What percentage of US population has 10 million dollars?

What Is the Average Net Worth of the Top 1%?

Mark Cussen, CMFC, has 13+ years of experience as a writer and provides financial education to military service members and the public. Mark is an expert in investing, economics, and market news.

Updated January 09, 2023
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Fact checked by Suzanne Kvilhaug

Suzanne is a content marketer, writer, and fact-checker. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Finance degree from Bridgewater State University and helps develop content strategies for financial brands.

Many people perceive being wealthy as having a nice house, a late-model car, and a summer cottage. But the kind of money that the wealthiest 1% of the world’s households has dwarfed this concept. This segment of the population owns large portions of major corporations, multibillion-dollar investment funds, islands in the Caribbean, and even rocket ships that are taking them into outer space.

The average net worth of the 1%, also known as the richest 1% of the global population’s households, has mushroomed over the past two decades. It now towers higher above the net worth of the average citizen than ever before. Here are some of the basic facts about how the 1% in the U.S. lives.

Key Takeaways

• As of 2019, the top 1% of household net worth in the U.S. starts at $11,099,166.
  
• An individual would need to earn an average of $401,622 per year in order to join the top 1%, and a household would need an income of $570,00.
• The median household income was $70,784 in 2021, and $45,470 for individuals.
• The widening gaps in wealth and income stem from a variety of factors, including the wealthiest’s increasing dominance of public and private equity, and tax breaks.
• As of 2022, there are 2,668 billionaires in the world with a cumulative wealth valued at $12.7 trillion.

America’s Richest: A Demographic Breakdown

Before looking at the demographics of the top 1% in the U.S., it’s important to understand just how much this portion of the U.S. population earns: an individual would need to earn an average of $401,622 per year in order to join the top 1%, and a household would need an income of $570,00.

In order to become part of the top 0.01% a household would need the staggering figure of over $3 million annually.

Compare that to the median real earnings of all workers in the United States in 2021, which was $45,470 for individuals and $70,784 for households.

Although the media and politicians have largely portrayed this group as Wall Street fat cats, demographic analysis reveals a different picture. The wealthiest 1% are spread across many industries and come from many backgrounds. They include medical professionals, entrepreneurs, and executives, as well as those who inherited their wealth.

According to Internal Revenue Service (IRS) data, the top 1% in the U.S. earned over 20% of the total adjusted gross income (AGI) in the U.S. and paid just under 40% of all federal income taxes. They also accounted for just under one-third of all charitable donations.

The World’s Richest

The number of billionaires counted for Forbes’ 35th annual list of the world’s wealthiest exploded to an unprecedented 2,755 in 2021—660 more than in 2020. Altogether, they were worth $13.1 trillion, up from $8 trillion on the previous year’s list. Forbes’ list for 2022 changes slightly, accounting for 2,668 billionaires in the world with a cumulative wealth valued at $12.7 trillion.

The Widening Wealth Gap

According to the Economic Policy Institute, the net worth of the top 1% of American households rose steadily through the second half of the 20th century and beyond. For instance:

• The wealthiest 1% in the U.S. had net worths equal to about 125 times that of the average American household in 1962.
• By 2009, their net worths were about 225 times the net worth of the average household.
• The gap between the richest and the poorest in the U.S. more than doubled between 1982 and 2016.

The minimum net worth of the top 1% of households is roughly $11.1 million. The top 10% have a net worth of about $1.2 million.

172%

Percentage increase in wages received by the top 1% from 1980 to 2020, compared to 31% for those in the bottom 90%.

The growth in the wealth of middle-class Americans virtually ground to a halt somewhere around the turn of the 21st century. The median income for middle-class Americans rose at an average rate of 1.2% per year from 1970 to the year 2000. From 2000 to 2018, the rate slowed to 0.3% per year.

The wealth of the top 1% continues to outstrip that of the entire middle class. In fact, the top earners hold more wealth than the middle and upper-middle classes put together.

There are a variety of reasons for the disparity, but one important factor is outsized stock ownership among the richest Americans. The 1% own more than 50% of the equity shares in both private and public companies. Much of their wealth comes from soaring stock prices.

That, of course, can leave them vulnerable to declines in stock prices. But they may get even richer if they take some of those stock gains and reinvest the money in investments that cater to rich investors, like hedge funds and private equity ventures.

Underlying Causes of the Wealth Gap

Much of the growing disparity can be traced to the steady flow of tax breaks for income, gifts, and estate taxes. These can disproportionately advantage rich Americans. For example, the first $12.06 million of an inheritance is exempt from taxes as of 2022. That figure rises to $12.92 million in 2023.

Although the middle class also benefits from this reduction in taxes, it allows the wealthy to retain a much greater portion of their assets and pass them on to their heirs. In fact, there’s been a lot of debate about how the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) of 2017, which was passed by the Trump administration, influenced the wealthiest Americans.

The Trump White House consistently defended the bill, saying it helped put money back in the pockets of the middle class. Others disagreed.

In their book, The Triumph of Injustice (2019), economists Emmanuel Saez and Gabriel Zucman argued that the tax reform bill gave the wealthiest households an effective lower average tax rate than the rest of the U.S. population.

As of February 2023, the richest person in the world is Bernard Arnault, with a net worth of $190 billion.

Criticism of the Top 1%

There’s been a lot of criticism of the world’s ultra-rich, especially those living in the United States. They’ve been accused of hoarding their wealth, lobbying for tax breaks, and not contributing their fair share in taxes.

Many politicians want more taxes on the wealthy. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) proposed a tax on ultra-millionaires as part of her 2016 campaign to become the Democratic presidential candidate for the 2020 election. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), also a candidate, pushed for an estate tax hike, meaning billionaire heirs would pay more in taxes. But this hasn’t gotten much traction as of yet.

President Joe Biden managed to get through some measures that pursue new revenue sources from wealthy Americans in his Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. These include:

• Additional IRS funding to pursue unpaid taxes due from those who earn $400,000 or more.
• A minimum corporate tax of 15%.
• A 1% tax surcharge on stock buybacks to discourage excessive use of profits to reward shareholders and executives.

How Much Income Is Needed to Be in the Top 1%?

An individual would need to earn an average of $401,622 per year in order to join the top 1%, and a household would need an income of $570,00.

What Is the Net Worth of the Top 1% of Americans?

The world’s top 1% is formed by the richest individuals. In the U.S and as of 2019, the top 1% of household net worth starts at $11,099,166.

What Percentage of the Population Has a Net Worth of $1 Million?

Roughly 10% of Americans have a net worth of $1.22 million or more. Compare that to the top 1% of the American population, which has a minimum of about $11.1 million per household.

The Bottom Line

Like the poor, the rich are always with us: Disparity in income is inevitable in a capitalist society and a free-enterprise economy. However, the fact that the disparity seems to be increasing is a source of growing concern for many.

The uneven impact of the COVID-19 pandemic shed a brighter light on an issue that had been developing for years: In the U.S., the share of the nation’s wealth held by the top 1% increased from 23% to nearly 32% between 1989 and 2018.

Even billionaires such as Warren Buffett have expressed amazement that they often pay less in taxes than their employees do. Whether the 1% should be left alone or whether their wealth should be somehow shared will doubtless be an ongoing debate.

Correction—Feb. 7, 2022: This article has been updated from a previous version to specify the distinction between the U.S. and global statistics on wealth.

How Many Millionaires Are in the US? 2023 Millionaire Statistics

Ana-Ioana Ciochia is a fact checker, researcher and writer for FinMasters. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Chinese and English and is working on her Master’s degree in International Management and Marketing.

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Updated on Jan 9, 2023

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Most of us dream about what it would be like to have $1 million or more. You could retire early, buy a lovely beach house in the South of France and spend your life doing things you love. Or you could use that money to help your community grow or to provide humanitarian aid. The list of possibilities seems endless, but how do actual millionaires spend their money? These millionaire statistics have some answers.

Let’s take a look at how millionaires made their money and how they use it.

Jump to:

• Key Findings
• How Many Millionaires Are There in the US?
• Which State Has the Most Millionaires?
• How Millionaires Make, Grow, and Spend Their Money
• Does the US Have the Most Millionaires?

Key Findings:

• 21,951,000 people in the U.S. have a net worth of $1 million or more.
• Among all states, New Jersey has the most millionaire households.
• Only 3% of American millionaires received an inheritance of $1 million or above.
• Real estate makes up about 40% of a typical millionaire’s net worth.
• China, Japan, Germany, the U.K., France, and Australia added together have fewer millionaires than the U.S.
• The typical American millionaire owns just one property (43%).

How Many Millionaires Are There in the US?

Data from the Credit Suisse Global Wealth Report shows that in 2020 there were just under 30 million millionaires in the US.

The number of millionaires increased by over 3 million just from 2010 to 2020. [1] ✓ ✓ Trusted source
Credit Suisse Research Institute
Credit Suisse Research Institute studies long-term economic trends with a global impact.

Is a Millionaire in the Top 1% of Americans by net worth?

Having a net worth of $1 million will not put you in the top 1%. You’ll need a minimum net worth of around $11.1 million to get into the 1% of Americans by wealth. [2]

Which State Has the Most Millionaires?

New Jersey has the highest rate of millionaires, with 9.76% of households showing a net worth of $1 million or above. That means that 246,058 New Jersey households are millionaires. [4]

How Millionaires Make, Grow, and Spend Their Money

Let’s take a look at how people got to become millionaires and how they choose to invest and spend their money.

How Many Millionaires Inherited Their Wealth?

21% of millionaires received some inheritance, but only 3% received an inheritance of $1 million or above. 79% of millionaires did not receive any inheritance from their family or relatives. 8 out of 10 millionaires come from low-income families. [3]

Percent of millionaires that inherited their wealth

Did Millionaires Get Rich Thanks to Their Income?

The majority of millionaires didn’t become wealthy because of their six-figure wages. In fact, 93% of millionaires polled by Ramsey Solutions claimed they did not become rich due to their salary but rather by working hard and avoiding debt. Only 31% of respondents surveyed had a $100,000 annual income at some time in their careers. One-third never made $100,000 a year at any point in their career. [3] ✓ ✓ Trusted source
Ramsey Solutions
Ramsey Solutions, founded by personal finance personality and radio show host Dave Ramsey, is a media company offering financial education and guidance.

Percent of millionaires with six-figure income at some time in their careers

What Percentage of Millionaires Have Liquidity?

Only 27% of millionaires have liquidity. This makes perfect sense as millionaires invest in several categories of monetary and physical assets, such as stocks, mutual funds, retirement accounts, and real estate, to protect and grow their wealth. [5]

Percent of millionaires that have liquidity

What Do Millionaires Invest In?

40% of an average millionaire’s assets consist of real estate. That’s partly because real estate can be a great investment and partly because US property values are very high. Many millionaires have a significant percentage of their wealth tied up in their primary residence. In California, for example, the average home value is almost $800,000, which puts an average homeowner 80% of the way toward being a millionaire!

Corporate equities and mutual fund shares (40%) are another preferred investment. [6]

How Many Properties Does the Average American Millionaire Own?

Although many people imagine millionaires owning various properties, the average American millionaire prefers to own only one property (43%), with only 8.5% of the millionaire in the U.S owning four properties or more. [7]

Which Country Has the Most Millionaires?

Research done by the Credit Suisse Research Institute states that the country with the highest number of millionaires is the U.S., with nearly 30 million millionaires and 17 million people with wealth up to $5 million! To put numbers in perspective, China, Japan, Germany, the U.K., France, and Australia added together have a total of 17 million millionaires! [1] ✓ ✓ Trusted source
Credit Suisse Research Institute
Credit Suisse Research Institute studies long-term economic trends with a global impact.

Is a Millionaire Rich?

For most of us – especially those of us who aren’t millionaires – the word “millionaire” conjures up images of spectacular wealth. But is a millionaire really rich?

Most Americans don’t think so. The 2022 Charles Schwab Modern Wealth Survey found that Americans see a net worth of $2.2 million as the minimum to be considered “wealthy”, and that a net worth of $774,000 is needed to be “financially comfortable”.

Those figures get even higher in major urban areas.

Being a millionaire doesn’t necessarily mean you have a great deal of disposable wealth, especially if you live in a high-cost environment. If your net worth is primarily in your primary residence you could even be financially stressed despite being a millionaire, especially if your property taxes are high and your income is limited!

“Millionaire” is a convenient term to describe wealthy people, but wealth isn’t just about net worth, especially when inflation is high. Income, debt, and cost of living all make a difference in defining whether a person can be considered “rich”.

Farming and Farm Income

American agriculture and rural life underwent a tremendous transformation in the 20th century. Early 20th century agriculture was labor intensive, and it took place on many small, diversified farms in rural areas where more than half the U.S. population lived. Agricultural production in the 21st century, on the other hand, is concentrated on a smaller number of large, specialized farms in rural areas where less than a fourth of the U.S. population lives. The following material provides an overview of these trends, as well as trends in farm sector and farm household incomes.

• Agricultural Research and Productivity
• Farm Structure and Organization
• Farm Sector Income & Finances
• Farm Household Well-being

The number of U.S. farms continues slow decline

After peaking at 6.8 million farms in 1935, the number of U.S. farms fell sharply until the early 1970s. Rapidly falling farm numbers during the earlier period reflected growing productivity in agriculture and increased nonfarm employment opportunities. Since 1982, the number of U.S. farms has continued to decline, but much more slowly. In the most recent survey, there were 2.00 million U.S. farms in 2022, down from 2.20 million in 2007. Similarly, the acres of land in farms continue its downward trend with 893 million acres in 2022, down from 915 million acres ten years earlier. The average farm size was 446 acres in 2022, only slightly greater than the 440 acres recorded in the early 1970s.

Productivity growth is still the major driver of U.S. agricultural growth

Technological developments in agriculture have been influential in driving changes in the farm sector. Innovations in animal and crop genetics, chemicals, equipment, and farm organization have enabled continuing output growth without adding much to inputs. As a result, even as the amount of land and labor used in farming declined, total farm output nearly tripled between 1948 and 2019.

U.S. gross cash farm income forecast to increase in 2022 but decrease in 2023

U.S. sector gross cash farm income (GCFI) is measured as annual income before expenses and includes cash receipts, farm-related cash income, and Government farm program payments. In inflation-adjusted 2023 dollars, GCFI is forecast at $618.0 billion in the calendar year 2022 and $575.4 billion in 2023. In 2002, GCFI was $354.6 billion and has increased over time primarily due to higher cash receipts. If forecasts are realized, GCFI would increase by 13.8 percent in 2022 relative to 2021 and then decrease by 6.9 percent in 2023 relative to 2022.

U.S. net farm income forecast to increase in 2022 but decrease in 2023

Gross farm income reflects the total value of agricultural output plus Government farm program payments. Net farm income (NFI) reflects income after expenses from production in the current year and is calculated by subtracting farm production expenses from gross farm income. NFI considers both cash and noncash income as well as expenses and accounts for changes in commodity inventories. Inflation-adjusted net farm income is forecast to be $167.3 billion in calendar year 2022, an 8.3-percent increase from 2021 and the highest level since 1973. In 2023, net farm income is expected to decrease by 18.2 percent relative to 2022. Farm production expenses are projected to increase 11.0 percent in 2022 relative to 2021 and 1.3 percent from 2022 to 2023.

Corn, soybeans accounted for half of all U.S. crop cash receipts in 2021

Crop cash receipts totaled $241.0 billion in calendar year 2021. Receipts from corn and soybeans accounted for $121.2 billion (50.3 percent) of the total.

Cattle/calf receipts comprised the largest portion of U.S. animal/animal product receipts in 2021

Cash receipts for animals and animal products totaled $195.8 billion in calendar year 2021. Cattle/calf receipts accounted for $72.9 billion (37.2 percent) of that total, while poultry and eggs receipts accounted for $46.1 billion (23.5 percent), and dairy receipts accounted for $41.8 billion (21.3 percent).

Most farms are small, but the majority of production is on larger farms

Gross cash farm income (GCFI) includes income from commodity cash receipts, farm-related income, and Government payments. Family farms (where most of the business is owned by the operator and individuals related to the operator) of various types together accounted for nearly 98 percent of U.S. farms in 2021. Small family farms (less than $350,000 in GCFI) accounted for 89 percent of all U.S. farms. Large-scale family farms ($1 million or more in GCFI) accounted for about 3 percent of farms but 47 percent of the value of production.

Most farmers receive off-farm income; small-scale operators depend on it

Median total household income among all farm households ($92,239) exceeded the median total household income for all U.S. households ($70,784) in 2021. Median household income and income from farming increase with farm size and most households earn some income from off-farm employment. About 89 percent of U.S. farms are small, with GCFI less than $350,000; the households operating these farms typically rely on off-farm sources for the majority of their household income. In contrast, the median household operating large-scale farms earned $486,475 in 2021, and most of that came from farming.

Last updated: Tuesday, March 14, 2023

For more information, contact: Kathleen Kassel