by age 30 is a target, not a description of what people typically hold. The SCF data shows the median under-35 household has $5,400 in liquid savings and approximately $27,000 in retirement accounts combined.

The Federal Reserve's Survey of Household Economics and Decisionmaking (SHED) found that approximately 40% of Americans said they could not cover a $400 emergency expense entirely from savings. That figure contextualises how far short the population sits of most published benchmarks. Savings accumulation is real but slower than financial industry guidelines imply. For a personalised comparison, use the average savings by age calculator.

What is the average debt by age?

Total household debt in the US reached approximately $17.5 trillion in Q4 2024 (NY Fed Consumer Credit Panel). Median debt per household peaks in the 35 to 44 age bracket at $141,500, driven primarily by mortgage debt. By this life stage, approximately 56% of households hold a mortgage at a median balance of $195,000. Student loans remain significant for those under 40, with a mean balance of approximately $37,000 among borrowers. Average credit card debt for households that carry a balance is approximately $6,500.

The composition of debt matters as much as the amount. Mortgage debt is secured against an appreciating asset and typically carries a lower interest rate than consumer debt. Credit card debt at 20 to 25% APR compounds aggressively. Median total debt declines steadily after age 44 as mortgages are paid down and student loans are cleared. For your own debt percentile, use the average debt by age calculator. For credit card debt specifically, see the credit card debt calculator.

What is a good credit score for my age?

The overall US median FICO score is 715, but scores rise consistently with age. Length of credit history alone accounts for 15% of the FICO calculation, which means younger adults face a structural age handicap that cannot be overcome by perfect payment behaviour alone. Experian's 2025 State of Credit report shows that Gen Z (18 to 28) averages 678, while Baby Boomers (61 to 79) average 747. A score that is below average nationally may be above average for a specific generation.

The FICO score tier distribution matters for practical decisions. Borrowers in the Good range (670 to 739) qualify for most standard loan products. Very Good (740 to 799) unlocks better rates on mortgages and auto loans. Exceptional (800+) represents the top 22.8% of scorers and typically qualifies for the best available rates. For a personalised percentile by generation, use the credit score calculator.

How much does the average person spend on rent?

The US Department of Housing and Urban Development defines rent burden as spending more than 30% of gross household income on housing. That 30% threshold was set in 1981 via the Brooke Amendment and remains the standard policy benchmark. Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies found that 22.4 million US renter households were cost burdened in 2022, and approximately 12 million of those were severely cost burdened, spending more than 50% of income on rent.

The National Low Income Housing Coalition's 2024 Out of Reach report found that a full-time worker needs to earn approximately $28.58 per hour ($59,400 annually) to afford a modest two-bedroom apartment at fair market rent nationwide. The gap between typical earnings at entry-level ages and this threshold is substantial in most major metros. In the UK, ONS data shows London renters spending on average 40 to 50% of disposable income on rent, far exceeding the 30% threshold. For a personalised rent burden calculation, use the rent burden calculator.

Are Millennials worse off than Boomers?

The narrative that Millennials are the first generation worse off than their parents is widespread but more complicated than it appears. The Federal Reserve's Distributional Financial Accounts data shows that US Millennials (born 1981 to 1996) had a median net worth of approximately $135,300 when measured at age 35 to 44 in 2022. Adjusting for inflation, Baby Boomers at the same age had a median of approximately $100,840. On that measure, Millennials are roughly 34% wealthier in real terms at the same life stage.

The generation that fared worst by this comparison is Generation X (born 1965 to 1980), whose peak wealth-building years were derailed by the 2008 financial crisis. Post-2020 asset price inflation dramatically accelerated wealth for younger Americans who already held assets. The Center for American Progress (2024) found that younger Americans' wealth grew 101% between 2019 and 2023, driven by pandemic-era savings, rising equity markets, and housing price appreciation. The persistent Millennial disadvantage relative to Boomers appears most clearly in homeownership: rates for Millennials at age 30 to 34 are materially lower, and housing has been the primary vehicle for middle-class wealth accumulation in both the US and UK. For the full generational comparison, use the net worth by age calculator.

How much does the average commute cost?

The US average one-way commute is 27.2 minutes (Census ACS 2024). Over a 40-year career at 260 working days per year, that equates to approximately 9,428 hours, or 1.61 waking years, spent purely in transit. The direct financial cost compounds on top of the time cost. The AAA 2024 Your Driving Costs report found total per-mile operating costs for a medium-sized sedan at approximately $0.67. A 10-mile one-way commute (20 miles daily) translates to approximately $3,484 in direct vehicle costs per year at that rate.

UK season ticket costs for outer London commutes average over £3,000 per year (ONS). Transport economists typically value commute time at 25 to 50% of net hourly wage when calculating true cost. When the time cost is added to direct transport costs, the total burden of a 45-minute commute at median US earnings often exceeds 10% of annual take-home pay. Research by Stutzer and Frey (2008) found that unlike most life circumstances, commute dissatisfaction does not habituate over time. For a personalised calculation, use the cost of commute calculator.

What income puts you in the top 10%?

The US Census Bureau American Community Survey 2023 puts the national median household income at approximately $80,610. Understanding where you sit in the full income distribution requires percentile thresholds rather than class labels. The top 10% threshold in household income starts at approximately $167,000. Above roughly $400,000, a household is in the top 5%. The top 1% starts at approximately $650,000 in household income.

The Pew Research Center defines upper income as earning more than double the national median after adjusting for household size. For a single person in 2024, that threshold is approximately $93,600. For a family of four, approximately $187,200. About 20% of US adults live in upper-income households by this definition. It is worth noting that approximately 37% of US households have income above $100,000, a figure that has grown significantly as both real wages and inflation have risen since 2010. For a personalised income tier assessment, use the income class calculator. To compare earnings against peers your age, use the salary age curve calculator.

How does UK wealth compare to US wealth?

The ONS Wealth and Assets Survey (WAS) Round 8 covers 2020 to 2022 and provides the most comprehensive picture of household wealth distribution in Great Britain. Overall UK median household wealth was £293,700, with mean household wealth of £565,200, a gap driven by concentration at the top. UK wealth is heavily concentrated in two illiquid asset classes: property (approximately 40% of total household wealth) and private pensions (approximately 35%). This means homeowners and those with defined-benefit pension entitlements show dramatically higher net worth than renters of the same age and income.

Direct comparison between UK and US figures is complicated by structural differences. US Social Security entitlements and NHS healthcare coverage are excluded from both countries' official wealth surveys despite representing significant economic value. The UK Gini coefficient for total wealth is 0.59, indicating severe inequality comparable to the US. The largest divergence between the two countries is in the role of housing: UK house price appreciation has been more concentrated geographically (particularly in London and the South East), creating sharper regional wealth variation than in the US. For a personalised UK or US net worth comparison, use the net worth by age calculator.